Loading...
Applying Dempster Shafer theory to validate AAI Scales as measures of moral agency in robots
Parra, Nathanael Williams, Thomas
Parra, Nathanael
Williams, Thomas
Citations
Altmetric:
Advisor
Editor
Date
Date Issued
2025-04
Date Submitted
Keywords
Collections
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Journal Issue
Embargo Expires
Abstract
Establishing when, how, and why robots should be considered moral agents is key for advancing human-robot interaction (HRI). This project focuses on the mathematical and logical foundations of this question, particularly in quantifying moral agency. Existing scales for measuring moral agency often conflate agency—an ontological state—with a psychological construct, failing to align with philosophical literature. To address this, the project uses the MIAA scales, which separately assess four core constructs: capacity for moral action, autonomy, interactivity, and adaptability. Using mathematical logic and probabilistic reasoning, the MIAA scale components are integrated to assess human perceptions of a robot’s moral agency status. The approach applies Dempster-Shafer Theory (DST), systematically quantifying uncertainty and belief distributions across the moral agency constructs. This enables a more precise and logically consistent assessment of how moral agency is attributed to artificial agents. A key focus of this research has been identifying the most effective methods within DST for analyzing survey response data. This presentation will outline the mathematical framework used to process and interpret belief distributions, highlighting the advantages and methods of DST in capturing uncertainty and partial beliefs in respondents' perceptions of robotic moral agency. Current efforts focus on refining the logical procedures for combining these constructs and validating the MIAA scales through empirical studies. This work strengthens the theoretical foundations of robotic moral agency while providing a robust, mathematically grounded tool for evaluating how people perceive and ascribe moral agency to robots.
Associated Publications
Rights
Copyright of the original work is retained by the author.