title: The ITALK project: a developmental robotics approach to the study of individual, social, and linguistic learning.
abstract: This article presents results from a multidisciplinary research project on the integration and transfer of language knowledge into robots as an empirical paradigm for the study of language development in both humans and humanoid robots. Within the framework of human linguistic and cognitive development, we focus on how three central types of learning interact and co-develop: individual learning about one's own embodiment and the environment, social learning (learning from others), and learning of linguistic capability. Our primary concern is how these capabilities can scaffold each other's development in a continuous feedback cycle as their interactions yield increasingly sophisticated competencies in the agent's capacity to interact with others and manipulate its world. Experimental results are summarized in relation to milestones in human linguistic and cognitive development and show that the mutual scaffolding of social learning, individual learning, and linguistic capabilities creates the context, conditions, and requisites for learning in each domain. Challenges and insights identified as a result of this research program are discussed with regard to possible and actual contributions to cognitive science and language ontogeny. In conclusion, directions for future work are suggested that continue to develop this approach toward an integrated framework for understanding these mutually scaffolding processes as a basis for language development in humans and robots.
authors.affiliation: ITALK Project.
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Broz
authors.forename: Chrystopher L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Nehaniv
authors.forename: Tony
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Belpaeme
authors.forename: Ambra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bisio
authors.forename: Kerstin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Dautenhahn
authors.forename: Luciano
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Fadiga
authors.forename: Tomassino
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ferrauto
authors.forename: Kerstin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Fischer
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Förster
authors.forename: Onofrio
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Gigliotta
authors.forename: Sascha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Griffiths
authors.forename: Hagen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lehmann
authors.forename: Katrin S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Lohan
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lyon
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Marocco
authors.forename: Gianluca
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Massera
authors.forename: Giorgio
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Metta
authors.forename: Vishwanathan
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Mohan
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Morse
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nolfi
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Nori
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Peniak
authors.forename: Karola
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pitsch
authors.forename: Katharina J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Rohlfing
authors.forename: Gerhard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sagerer
authors.forename: Yo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Joe
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Saunders
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Schillingmann
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sciutti
authors.forename: Vadim
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Tikhanoff
authors.forename: Britta
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wrede
authors.forename: Arne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zeschel
authors.forename: Angelo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cangelosi
mesh_terms: D001185:Artificial Intelligence; D002657:Child Development; D003071:Cognition; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007802:Language; D007858:Learning; D008037:Linguistics; D012371:Robotics
keywords: Development; Language action; Learning; Robotics; Social interaction