IS HELLO BARBIE AN INTERACTIVE DOLL OR SOCIAL ROBOT?

Dolls with elements of artificial intelligence appeared on the market of interactive toys, they are a completely new type of object for interaction with children. The most popular ones are Cayla (https://www.myfriendcayla.com/) and Hello Barbie (http://hellobarbiefaq.mattel.com) Of course, the automation of the doll took place a long time ago. Robot dolls are heirs of automatons, mechanical anthropomorphic automata, popular in the 16th - 19th centuries. The automaton simulated human movements in various situations, such dolls did not become the subject of a children's game, but entertained an adult audience. Later the automaton transformed into clockwork toys for children. New dolls differ from their predecessors, they have an artificial intelligence, which fundamentally changes the level of interactivity of this toy, the function and nature of the interaction. Specificity of the doll-toy is manipulation and controllability. Interacting with the doll, the child reflects his experience, his emotions and feelings, while at the same time, through a role-playing game he assimilates the categories of human relationships ", passes the stages of socialization. A doll is a child's double. A robotic doll loses its ability to unite with a child, on the contrary, it becomes a full-fledged independent Other, which requires a completely different interaction. Of course, the process of training, development of social skills occurs in this case, but it will be substantially limited. The robotic doll is able to interact only within the framework of one social role, its personality, preferences, behavioral models and speech strategies have already been prescribed by the developers in advance. Anthropomorphism is a common parameter for a traditional doll and a social robot, but the perception of human likeness is perceived by the child in different ways. Researchers note a number of possible negative consequences: emotional attachment, desocialization, the construction of other models of social relationships. A separate place is occupied with discussion of the threat of privacy and protection of privacy, robotic dolls connect to the network to receive updates, as well as save custom dialogs. Social robots with an anthropomorphic interface have been used for several years in communication with children not as a toy. For example, they are used as assistants in teaching a foreign language. Social robots of "doll design" are successfully used in the psychotherapeutic sphere - interaction with autistic children.

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