Participant Perceptions of a Robotic Coach Conducting Positive Psychology Exercises: A Qualitative Analysis

Abstract: This paper presents a qualitative analysis of participants' perceptions of a robotic coach conducting Positive Psychology exercises, providing insights for the future design of robotic coaches. Participants (n = 20) took part in a single-session (avg. 31 +- 10 minutes) Human-Robot Interaction study in a laboratory setting. We created the design of the robotic coach, and its affective adaptation, based on user-centred design research and collaboration with a professional coach. We transcribed post-study participant interviews and conducted a Thematic Analysis. We discuss the results of that analysis, presenting aspects participants found particularly helpful (e.g., the robot asked the correct questions and helped them think of new positive things in their life), and what should be improved (e.g., the robot's utterance content should be more responsive). We found that participants had no clear preference for affective adaptation or no affective adaptation, which may be due to both positive and negative user perceptions being heightened in the case of adaptation. Based on our qualitative analysis, we highlight insights for the future design of robotic coaches, and areas for future investigation (e.g., examining how participants with different personality traits, or participants experiencing isolation, could benefit from an interaction with a robotic coach).