Imitation and Social Learning in Robots, Humans and Animals: Behavioural, Social and Communicative Dimensions

509 Pages·2009·7.017 MB·English

by  Chrystopher L. Nehaniv, Kerstin Dautenhahn

This page intentionally left blank
Imitation and Social Learning in Robots, Humans
and Animals
Mechanismsofimitationandsocialmatchingplayafundamentalrolein
development,communication,interaction,learningandculture.Their
investigationindifferentagents(animals,humansandrobots)hassig-
nificantly influenced our understanding of the nature and origins of
socialintelligence.Whilstsuchissueshavetraditionallybeenstudiedin
areassuchaspsychology,biologyandethology,ithasbecomeincreas-
ingly recognized that a ‘constructive approach’ towards imitation and
sociallearningviathesynthesisofartificialagentscanprovideimportant
insightsintomechanismsandcreateartifactsthatcanbeinstructedand
taught by imitation, demonstration and social interaction rather than
byexplicitprogramming.Thisbookstudiesincreasinglysophisticated
models and mechanisms of social matching behaviour and marks an
importantsteptowardsthedevelopmentofaninterdisciplinaryresearch
field,consolidatingandprovidingavaluablereferencefortheincreas-
ingnumberofresearchersinthefieldofimitationandsociallearningin
robots,humansandanimals.
 .  is Research Professor of Mathematical
andEvolutionaryComputerSciencesintheSchoolofComputerSci-
enceattheUniversityofHertfordshire,whereheworkswiththeAdap-
tiveSystems,AlgorithmsandBioComputationResearchGroups.Heis
theDirectoroftheUKEPSRCNetworkonEvolvabilityinBiological
and Software Systems and an Associate Editor of BioSystems: Journal
of Biological and Information Processing Sciences and Interaction Studies:
SocialBehaviourandCommunicationinBiologicalandArtificialSystems.
 isResearchProfessorofArtificialIntelligence
intheSchoolofComputerScienceattheUniversityofHertfordshire,
where she is a coordinator of the Adaptive Systems Research Group.
Herresearchinterestsincludesociallearning,human–robotinteraction,
socialrobotics,narrativeandrobotic-assistedtherapyforchildrenwith
autism.SheistheEditor-in-ChiefofInteractionStudies:SocialBehaviour
and Communication in Biological and Artificial Systems and the general
chairoftheIEEEInternationalSymposiumonRobotandHumanInter-
activeCommunication(RO-MAN2006).

Imitation and Social Learning
in Robots, Humans and
Animals
Behavioural, Social and Communicative
Dimensions
Editedby
Chrystopher L. Nehaniv and Kerstin Dautenhahn
CAMBRIDGEUNIVERSITYPRESS
Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, São Paulo
Cambridge University Press
The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB28RU, UK
Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York
www.cambridge.org
Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521845113
© Cambridge University Press 2007
This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provision of
relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place
without the written permission of Cambridge University Press.
First published in print format 2007
ISBN-13 978-0-511-28463-2 eBook (EBL)
ISBN-10 0-511-28463-2 eBook (EBL)
ISBN-13 978-0-521-84511-3 hardback
ISBN-10 0-521-84511-4 hardback
Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of urls
for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not
guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.
To our parents,
Chrystyna, Bohdan, Annelie and Claus-Peter

Contents
Listofplates page x
Listoffigures xii
Listoftables xvii
Listofcontributors xviii
Introduction:theconstructiveinterdisciplinary
viewpointforunderstandingmechanismsandmodels
ofimitationandsociallearning 1
 .   

PartI Correspondenceproblemsandmechanisms 19
1 Imitation:thoughtsabouttheories 23
    
2 Ninebillioncorrespondenceproblems 35
 . 
3 Challengesandissuesfacedinbuildingaframeworkfor
conductingresearchinlearningfromobservation 47
 ,   
 
PartII Mirroringand‘mind-reading’ 67
4 Aneuralarchitectureforimitationand
intentionalrelations 71
 ,   
 
5 Simulationtheoryofunderstandingothers:arobotics
perspective 89
    
vii
viii Contents
6 Mirrorsandmatchings:imitationfromtheperspective
ofmirror-self-recognition,andtheparietalregion’s
involvementinboth 103
 . 
PartIII Whattoimitate? 131
7 Thequestionof‘whattoimitate’:inferringgoalsand
intentionsfromdemonstrations 135
    
8 Learningofgesturesbyimitationinahumanoidrobot 153
    
9 Thedynamicemergenceofcategoriesthroughimitation 179
 ,      
PartIV Developmentandembodiment 195
10 Copyingstrategiesbypeoplewithautisticspectrum
disorder:whyonlyimitationleadstosocialcognitive
development 199
 . . 
11 ABayesianmodelofimitationininfantsandrobots 217
 . . ,  .    .

12 Solvingthecorrespondenceprobleminroboticimitation
acrossembodiments:synchrony,perceptionandculture
inartifacts 249
 ,  . 
  
PartV Synchronyandturn-takingascommunicative
mechanisms 275
13 Howtobuildanimitator 279
    
14 Simulatedturn-takinganddevelopmentofstylesof
motion 301
    