Affective Communication for Socially Assistive Robots (SARs) for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review

Cano, Sandra; González, Carina S.; Gil-Iranzo, Rosa María; Albiol-Pérez, Sergio

doi:10.3390/s21155166

Open AccessSystematic Review

Affective Communication for Socially Assistive Robots (SARs) for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review

¹

School of Computer Engineering, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Valparaíso 2340000, Chile

²

Department of Computer Engineering and Systems, University of La Laguna, 38204 La Laguna, Spain

³

Department of Computer Engineering and Industrial, University of Lleida, 25001 Lleida, Spain

⁴

Aragón Health Research Institute (IIS Aragón), Universidad de Zaragoza, Cdad. Escolar, 4, 44003 Teruel, Spain

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Sensors 2021, 21(15), 5166; https://doi.org/10.3390/s21155166

Submission received: 21 May 2021 / Revised: 18 July 2021 / Accepted: 26 July 2021 / Published: 30 July 2021

(This article belongs to the Special Issue HCI for Ambient Intelligence)

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Abstract

Research on affective communication for socially assistive robots has been conducted to enable physical robots to perceive, express, and respond emotionally. However, the use of affective computing in social robots has been limited, especially when social robots are designed for children, and especially those with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Social robots are based on cognitive-affective models, which allow them to communicate with people following social behaviors and rules. However, interactions between a child and a robot may change or be different compared to those with an adult or when the child has an emotional deficit. In this study, we systematically reviewed studies related to computational models of emotions for children with ASD. We used the Scopus, WoS, Springer, and IEEE-Xplore databases to answer different research questions related to the definition, interaction, and design of computational models supported by theoretical psychology approaches from 1997 to 2021. Our review found 46 articles; not all the studies considered children or those with ASD.

Keywords: affective computing; autism spectrum disorders; affective human–robot interaction; socially assistive robots; therapeutic intervention

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MDPI and ACS Style

Cano, S.; González, C.S.; Gil-Iranzo, R.M.; Albiol-Pérez, S. Affective Communication for Socially Assistive Robots (SARs) for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review. Sensors 2021, 21, 5166. https://doi.org/10.3390/s21155166

AMA Style

Cano S, González CS, Gil-Iranzo RM, Albiol-Pérez S. Affective Communication for Socially Assistive Robots (SARs) for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review. Sensors. 2021; 21(15):5166. https://doi.org/10.3390/s21155166

Chicago/Turabian Style

Cano, Sandra, Carina S. González, Rosa María Gil-Iranzo, and Sergio Albiol-Pérez. 2021. "Affective Communication for Socially Assistive Robots (SARs) for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review" Sensors 21, no. 15: 5166. https://doi.org/10.3390/s21155166

APA Style

Cano, S., González, C. S., Gil-Iranzo, R. M., & Albiol-Pérez, S. (2021). Affective Communication for Socially Assistive Robots (SARs) for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review. Sensors, 21(15), 5166. https://doi.org/10.3390/s21155166

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Affective Communication for Socially Assistive Robots (SARs) for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review

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