Good human relationships are important for us to have a happy life and maintain our well-being. Otherwise, we will be at risk of experiencing loneliness or depression. In human-computer interaction (HCI) and computer-supported cooperative work (CSCW), robotic systems offer nuanced approaches to foster human connection, providing interaction beyond the traditional mediums that smartphones and computers offer. However, many existing studies primarily focus on the humanrobot relationships that older adults form directly with robotic pets rather than exploring how these robotic pets can enhance human-human relationships. Our ethnographic study investigates how robotic pets can be designed to facilitate human relationships. Through semi-structured interviews with six older adults and thematic analysis, our empirical findings provide insights into how robotic pets can be designed as telerobots to connect with others remotely, thus contributing to advance future development of robotic systems for mental health.

翻译：良好的人际关系对于实现幸福生活与维持身心健康至关重要，否则我们将面临孤独或抑郁的风险。在人机交互与计算机支持的协同工作领域，机器人系统提供了超越智能手机和计算机传统媒介的精细化互动方式，为促进人际连接开辟了新途径。然而，现有研究多聚焦于老年人直接与机器人宠物建立的人机关系，却较少探索这些机器人宠物如何增强人与人之间的关系。我们的民族志研究探讨了如何通过设计机器人宠物来促进人际关系。通过对六位老年人进行半结构化访谈及主题分析，实证研究揭示了如何将机器人宠物设计为远程机器人，以实现与他人的远程连接，从而为未来心理健康机器人系统的发展提供理论依据与实践方向。