The robots that share our public areas immediately are so demure. Social robots and service robots intention to keep away from offense, erring towards well mannered airs, optimistic feelings, and obedience. In some methods, this is smart—would you actually wish to have a yelling match with a supply robotic in a lodge? In all probability not, even should you’re in New York Metropolis and attempting to soak up the native tradition.
In different methods, this passive social robotic design aligns with paternalistic requirements that hyperlink help to subservience. Thoughtlessly following such outdated social norms in robotic design could also be ill-advised, because it may also help to strengthen outdated or dangerous concepts akin to limiting folks’s rights and reflecting solely the wants of majority-identity customers.
In my robotics lab at Oregon State College, we work with a playful spirit and luxuriate in difficult the problematic norms which might be entrenched inside “well mannered” interactions and social roles. So we determined to experiment with robots that use foul language round people. In spite of everything, many individuals are utilizing foul language greater than ever in 2025. Why not let robots have an opportunity, too?
Why and Methods to Research Cursing Robots
Societal requirements within the United States recommend that cursing robots would seemingly rub folks the mistaken approach in most contexts, as swearing has a predominantly unfavorable connotation. Though some previous analysis exhibits that cursing can improve workforce cohesion and elicit humor, sure members of society (akin to girls) are sometimes anticipated to keep away from risking offense by way of profanity. We questioned whether or not cursing robots can be considered negatively, or if they may maybe provide advantages in sure conditions.
We determined to check cursing robots within the context of responding to errors. Previous work in human-robot interplay has already proven that responding to error (slightly than ignoring it) may also help robots be perceived extra positively in human-populated areas, particularly within the case of non-public and repair robots. And one research discovered that in comparison with different fake pas, foul language is extra forgivable in a robotic.
With this previous work in thoughts, we generated movies with three widespread kinds of robotic failure: bumping right into a desk, dropping an object, and failing to know an object. We crossed these conditions with three kinds of responses from the robotic: no verbal response, a non-expletive verbal declaration, and an expletive verbal declaration. We then requested folks to price the robots on issues like competence, discomfort, and likability, utilizing customary scales in an internet survey.
What Individuals Considered Our Cursing Robots
On the entire, we have been shocked by how acceptable swearing appeared to the research members, particularly inside an preliminary group of Oregon State College college students, however even among the many common public as effectively. Cursing had no unfavorable impression, and even some optimistic impacts, among the many faculty college students after we eliminated one religiously connotated curse (god***it), which appeared to be obtained in a stronger unfavorable approach than different cuss phrases.
In truth, college members rated swearing robots because the most socially shut and most humorous, and rated non-expletive and expletive robotic reactions equal on social heat, competence, discomfort, anthropomorphism, and likability scales. Most of the people judged non-profane and profane robots as equal on most scales, though expletive reactions have been deemed most discomforting and non-expletive responses appeared most likable. We consider that the college college students have been barely extra accepting of cursing robots due to the campus’s progressive tradition, the place cursing is taken into account a peccadillo.
Since experiments run solely in an internet setting don’t all the time characterize real-life interactions effectively, we additionally performed a closing replication research in particular person with a robotic that made errors whereas distributing goodie luggage to campus group members at Oregon State, which strengthened our prior outcomes.
We’ve got submitted this work, which represents a well-designed sequence of empirical experiments with fascinating outcomes and replications alongside the best way, to a number of completely different journals and conferences. Regardless of persistently enthusiastic reviewer feedback, no editors have but accepted our work for publication—it appears to be the kind of paper that editors are nervous to the touch. At present, the work is below evaluate for a fourth time, for doable inclusion within the 2025 IEEE Worldwide Convention on Robotic and Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN), in a paper titled “Oh F**okay! How Do Individuals Really feel About Robots That Leverage Profanity?”
Give Cursing Robots a Likelihood
Primarily based on our outcomes, we predict cursing robots deserve an opportunity! Our findings present that swearing robots would usually have little draw back and a few upside, particularly in open-minded areas akin to college campuses. Even for most people, reactions to errors with profanity yielded a lot much less distaste than we anticipated. Our knowledge confirmed that individuals cared extra about whether or not robots acknowledged their error in any respect than whether or not or not they swore.
Individuals do have some reservations about cursing robots, particularly in relation to consolation and likability, so thoughtfulness could also be required to use curse phrases on the proper time. For instance, simply as people do, robots ought to seemingly maintain again their swear phrases round kids and be extra cautious in settings that usually demand cleaner language. Robotic practitioners may additionally contemplate surveying particular person customers about profanity acceptance as they arrange new expertise in private settings—slightly than letting robotic programs be taught the arduous approach, maybe alienating customers within the course of.
As extra robots enter our day-to-day areas, they’re sure to make errors. How they react to those errors is necessary. Basically, our work exhibits that individuals choose robots that discover when a mistake has occurred and react to this error in a relatable approach. And plainly a variety of types within the response itself, from the profane to the mundane, can work effectively. So we invite designers to offer cursing robots an opportunity!
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