Relativizing the Design: An Ameliorative Approach to the Looping Effects of Social Robots in Mental Healthcare

Abstract

This paper argues that the employment of social robotics in mental healthcare can induce looping effects to the extent that the people being monitored, diagnosed and treated may change in consequence. I argue that those looping effects can and should be identified and exploited to facilitate positive mental health outcomes. This requires an ameliorative approach to designing and implementing healthcare robots that corresponds with the value-laden, interactive and culture-dependent nature of mental disorders. In support of this approach, I examine avatar robot therapy, which has been developed in Japan to treat the culture-bound syndrome hikikomori.