Work

Towards Understanding the Impact of Swarm Motion on Human Trust

Year: 2025

Type: conference-paper

Abstract: Robot swarms are decentralised systems that use simple rules to achieve collective goals, yet their real-world deployment is limited by a lack of understanding of human trust and perception. This study examines how swarm motion affects the trust of novice users in a service-oriented swarm, using an automated cloakroom as a test case. We conducted 20 human trials, where participants interacted with a swarm exhibiting either structured (grid-like) or organic (adaptive) motion, with performance controlled across conditions. Trust and perception were assessed via self-reporting questionnaires and eye-tracking data. Results indicate that performance and reliability, rather than motion, are the key drivers of trust. However, motion influenced perceived predictability, highlighting its role in designing transparent and user-friendly swarm systems.

Source: IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN)

DOI: 10.1109/ro-man63969.2025.11217808

Authors: Razanne Abu-Aisheh, Shyamli Suneesh, Tom Didiot-Cook, Simon Jones, Emanuel Nunez Sardinha, Marcela Munera, Sabine Hauert

Institutions: University of Bristol, Bristol Robotics Laboratory, University of the West of England

Language: English

Topic: Social Robot Interaction and HRI

Subfield: Social Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: University of Bristol

OpenAlex ID: W4415821891

FWCI: 1.947

Cites: 19

Cited by: 1

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