Resident and Social Robot Interactions in Danish Nursing Homes: A Longitudinal Study (Preprint)

<sec> <title>BACKGROUND</title> <p>The global population of older adults is growing while the recruitment of qualified healthcare professionals has become increasingly problematic. In addition, nursing home residents now present a range of complex care needs requiring additional care and supervision. With these acute labour shortages, social robots have been presented as a potentially useful tool to support interaction between residents and staff and emotional well-being in nursing homes. However, we still have limited knowledge regarding how such robots function in everyday nursing home contexts over time.</p> </sec> <sec> <title>OBJECTIVE</title> <p>This study aimed to explore how the social robot, called LOVOT, interacts and affects residents living in a nursing home. The study takes a longitudinal perspective in both individual and shared courses.</p> </sec> <sec> <title>METHODS</title> <p>An exploratory longitudinal study was conducted across four nursing homes in Aarhus Municipality, Denmark. A total of 33 residents participated, with 8 included in individual courses and 25 in shared courses. The individual courses consisted of twice-weekly sessions between the resident and LOVOT over six weeks, while the shared courses involved integrating LOVOT into everyday activities over 14 weeks. Data collection included the WHO-5 Well-Being Index questionnaire and a 7-point Face Scale, Likert-scales and participant-observations and semi-structured interviews with residents and healthcare professionals. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Wilcoxon signed-rank tests and thematic analysis informed by a value-based Human-Robot Interaction framework.</p> </sec> <sec> <title>RESULTS</title> <p>Face Scale scores showed a statistically significant improvement in mood following interaction with LOVOT in the individual courses (P=.012). WHO-5 scores increased from a median of 48 (IQR 42–54) at baseline to 72 (IQR 50–79) at follow-up, although this change was not statistically significant (P=.080). Observations indicated that residents engaged with LOVOT through speech (100%), touch (82.05%), and eye contact (89.74%). In the individual courses LOVOT acted as a tool in supporting residents in challenging everyday situations. In the shared courses LOVOT facilitated communication, created moments of joy and increased interaction between residents. However, the effects were often temporary and varied depending by individual residents’ attitudes. Some residents perceived LOVOT as childish or uninteresting.</p> </sec> <sec> <title>CONCLUSIONS</title> <p>The study showed that LOVOT affects residents in different ways depending on the context of use. For the individual courses, it acted as a supporting tool in challenging everyday situations while in shared courses it facilitated communication and social interaction.</p> </sec> <sec> <title>CLINICALTRIAL</title> <p>The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee at Aalborg University on June 16, 2025 (Case no. 2025-505-00544).</p> </sec>