Liang Hiah

Papers

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About

Liang Hiah is a researcher exploring the frontiers of human-robot interaction, with a particular focus on how abstract, non-humanoid robots can engage in meaningful social exchanges. Hiah’s work challenges the assumption that robots must resemble humans to be socially effective, instead demonstrating that even simple, abstract forms can simulate complex interpersonal dynamics like dominance and submissiveness. This foundational paper, “Abstract robots with an attitude,” has accumulated 8 citations and opens new possibilities for designing intuitive, behavior-driven interactions. To systematically study such interactions, Hiah developed an innovative observation scheme based on Laban notation, a method traditionally used for dance and movement analysis, providing researchers with a richer toolset beyond questionnaires and naive observers (7 citations). In a notable applied project, Hiah designed a robot companion to engage children during car rides, aiming to reduce parental distraction and enhance safety—a creative solution addressing a real-world challenge (6 citations). Hiah’s work bridges theory and practice, offering both methodological innovations and tangible applications that deepen our understanding of how people relate to embodied intelligent agents.