Entrainment Effect Caused by Joint Attention of Two Robots

In this study, we investigate the two effects of joint attention, building relationships and sharing recognition, in group interaction consisting of two robots and one person. The building relationship is focused on entrainment resulting from the two robots' gazing at one person, while the sharing recognition refers to an original effect of the joint attention in a group interaction featuring the shared focus of individuals on one object. Results of experiments on the building relationships aspect showed that when two robots gazed at a person, he/she tended to be more immersed in communication with the robots. In the case of sharing recognition, when the two robots gazed at the target synchronously, the person could share it more correctly than when it was done asynchronously.