Trace Roberts

Papers

Total Citations

285

H-Index

About

Trace Roberts is a leading figure in the developmental psychology of human-robot interaction, whose pioneering work explores how children perceive and relate to social robots. Her most influential research centers on the boundary between the living and the mechanical, using robotic pets as a lens to understand children’s concepts of mind, essence, and morality. In her landmark 2008 study, cited over 170 times, Roberts systematically compared children’s behavior toward and understanding of Sony’s robotic dog AIBO versus a living Australian Shepherd. This work, along with her earlier 2005 investigation, revealed that children overwhelmingly attribute richer inner lives—including physical essences, mental states, sociality, and moral standing—to the live animal. By demonstrating that even highly realistic robots are not granted the same status as living beings, Roberts has provided foundational evidence for how animacy and aliveness are constructed in childhood. Her findings have profound implications for the design of educational and therapeutic robots, as well as for our broader understanding of social cognition in an increasingly technological world.