The impact of affective touch from robots on mood states and emotional expression during disclosure of concerns

Abstract

Abstract Affective touch contributes to emotional well-being and stress reduction in human interactions. This study examined how affective touch from a humanoid robot, RoBoHoN, influences mood, distress, self-compassion, attitudes toward robots, rapport perception, and linguistic expression. Participants interacted with RoBoHoN either with or without affective touch. Pre- and post-task questionnaires assessed psychological states, and recorded conversations were analyzed using text-mining techniques. While no significant intergroup differences emerged in mood change, the Affective Touch Group showed significant reductions in total mood disturbance, anger, fatigue, and anxiety. Both groups exhibited decreased distress and negative attitudes toward robots. Speech analysis revealed greater emotional word use and broader conversational topics in the Affective Touch Group, suggesting enhanced emotional engagement. These findings suggest that, in the context of within-group changes, affective touch from a robot may be associated with reductions in negative emotions and enhanced expressive communication. However, given the absence of significant between-group differences and the small sample size, these results should be interpreted as preliminary and exploratory, and replication in larger samples is warranted.