Short abstract:

The paper considers the application of STS studies of laboratory animals to social robots. Using the case of Pepper robot, it is shown that this perspective is productive but limited and needs to be expanded by other STS studies.

Long abstract:

Pepper Robot is one of the most common tools for generating knowledge about human–robot interaction. There are several possible reasons for its utility, including economic (price), social (humanoid characteristics), and technical (ease of manipulation and programmability). In this paper, I want to show that we can deepen our understanding of Pepper's success as a knowledge-production tool by focusing on its usability as a machine that leads specific “laboratory life”. To do this, I propose to build upon the STS studies of laboratory animals. Pepper and other social robots used in and outside of laboratories to study HRI are similar to laboratory animals in their epistemic value to a particular field. But they are also different from animals. In this paper, based on the analysis of published papers in HRI, that feature Pepper, and available online videos of Pepper’s use in HRI studies, I will show that social robots differ from laboratory animals in two ways: on the one hand, they allow a much closer connection between the object of research and its tool, and on the other hand, they make it possible to “blackbox” their instrumental usability, as Pepper’s strong presence in popular culture attests. In this context, I would like to discuss the productivity and limitations of applying the results of STS studies of laboratory animals to social robotics.