A Robot Among People:From Social Imitation to the Social Becoming of Human Groups

Recent research challenges the conventional view of robots as agents designed to resolve human group issues like conflict or disengagement. Instead, it proposes that robots should be conceptualized as situated elements within shared environments, acting as catalysts for group experience and collective sense-making around care, norms, and identity. This perspective moves away from robots imitating human sociality to becoming integral to the social fabric of groups.

This shift in understanding the role of robotics fundamentally alters how intelligent systems might be designed and integrated into social and organizational contexts. It moves the focus from task-specific automation or direct problem-solving to facilitating complex human interactions and shaping collective identity and values, thereby impacting long-term societal and organizational cohesion.

Traditional robot design for human groups often falls into a 'solutionist trap,' framing robots as agents that fix social problems.

Forward consideration, not a verified fact.