Lydia Melles

Papers

Total Citations

H-Index

About

Lydia Melles is a pioneering researcher at the intersection of human-robot interaction (HRI) and moral psychology, dedicated to understanding how people perceive and respond to robots that must navigate ethical dilemmas. Her work focuses on developing systematic, empirical methods to study "moral HRI"—a critical area as autonomous systems are deployed in roles requiring ethical decision-making. Melles’s most-cited paper, "Systematic methods for Moral HRI: Studying human responses to robot norm conflicts" (2023, with 5 citations), provides foundational tools for investigating how robots can possess "norm competence," enabling them to make acceptable choices when moral norms conflict. This contribution is vital for designing robots that earn human trust in sensitive contexts like healthcare, elder care, or law enforcement. By bridging computational ethics with rigorous social science, Melles offers a framework for testing human responses to robot moral reasoning, laying the groundwork for future machines that can navigate complex social and ethical landscapes. Her work is essential reading for anyone interested in the future of responsible AI and the human factors that will shape its acceptance.