3. Human-Robot Collaboration

Paper: Conducting studies in human-robot interaction. 

Important takeaways: 

- Many relevant things about evaluation methods in human-robot interaction studies were described. Not only were different examples of studies highlighted, but also how these were evaluated. The key takeaways here are that: "It is essential to use three or more methods of evaluation to establish study validity. Additionally, it is important to determine the appropriate sample size necessary to obtain statistically significant results." Evaluation methods are also very important for us to consider as we go forward with our design. 

- In order to conduct a successful HRI study the planning and design stages are also really important. It is essential to determine what type of study will be conducted and what kind of study it will be. For our own study, either within-subjects design or between-subjects design is probably preferred. Which one it will be is not quite settled, since we are still considering the time, learning effect and potential frustrations from similar interactions with the robot. The between-subjects design might be cleaner in this regard, but the results could potentially be affected by the differences among the participants to a larger extent. 

- Another aspect that this study highlights the study location and environment. It is mentioned that it is important that the study reflects the environment where the application is meant to be used and that conditions should be simulated accordingly. This also ties into the choice of robots for the study. In our case, it is important that we try to simulate movement of the robot and the human together and how that could work, which means we need a space that allows for some travel and some movement together with the participant. 

- Furthermore, the exemplar study was very useful to see a complete study structured and performed according to the guidelines. It is also mentioned that conducting proper and successful studies is really important for the field of HRI (since it is rather new) and that these studies are always an important step in normalizing and accepting robots as a part of society and as a helpful component in our lives, which is important to remember!