Agency – Independence
The robot reduces the user's physical dependence on other humans; the user is independent in using the robot.
One of the most promising contributions of human-robot interaction is its potential to support independence. In everyday life, many people rely on others for assistance with physical tasks, from household chores to personal care. For older adults, people living with disabilities, or anyone facing temporary limitations, robots can help reduce this dependence and make it easier to carry out daily activities on their own. In this sense, independence is not simply about completing tasks; it is about having meaningful choices, maintaining control over one's life, and being able to act according to one's own goals and preferences.
Within our framework, independence is part of the broader value of agency, alongside dependence and control. Agency concerns a person's ability to act on their beliefs and values and to make choices that matter in their daily life. Robots can strengthen agency by reducing the need for constant assistance from other people. This is particularly relevant in contexts such as ageing in place or disability support, where robotic assistance can enable users to perform activities that would otherwise require help from caregivers. Independence also depends on usability. A robot that is difficult to set up, understand, or operate may simply replace one form of dependence with another. For this reason, ease of use and accessibility are central aspects of fostering independence through human-robot interaction, as highlighted in the literature on robot adoption and ethics.
Excerpts from the paper:
About the value "Agency"
This value encompasses three topics – independence, dependence, and control – all related to the user's physical freedom. This term, prior to the focus groups, referred to one of the topics, but it was promoted to a value following the suggestions from the focus groups participants, uniforming our definition of agency with Prunkl (2022): "A person is able to act on the beliefs and values they hold. This implies that they have meaningful options available to them, allowing them to make choices that are of practical import to their life". As it emerged during the focus groups, agency differs from autonomy as the latter is used in this work to encompass topics which do not possess physical connotations.
About "Independence"
The use of robots in daily life can significantly enhance a user's independence, by reducing their physical dependence on other people, contributing to a sense of personal agency. This is especially evident in the case of elderly individuals or people with physical disabilities who require constant assistance. We included in this topic the topics about ease of use of the robot appliance, which should not require the user to rely on someone else to use the robot, as emerged during the scoping review.