As robots become a greater part of our lives, their influence on our behavior becomes that much more important. New research from the University of Southampton suggests that while this influence may be positive, robots may also encourage us to take undue risks.
“We know that peer pressure can lead to higher risk-taking behavior,” the researchers explain. “With the ever-increasing scale of interaction between humans and technology, both online and physically, it is crucial that we understand more about whether machines can have a similar impact.”
Assessing risk
The research revolved around something known as the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART), which is a computer assessment that requires participants to press a button to inflate the balloon on the screen. Each press inflates the balloon slightly, while also adding a small amount of money to a “temporary bank account”. At any point in the process, however, the balloon can burst and all the money in the account is lost. The dilemma is, therefore, understanding when to cash in or when to continue rolling the dice.
The volunteers were split into three groups, with one group taking the test on their own, a second group taking the test alongside a robot that provided nothing but instructions on the test, and a third group who took the test with a robot that also provided various words of encouragement throughout.
The results suggest that those who had a robotic companion prodding them took more risks than their peers without such prompting. This resulted in their balloons popping far more frequently, but they also earned more money overall.
“We saw participants in the control condition scale back their risk-taking behaviour following a balloon explosion, whereas those in the experimental condition continued to take as much risk as before,” the researchers say. “So, receiving direct encouragement from a risk-promoting robot seemed to override participants’ direct experiences and instincts.”
AI’s influence
The researchers believe that further investigation is required to understand if other autonomous technologies are capable of exerting a similar influence, whether that’s digital assistants, autonomous vehicles, or on-screen avatars.
“With the widespread of AI technology and its interactions with humans, this is an area that needs urgent attention from the research community,” they conclude.
“On the one hand, our results might raise alarms about the prospect of robots causing harm by increasing risky behavior. On the other hand, our data points to the possibility of using robots and AI in preventive programs, such as anti-smoking campaigns in schools, and with hard to reach populations, such as addicts.”
