Iolanda Leite
University of Lisbon, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Instituto Superior Técnico, Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores Investigação e Desenvolvimento, Yale University, Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa, Walt Disney (United States), Corvallis Environmental Center, Institute for Futures Studies, Futures Group (United States)
Papers
123
Total Citations
5,161
H-Index
37
About
Iolanda Leite is a pioneering researcher in human-robot interaction (HRI), social robotics, and computational empathy, whose work has fundamentally shaped how we design robots capable of meaningful, long-term relationships with humans. Her landmark 2013 survey on long-term social robot interaction, with over 836 citations, established a foundational framework for the field, while her extensive body of work on empathic robots has redefined expectations for emotionally intelligent machines. Leite's research demonstrates a consistent focus on building robots that can detect, model, and respond to human affect and engagement. Working with platforms like the iCat robot, she explored how emotional responsiveness influences children's experiences and long-term user engagement, generating hundreds of citations across multiple studies. Her 2017 survey on computational empathy, cited over 340 times, remains an essential reference for researchers developing socially perceptive artificial agents. Beyond technical contributions, Leite has pushed the field toward greater ethical awareness. Her 2023 paper on Feminist HRI challenges researchers to critically examine power, bias, and inclusion in robot design. With thousands of cumulative citations, her work bridges affective computing, child-robot interaction, and social justice, making her one of the most influential and intellectually expansive voices in contemporary robotics research.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1Social Robots for Long-Term Interaction: A Survey836 citations · 2013
- 2Empathy in Virtual Agents and Robots342 citations · 2017
- 3The influence of empathy in human–robot relations328 citations · 2012
- 4Empathic Robots for Long-term Interaction256 citations · 2014
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- 7Are emotional robots more fun to play with?123 citations · 2008
- 8As Time goes by: Long-term evaluation of social presence in robotic companions109 citations · 2009
- 9Modelling empathic behaviour in a robotic game companion for children105 citations · 2012
- 10Feminist Human-Robot Interaction103 citations · 2023