Emotional contagion in human-robot interaction

Humanoid service robots are designed to imitate human shape and movement. Acting as social agents, they are expected to deliver services while interacting with customers on emotional and social levels. Despite marketing claims presenting them as ideal frontline workers, their real-world applications remain limited due to a lack of emotional intelligence. This chapter explores this issue in greater detail through the perspective of emotional contagion. It shows that although humanoid service robots can recognize consumers’ emotional states, they cannot produce the authentic emotional responses necessary for effective service interactions. Additionally, this chapter discusses the technological, ethical, and societal barriers that impede their widespread adoption. Future research needs to tackle these challenges to develop effective applications of humanoid service robots in service encounters.