Receiving Human and Android Facial Mimicry Induces Empathy Experiences and Oxytocin Release

Receiving facial mimicry enhances subjective empathic experiences; however, few studies have investigated its effect on hormonal responses. Likewise, few studies on facial mimicry by robots that could induce subjective and hormonal responses have been conducted. We hypothesized that individuals’ perceptions of facial mimicry by humans and human-like robots could induce empathic experiences and oxytocin release. We conducted two experiments with 62 and 56 females. Participants performed various scenarios facing one and then the other of two judges: only one mimicked participants’ facial expressions in most trials. In Experiments 1 and 2, the mimicking human and android judges were rated as more empathetic and personable, and increased salivary oxytocin levels. Partial correlation showed that the android judge’s human likeliness is a unique predictor of salivary oxytocin increase in human–android interaction. This confirmed our hypotheses and may be useful for developing techniques to enhance social bonding and for enhancing the use of humanoids in the service sector.