The Talking Teddy Bear for social conversation: A pilot study

Abstract

In Japan, the number of older people living alone continue to rise, exceeding 590 million in 2015 (Cabinet Office 2019).Older people living alone are at risk of cognitive decline due to a lack of opportunities to talk to others.Speech production and swallowing involve common muscle groups such as the larynx, tongue, lingual jaw and lips, with close coordination between swallowing and breathing while eating or drinking (Nishio & Niimi 2004).Movements of the oral articulators influence swallowing (Inoue et al., 2014).A decline in speech-related muscle strength also affects lung and swallowing function.Anthea Tinker's concept of creativity in older adults, Active Aging, is not just about physical activity.She emphasizes that creativity and creative activities are important for maintaining cognitive abilities, both socially and individually (Price & Tinker 2014).Recently, communication robots with advanced speech recognition capabilities have appeared.In some elderly care facilities in Japan, they are used to interact with users, to provide exercise guidance, and to manage medication.However, in such cases, elderly seem to be guided passively rather than creatively.If the robot doesn't have a high level of intelligence, how will the user interact with it?