Toward a generalized model of human emotional attachment

Abstract

As artificial intelligence and robots increase in popularity, human emotional attachment to technologies has become a salient research topic. However, many studies face the challenges of lacking a clear definition of emotional attachment that is overarching to cover emotional attachment to different entities and of differentiating these types of attachment phenomena. After reviewing the classic and contemporary research on human emotional attachment to people, pets, and possessions, we propose a novel, generalized definition and model of attachment across a person’s lifespan that describes the mechanism of human emotional attachment. Our literature review revealed two distinct but overlapping broad categories of research on human attachment: human–human attachments and human–nonhuman attachments. Our model integrates psychological principles and mechanisms from both classic infant–mother attachment theory and contemporary consumer behaviour research on emotional attachment to nonhuman objects. Emphasis is placed on the central role of the self-concept in all forms of human emotional attachments. We define human emotional attachment as a psychological phenomenon characterized by (a) perceiving the attributes of the attachment object as congruent with the self (supporting the self-concept and self-worth), (b) eliciting emotional reactions, and (c) evoking attachment behaviours. More specifically, the new model may lead to a series of new research on human emotional attachment to technologies and on its relationship to individuals’ self-concept development and well-being.

Keywords:

• Infant–mother attachment
• self-concept
• self-worth
• human–robot interaction
• generalized emotional attachment
• human–robot attachment

Disclosure statement

This work has no conflict of interest with any organization.

Notes on contributors

Lixiao Huang received her Ph.D. in Human Factors and Applied Cognition from North Carolina State University Department of Psychology in 2016. She worked as a postdoctoral associate at the Duke University Humans and Autonomy Laboratory from 2016–2018. Currently she is an assistant research scientist at the Center for Human, Artificial Intelligence, and Robot Teaming at Arizona State University. Her research interests include: 1) Human– AI–Robot Teaming effectiveness; 2) Humans’ responses (i.e., emotional, behavioral, and cognitive) to robots and technologies, especially emotional attachment, intrinsic motivation, and trust; 3) The design of human–robot systems using Human Factors methods; and 4) The education of robotics, Human–Robot Interaction, Human Factors, and other subjects using robots.

Dr. Jose Picart serves as the Deputy Director of the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation at North Carolina State University. He also serves as a Professor of Counselor Education in the College of Education. Dr. Jose Picart completed his undergraduate degree at West Point, the United States Military Academy, where he majored in Engineering and Humanities. He then served his country as a commissioned military officer for 28 years rising to the rank of Colonel. He earned his Master of Science and Doctoral degree in Experimental Cognitive Psychology from the University of Oklahoma in Norman. Dr. Picart served for over 16 years on the faculty at West Point in the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership at West Point, culminating with his appointment as the Director of Psychology Studies. In 1994, Dr. Picart was the recipient of a prestigious American Council on Education (ACE) Fellowship and served as Assistant to the Chancellor at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Since arriving at NC State University in 2003, Dr. Picart has served in various senior administrative leadership positions including the Vice Provost for Academic Programs and Services, Vice Provost for Diversity and Inclusion, Interim Dean of the College of Education, and Special Assistant to the Provost for University Outreach and Engagement. In 2015, Dr. Picart was recognized as a Professor Emeritus and Distinguished Faculty Alumnus at West Point. Dr. Picart is co-PI for the Literacy and Community Initiative, a community literacy project that investigates student development through student publications, advocacy, and leadership.

Douglas J. Gillan, a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Psychology at North Carolina State University (NC State) in Raleigh, NC, received a B.A. in Psychology from Macalester College (St. Paul, MN) in 1974 and a Ph.D. in Biopsychology from the University of Texas at Austin in 1978. He was an NSF Postdoctoral Fellow at Yale University and a Sloan Foundation Cognitive Science Fellow at University of Pennsylvania. He worked for 10 years in industry at the General Foods Research Center and at Lockheed Engineering and Sciences at NASA-JSC. He returned to academia as a visiting scholar at Rice University, then as a faculty member at the University of Idaho, New Mexico State University (NMSU), and NC State. He served as the Head of the Departments of Psychology at NMSU and NC State for five years and ten years, respectively. Gillan is a Fellow of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. He has served as an Associate Editor of Human Factors and is a member of the editorial board of The Journal of Usability Studies. His research interests focus broadly on the interaction between humans and technology. He has investigated issues in human-computer interaction and humanrobot interaction. Much of his research has centered around the cognitive and perceptual processes that underlie comprehension of graphical and numerical displays of information. In addition, he has published extensively on the relation between science and practice in human factors and on mental models. The National Science Foundation and the Army Research Laboratory have funded his research.