Assessing the Acceptability of a Humanoid Robot for Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia Care Using an Online Survey

Abstract

In this work, an online survey was used to understand the acceptability of humanoid robots and users’ needs in using these robots to assist with care among people with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD), their family caregivers, health care professionals, and the general public. From November 1, 2020 to March 13, 2021, a total of 631 complete responses were collected, including 80 responses from people with mild cognitive impairment or ADRD, 245 responses from caregivers and health care professionals, and 306 responses from the general public. We carried out detailed caparisons between people with ADRD, caregivers, and general public for their opinions about robot acceptance, robotic functionality, usability, and ethical issues. Overall, people with ADRD, caregivers, and the general public showed positive attitudes towards using the robot to assist with care for people with ADRD. The top three functions of robots required by the group of people with ADRD were reminders to take medicine, emergency call service, and helping contact medical services. Additionally, we included a discussion of the comments, suggestions, and concerns from the caregivers and the general public. We recognized common concerns raised by the participants, including the cost of the robot, the machine-like voice of the robot, and reduced acceptability of the robot by people with ADRD due to cognitive deficit. The results of this article are of significant relevance for the applications of social robotics in dementia care and for biomedical interventions related to AI and robotics in healthcare. Moreover, the discussions on potentials and limitations identified in this article will shed light for future design, development, and evaluation of socially assistive robots for people living with dementia.