Social Robots: Are Robotic Pets Any Worse Than The Real Ones?

Adding social robots to some therapies: and healthcare situations can provide assistance neither humans nor pets can offer.

Social companion robots are getting increasingly popular, more widely used and accepted. How good is it to have a social robot for your mental health? Surprisingly though, research after research finds the same thing: a vast number of lonely people with furry robotic pets, or smiling bulky robotic chat partners consistently report an improvement in their well-being. Robotic pets are not real pets, robotic chat partners are not chat partners, robotic companions are fake. And everyone trying to ease the hardships of lonely ageing people with robots is just trying to get out of society’s responsibility of taking good care of the generation of our grandparents.