Do children see robots differently? A study comparing eye-movements of adults vs. children when looking at robotic faces

Abstract

A 2 (face type: robot face vs. human face) × 2 (participants' age: adults vs. children) between-subjects experiment with four conditions was conducted to explore whether adults and children view robotic faces differently. Participants were presented with a series of pictures including human or robotic faces while their eye movements were being recorded and analyzed by a Tobii x120 Eye Tracker. Results showed that adults had a longer eye fixation time on the eyes than children did for both human and robotic faces. However, children had a longer fixation time on the mouth and nose than adults for both human and robotic faces. Both implications and limitations of the present study as well as guidelines for future research are discussed. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.