“Our very lives depend on the ethics of strangers, and most of us are always strangers to other people.” -- Bill Moyers
As I had mentioned
in an earlier post, I am exploring the idea of robots as caregivers for older
adults and will be writing a literature review as part of my graduate thesis
project. I became intrigued by the idea
of assistive robots as I pondered the caregiver shortage coinciding with the growing
numbers of older adults. Although I don’t
think of myself as pro-robot, I don’t believe that the use of robots is completely
unethical.
There are
arguments suggesting that the use of assistive robots will further marginalize
older adults who are disregarded by society. Some declare that robots
cannot understand human emotions, and therefore cannot provide the sensitive touch
of human caregivers. Others argue that reliance on robots would increase social
isolation. These concerns are very important, but the reality is that there is a shortage of caregivers. Robot
technology may be one option that can help fill in some of (though not all) the
gaps. Robots may even provide respite
and assistance to formal and informal caregivers because let’s face it –- caregiving is hard work!
At age 3: Trying to be a lady. |
Furthermore, if
we are truly concerned about social isolation, all of us can make efforts to
support older persons. It’s easy to
criticize the use of robots, but are we all willing to take steps (big and
small) to reduce or eliminate the need for such devices? Are we willing to pay more
to ensure fair compensation for caregivers?
Many loose ends
exist at this point, and I’ve only begun my research. Personally, some of my
issues regarding robots include cost and availability. As I’ve been combing through the literature, presently it seems that care robots are expensive and unavailable to the masses. But for now, I will conclude with one final thought -- perhaps asking older
adults about their views and wishes on this subject matter would be an ethical
consideration. Thank you for reading my post, and please share your thoughts
and comments!