We Are the Robots : An anthropological perspective on human-robot interaction

Abstract How do we cope with technology today? We are surrounded by machines, computers and technological devices from mobile phones to automated check- outs. These types of machines are no longer exotic in Sweden where today the average person is usually fluent in their use. But do we really have an understanding of how these objects work, is understanding necessary and how do we cope when our knowledge is lacking? This thesis is intended as an introduction to an anthropological way of look- ing at strategies people develop for understanding, using and interacting with technological objects, specifically robots. Still an exotic object, robots are more widely known-about than experienced. Based on ethnographic data, primarily gathered in two distinct workplace environments as well as interviews and video documentation, my analysis aims to illustrate the implications of defining hu- mans and robots as equally significant agents within networks whilst disputing the traditional importance given to the dichotomy of technology (non-human) and human. Whilst robots are definitely less than we expect them to be, they are still so- cial artefacts, firmly situated within social networks and meaning which manifest through human–robot interactions. Perhaps little more than tools, an ambigu- ity exists in human–robot interactions which suggests that we form quasi-social relations that could, and have been exploited by designers and engineers to broaden the range of use for technological objects. Keywords: human-robot interaction, network theory, situated knowledges, agential realism, performativity, social contextualisation of technological object