Using robots to study the perception of feedback cross-culturally

Abstract

While feedback currently generates much interest among many scholars, how feedback is perceived in cross-cultural contexts has not been extensively studied yet, due to considerable methodological obstacles. In this study, we investigate how different ways of providing feedback are perceived by inhabitants of neighboring countries such as Denmark, Germany and Poland. Based on initial analyses of different feedback strategies in these countries, we used a robot to deliver both positive and negative feedback. Using a robot has the advantage that the feedback is provided by an embodied interactant, yet whose behavior can be completely controlled. We carried out a questionnaire study in which the EZ-bot presented feedback using strategies identified as common in either Denmark, Poland or Germany; participants were then asked to rate the robot. The results show highly significant differences in the perception of different feedback strategies even in countries in geographical proximity. Using robots for studying cross-cultural communication differences thus constitutes a promising methodology.