Papers
4
Total Citations
67
H-Index
4
About
Masato Abe is a pioneering researcher at the intersection of cognitive aging, social intervention, and assistive robotics, with a focused mission to preserve and enhance cognitive health in older adults. His most significant contribution is the development and rigorous clinical testing of the Photo-Integrated Conversation Moderated by Robots (PICMOR) program, an innovative intervention that harnesses social interaction — facilitated by robots and personal photographs — to combat cognitive decline. Through a series of randomized controlled trials, Abe has systematically built an evidence base demonstrating that structured, robot-moderated group conversation can meaningfully support cognitive function in aging populations, with his 2021 trial alone accumulating 45 citations. His 2023 work represents a sophisticated evolution of this research, incorporating plasma neurofilament light chain biomarkers to understand how individual neurological profiles influence intervention outcomes — a meaningful step toward personalized cognitive care. Most recently, Abe has extended his framework into home-based settings, exploring whether robot-prompted questioning strategies can replicate benefits outside clinical environments. Collectively, his work challenges the notion that dementia prevention must rely solely on pharmacological approaches, offering an engaging, socially rich alternative that is both scalable and human-centered.
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