Exploring humanlikeness and the uncanny valley with furhat

Abstract

In this paper we explore gender, perceived humanlikeness, animacy, intelligence and likeability of a female and male Furhat robot, and test for uncanny valley effects. We found no gender differences for neither user nor Furhats in perceived humanlikness or likeability, but female users rated the Furhats higher on animacy and intelligence. The study showed a tendency to an uncanny valley effect, but somewhat surprisingly the Furhat robots were overall not perceived as humanlike.