Wolfgang Minker
Papers
9
Total Citations
253
H-Index
7
About
Wolfgang Minker is a leading figure in human-robot interaction (HRI) and spoken dialogue systems, with a research focus on trust, proactivity, and social dynamics in autonomous agents. His work explores how robots and conversational assistants can build effective, collaborative partnerships with humans by anticipating needs and adapting behavior. Minker’s most-cited study, “Small Talk with a Robot? The Impact of Dialog Content, Talk Initiative, and Gaze Behavior of a Social Robot on Trust, Acceptance, and Proximity” (82 citations), demonstrates his pioneering approach to designing socially aware robots that foster trust through natural interaction. He has also investigated the role of trust in proactive conversational assistants (48 citations) and the influence of human-likeness in automated car dialogue systems (41 citations). His research extends to gender stereotypes in robot likability, deep learning for engagement recognition in imbalanced data, and proactive tutoring robots that adapt to cognitive-affective states. Minker’s notable contributions include the development of KURT, a household assistance robot capable of proactive dialogue, and frameworks for trustworthy, multi-user HRI. With over 250 citations across his key papers, Minker’s work is shaping the future of empathetic, proactive machines that seamlessly integrate into human environments.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1
- 2The Role of Trust in Proactive Conversational Assistants48 citations · 2021
- 3Human After All41 citations · 2016
- 4
- 5Deep Learning Based Engagement Recognition in Highly Imbalanced Data19 citations · 2021
- 6Including Social Expectations for Trustworthy Proactive Human-Robot Dialogue17 citations · 2022
- 7
- 8KURT: A Household Assistance Robot Capable of Proactive Dialogue7 citations · 2022
- 9How to Address Humans: System Barge-In in Multi-user HRI6 citations · 2021