Rafael Sousa Silva
Papers
2
Total Citations
6
H-Index
2
About
Rafael Sousa Silva is a rising researcher in human-robot interaction (HRI), with a focus on how communication dynamics and perceived autonomy shape collaborative performance. His work bridges robotics, cognitive science, and human factors, exploring how robots can better coordinate with humans in complex, often remote environments. Silva’s most cited paper, “Worth the Wait” (2023, 4 citations), introduces the concept of *performative autonomy*—a design strategy that allows language-capable robots to manage communication latency during space exploration tasks, enabling effective teamwork with both co-located and distant teammates. This work addresses a critical challenge in deploying robots for long-duration missions where delays are inevitable. Building on this, his ongoing project “Toward RAPS: the Robot Autonomy Perception Scale” (2024, 2 citations) tackles a gap in HRI research: measuring how autonomous humans *perceive* a robot to be, rather than its actual autonomy level. By developing a validated scale, Silva aims to provide a tool for designing robots whose perceived autonomy aligns with task demands and user expectations. Though early in his career, Silva’s contributions are already shaping how researchers think about robot autonomy in time-sensitive, high-stakes contexts.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1
- 2Toward RAPS: the Robot Autonomy Perception Scale2 citations · 2024