Extending Legal Protection to Social Robots: The Effects of Anthropomorphism, Empathy, and Violent Behavior Towards Robotic Objects

Darling, Kate

doi:10.2139/ssrn.2044797

Extending Legal Protection to Social Robots: The Effects of Anthropomorphism, Empathy, and Violent Behavior Towards Robotic Objects

Robot Law, Calo, Froomkin, Kerr eds., Edward Elgar 2016

We Robot Conference 2012, University of Miami

25 Pages Posted: 28 Aug 2012 Last revised: 8 Mar 2016

Kate Darling

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - MIT Media Laboratory; Harvard University - Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society

Date Written: April 23, 2012

Abstract

People tend to anthropomorphize robots that interact with humans on a social level. This Article explores whether projecting emotions onto objects could lead to an extension of limited legal protections to robotic companions, analogous to animal abuse laws.

Keywords: Social robotics, HRI, robots, anthropomorphism, law, ethics, animal abuse

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Darling, Kate, Extending Legal Protection to Social Robots: The Effects of Anthropomorphism, Empathy, and Violent Behavior Towards Robotic Objects (April 23, 2012). Robot Law, Calo, Froomkin, Kerr eds., Edward Elgar 2016; We Robot Conference 2012, University of Miami . Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2044797 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2044797