Record STMT-W46A840Advisory

HRI ethics and type-token ambiguity: what kind of robotic identity is most responsible?

Position paper ProfessionalGlobaladopted

This academic paper examines the ethical challenges of type-token ambiguity in human-robot interaction, analyzing how robots function as both general system types and specific individual machines. It explores three key areas where this tension manifests: personalized information recounting, moral appeals and decision justification, and machine replacement and platform transfer. The authors argue that responsible robotic design must account for these shifting identities rather than treating robotic identity as a problem with a single ontological solution.

Summary and content fields are drawn from the document text and are pending editorial review.

Who issued it

Tufts UniversityAcademic

Lead issuer

SpringerIndustry

Publisher

Legal forceAdvisory

Under whose authorityProfessional

Judged fromfull text

Who it governs

Researchers and academicsAI developers and providersAI deployers and users

Researchers and designers working on human-robot interaction and robot ethics should read this to understand the ethical implications of robotic identity.

Sectors

Research and science · human-robot interaction research

What the document contains

What's covered

The paper explores type-token ambiguity in robotic identity, examining how networked systems or multiple bodies under a single control system affect human-robot interactions, personalization, moral justifications, and replacement.

What's missing

The text does not provide a formal governance framework, binding regulations, or explicit legislative enforcement mechanisms for robot manufacturers.

Key takeaways

Robots present an ethical ambiguity by acting simultaneously as general system types and discrete, particular token machines.
Type-token tension affects human-robot interaction in personalized information recounting, moral appeals, and robot replacement scenarios.
Robots may regard themselves as replaceable tokens of a general type and potentially take extraordinary actions on that basis.
Responsible robotic design must account for shifting robotic identities rather than looking for a single ontological solution.

Issued9 November 2018

Length1,639 words

FormatNot recorded

Physical AI Governancecontext

robot_ethics human_robot_interaction artificial_moral_agents robotic_design identity