The Psychology of "Kawaii" and Its Implications for Human-Robot Interaction

"Kawaii" is a popular word in Japan today. Although it is often translated as "cute" in English, its meaning and scope are broader than those of "cute," because this word is used not only as an adjective that describes the perceivable features of an object, but also as an adjective that expresses a person's feelings toward the object. In this talk, I will explain how "kawaii" can be conceptualized in the cognitive and behavioral sciences and how it is relevant to the field of human-robot interaction. First, I will introduce Lorenz's (1943) seminal concept of "Kindchenschema" (baby schema), which proposes that specific physical features, such as a round head shape and large eyes set lower on the face, serve as key stimuli that instinctively trigger nurturance behavior and the affective feelings associated with it in humans. I will then describe some recent empirical findings suggesting that the feeling of "kawaii" goes beyond a response to infantile stimuli and is better seen as a more general, positive emotion related to sociality and approach motivation. Finally, I will discuss the importance of this emotion in designing a desirable environment in which both humans and robots are included.