230075 WS Diagnosis of Society: Social Robotics (2017S)

Over the last two decades, the field of social robotics has taken its conceptual and material form through the development of the robots such as PARO, NAO, JIBO, BUDDY and PEPPER. These robots share a common design principle according to which they are to initiate, maintain and develop social interactions in a human-like way. These and similar robots are already being tested and implemented in such social settings as for instance eldercare homes, shopping malls, schools, hospitals, and museums. In this workshop the participants will be introduced to the many aspects of social robotics through the lens of key sociological notions, but ample space will be left for the participants to explore this topic according to their own interests. Mainly by means of discussion the workshop will bring the participants up to date with the debate on social robotics as it is currently taking place within the social sciences and the humanities, as well as among the roboticists themselves. Considering that social robotics is a kind of technological development that is expected to challenge the boundary of the social world, the workshop aims to equip the participants with the necessary skills to critically identify, analyse and discuss the many questions that social robotics raises for the individual and society.