International seminar series on programming Japanese affinity for robots

The project aims to bring together international researchers in Japanese studies and robotics. Japanese cultural and religious contexts are frequently considered to explain the so-called ‘Japanese affinity for robots’. However, there is no agreement among researchers on the ways in which cultural factors affect human interactions with robots. The project aims to foster exploration of the relationship between Japanese cultural factors and social robotics, and to respond to the following questions: ‘How should the traditional idea of intersubjectivity between humans and objects in Japan be discussed in social robotics?’, ‘What is the role of language in understanding Japanese cultural impacts on social robotics research?’, and ‘Is it possible to measure the influences of robot manga and animation in the reception of social robots in Japan?’