How Does Delegation in Social Interaction Evolve Over Time? Navigation with a Robot for Blind People

2026-01-27

AI Summary

This study investigates how blind users dynamically adjust their strategies between autonomous navigation and delegating control to a robotic guide during long-term collaboration—a question that remains poorly understood. Through repeated interaction experiments with six blind participants in a real-world museum setting, the research examines typical scenarios such as navigating crowded spaces, queuing, and obstacle avoidance. The findings reveal, for the first time, an evolving pattern in users’ reliance on the robot over time: as experience accumulates, participants develop stable delegation preferences and significantly shift their collaborative strategies. These results provide empirical evidence and design principles for developing navigation assistance systems that support adaptive human–robot collaboration tailored to users’ changing needs and trust levels.

Technology Category

• Intelligent Robots: Human-Robot Interaction
• Humans and AI: Learning Human Values and Preferences
• Multiagent Systems: Coordination and Collaboration

Application Category

• Responsible Web: Machine-in-the-loop, human agency and autonomy
• User Modeling, Personalization and Recommendation: Practical large-scale studies of user experience
• Economics, Online Markets and Human Computation: The sharing economy

Abstract

Autonomy and independent navigation are vital to daily life but remain challenging for individuals with blindness. Robotic systems can enhance mobility and confidence by providing intelligent navigation assistance. However, fully autonomous systems may reduce users'sense of control, even when they wish to remain actively involved. Although collaboration between user and robot has been recognized as important, little is known about how perceptions of this relationship change with repeated use. We present a repeated exposure study with six blind participants who interacted with a navigation-assistive robot in a real-world museum. Participants completed tasks such as navigating crowds, approaching lines, and encountering obstacles. Findings show that participants refined their strategies over time, developing clearer preferences about when to rely on the robot versus act independently. This work provides insights into how strategies and preferences evolve with repeated interaction and offers design implications for robots that adapt to user needs over time.

Problem

• delegation
• social interaction
• assistive robotics
• blind navigation
• user autonomy

Innovation

• delegation
• human-robot collaboration
• assistive robotics
• longitudinal interaction
• navigation assistance