ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Digital Public Health
This article is part of the Research TopicAssistive Technologies in Aging and DisabilityView all 15 articles
Developing an effective care model to empower caregivers to use a Humanoid Companion Robot: An Exploratory Qualitative Study
Provisionally accepted
- 1Hadassah Academic College, Jerusalem, Israel
- 2Yamanashi Prefectural University, Kofu, Japan
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
Introduction: Social robots are increasingly explored as non-pharmacological support for older adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and dementia, yet their day-to-day integration remains limited. This study centers on designing an affective care model that empowers caregivers to deploy a commercial humanoid robot. Methods: An exploratory qualitative study comprised four observation sessions and ten in-depth, open-ended interviews. A two-phase observational protocol was conducted in a day-care center: Phase 1 mapped everyday activities and baseline interaction patterns; Phase 2 documented two robot-assisted sessions. Detailed descriptions underwent iterative thematic analysis to extract themes and construct a care model grounded in caregivers’ practices. Results: Introducing the robot added care practices that reshaped group dynamics. Two overarching themes emerged: (1) stimulation, engagement, and reciprocity and (2) shared experience and resonance. Together they embody a person-centered, affect-oriented approach that guides caregivers in meeting residents’ emotional needs. These themes were synthesized into a structured three-step model, triggering, imagining, responding, that shows how interaction unfolds and how learning is refined through continuous feedback. Discussion: The proposed care model sequence offers an actionable framework enabling caregivers to transform robotic interaction into a practical, intuitive tool. It provides a new method for training staff to integrate and adapt off-the-shelf robots within routine care, enhancing human-to-human engagement by capturing attention and stimulating memories. Given the global shortage of caregivers, empowering them to run structured robot-assisted sessions offers a scalable, cost-effective solution for health and care organizations working with people living with MCI and dementia.
Keywords: Care model, Exploratory qualitative study, Humanoid Companion Robot, human-robot interaction, Mild Cognitive Impairment, reminiscence therapy, robot-assisted therapy, Robotic literacy
Received: 02 Jul 2025; Accepted: 05 Dec 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Mazuz and Yamazaki-Skov (Yamazaki). This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Keren Mazuz
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.