A pilot study investigating self-disclosure by elderly participants in agent-mediated communication

Generation gap can make communication difficult, even within a family. Each family member has a preferred style of communication. To address this, we proposed a shared-agent system for encouraging remote communication between family members. This paper reports the results of a pilot study, in which a prototype robot interface was evaluated, and the acceptance of asynchronous communication by elderly participants was investigated. The effects on family communication were approached from the viewpoint of self-disclosure in old age. Feedback suggested new research hypotheses, for example that the establishment of relationships between the shared-agent and the family members may encourage deeper communication within the family.