Papers
42
Total Citations
1,015
H-Index
18
About
Marlena R. Fraune is a pioneering researcher in human-robot interaction (HRI) whose work sits at the fascinating intersection of social psychology and robotics. Drawing on intergroup relations theory, she has fundamentally advanced our understanding of how people perceive, evaluate, and interact with robots — particularly in group and team contexts. Her influential "Rabble of Robots" research program, which has collectively garnered hundreds of citations, demonstrates that humans respond to groups of robots in psychologically complex ways, shaped by emotions, perceived group cohesion, and social categorization. Notably, Fraune's work reveals that people can favor ingroup robots over outgroup humans, a striking finding that challenges assumptions about human moral reasoning and loyalty. Her research on anthropomorphism shows that making robots appear more human-like meaningfully moderates these group dynamics. With over 600 cumulative citations across her top works, including the highly cited 2019 study on robot-human versus robot-robot behavior (107 citations), Fraune has established herself as a leading voice in understanding how classic social psychological phenomena — stereotyping, ingroup bias, intergroup contact — translate into an increasingly robot-populated world, with critical implications for how robots will be designed and integrated into human society.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1
- 2
- 3Rabble of Robots Effects65 citations · 2015
- 4Teammates first: Favoring ingroup robots over outgroup humans61 citations · 2017
- 5Threatening Flocks and Mindful Snowflakes60 citations · 2017
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- 9
- 10Robots in Groups and Teams43 citations · 2017