2025 WSC Weekly：養兒不防老 那麽養個機器人可以嗎？

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2025年第1期

Weekly Intro

隨著老齡化加劇，“養(yang) 兒(er) 防老”的概念淡化，很多人開始把希望寄托在機器人身上。如今科技發展迅速，為(wei) 啥養(yang) 老機器人還沒真正普及，反而屢屢被吐槽、沒人買(mai) 賬？本期 Weekly，帶你一探究竟！

2025 No.1養(yang) 兒(er) 不防老，那麽(me) 養(yang) 個(ge) 機器人可以嗎？

Are elderly care robots the solution for an aging society?

機器人養(yang) 老靠譜嗎

你是否暢想過自己的老年生活？在人口出生率下降、人口老年化日益加深的今天，養(yang) 老問題成為(wei) 全社會(hui) 關(guan) 注的重點議題。在傳(chuan) 統的社會(hui) 中，老年人的照護主要依靠家庭，也有的老年選擇雇用專(zhuan) 業(ye) 的護理人員。

如今，人工智能技術的迅猛發展為(wei) 養(yang) 老領域打開了新的思路，越來越多的學者和企業(ye) 把目光投向了機器人養(yang) 老的可能性。那麽(me) ，使用機器人來護理老年人，是一個(ge) 靠譜的選擇嗎？

Have you ever thought about your old age? With a declining birth rate and an increasingly aging population, the issue of aging has become a key concern for society as a whole. In traditional societies, the care of the elderly mainly relies on the family, while some elderly choose to hire professional caregivers.

Nowadays, the rapid development of artificial intelligence technology has opened up new ideas in the field of elderly care, and more and more scholars and companies are focusing on the possibility of robotic elderly care. So, is it really reliable to use robots to care for the elderly?

日本的養(yang) 老探索

日本是老年護理機器人領域的先驅。作為(wei) 全球老齡化最嚴(yan) 重的國家之一，日本在過去二十多年裏一直致力於(yu) 研發用於(yu) 照顧老年人的機器人，尤其是在2010年代，公共和私人投資大幅加速。

到2018年，僅(jin) 國家政府就已投入超過3億(yi) 美元用於(yu) 此類設備的研發。在政府的大力支持下，日本企業(ye) 推出了大量的護理機器人。護理機器人有多種形態和用途。

有些用於(yu) 身體(ti) 護理，例如幫助無法自行起身的老年人站立；輔助他們(men) 移動和鍛煉；監測其身體(ti) 活動並檢測跌倒情況；喂食；幫助洗浴或如廁。

另一些機器人則旨在提供社交和情感支持，以管理、減緩甚至預防認知能力下降；它們(men) 還可以提供陪伴和治療，幫助護理人員更輕鬆地照顧患有癡呆症的老年人，並減少護理人員的需求。

Japan is a pioneer in the field of elderly care robots. As one of the most aging countries in the world, Japan has been working on the development of robots for the care of the elderly for more than two decades, with public and private investment accelerating dramatically, especially in the 2010s. By 2018, the national government alone had invested more than $300 million in the development of such devices. With strong government support, Japanese companies have introduced a large number of care robots. Care robots come in various shapes and sizes.

Some are meant for physical care, including machines that can help lift older people if they’re unable to get up by themselves; assist with mobility and exercise; monitor their physical activity and detect falls; feed them; and help them take a bath or use the toilet.

Others are aimed at engaging older people socially and emotionally in order to manage, reduce, and even prevent cognitive decline; they might also provide companionship and therapy for lonely older people, make those with dementia-related conditions easier for care staff to manage, and reduce the number of caregivers required for day-to-day care.

養(yang) 老機器人遇冷

盡管機器人得到了政府的大力支持，並且工程師和程序員在技術上取得了真正的突破，但在大多數日本人的日常生活中，包括老年護理領域，機器人並未成為(wei) 重要的組成部分。

一項針對9,000多家日本養(yang) 老機構的全國性調查顯示，截至2019年，僅(jin) 約10%的機構引入了護理機器人。而2021年的另一項研究發現，在一組提供家庭護理的444名受訪者中，隻有2%的人曾經使用過護理機器人。此外，一些證據表明，即便購買(mai) 了機器人，許多護理機構在短時間使用後便將其擱置，最終被鎖進儲(chu) 物櫃。

Despite the publicity, government support, and subsidies—and the real technological achievements of engineers and programm-ers—robots don’t really feature in any major aspect of most people’s daily lives in Japan, including elder care.

A major national survey of over 9,000 elder-care institutions in Japan showed that in 2019, only about 10% reported having introduced any care robot, while a 2021 study found that out of a sample of 444 people who provided home care, only 2% had experience with a care robot. There is some evidence to suggest that when robots are purchased, they often end up being used for only a short time before being locked away in a cupboard.

理想與(yu) 現實

阿蘭(lan) 圖靈研究所的研究員詹姆斯·賴特在日本養(yang) 老院進行了一項為(wei) 期18個(ge) 月的田野調查，他的研究結果表明，老年護理機器人所承諾的願景與(yu) 其實際應用之間存在脫節。

在賴特所研究的養(yang) 老院中，有三種護理機器人：起重機器人Hug，旨在幫助護理人員抬起老人；機器海豹Paro，提供仿動物療法，並充當患有癡呆症老人的情緒幹預工具；類人機器人Pepper，負責組織娛樂(le) 和健身活動，以便護理人員騰出時間處理其他事務。

James Wright, a researcher at The Alan Turing Institute, conducted an 18-month field study in Japanese nursing homes, and his findings suggest a disconnect between the vision promised by elder care robots and their practical application. In the nursing homes James Wright studied, there were three types of care robots: Hug, a lifting robot designed to help caregivers lift the elderly; Paro, a robotic seal that provides animal-like therapy and serves as an emotional intervention tool for seniors with dementia; and Pepper, a humanoid robot that organizes recreational and fitness activities so that caregivers can be freed up to take care of other matters.

群眾(zhong) 不買(mai) 賬

然而，問題很快暴露出來。Hug 僅(jin) 在使用幾天後便被護理人員放棄，原因是它操作繁瑣，搬運費時，影響了護理人員與(yu) 老年人的互動。此外，能夠被機器舒適地抬起的老年人數量也非常有限。Paro 則受到護理人員和老人更積極的評價(jia) 。這款毛絨玩具形狀的機器海豹會(hui) 在用戶撫摸和交談時發出聲音、擺動頭部和尾巴。

然而，問題也隨之而來。有一位老人試圖剝掉Paro的“皮毛”，另一位則對它產(chan) 生了過度依賴，不願在沒有Paro陪伴的情況下進食或入睡。護理人員不得不密切關(guan) 注Paro的使用情況，而它也未能有效減少患嚴(yan) 重癡呆症老人的重複行為(wei) 模式。

Pepper 主要用於(yu) 每日的娛樂(le) 活動，比如代理老人做體(ti) 操。然而，護理人員很快發現，為(wei) 了讓老人跟隨機器人做體(ti) 操，他們(men) 必須站在旁邊模仿它的動作，並重複其指令。由於(yu) Pepper的音樂(le) 和動作種類有限，幾周後，老人們(men) 開始感到無聊，護理人員也逐漸減少了它的使用頻率。

But problems quickly became apparent. Staff stopped using Hug after only a few days, saying it was cumbersome and time consuming to wheel from room to room—cutting into the time they had to interact with the residents. And only a small number of them could be lifted comfortably using the machine.

Paro was received more favorably by staff and residents alike. Shaped like a fluffy, soft toy seal, it can make noises, move its head, and wiggle its tail when users pet and talk to it. At first, care workers were quite happy with the robot.

However, difficulties soon emerged. One resident kept trying to “skin” Paro by removing its outer layer of synthetic fur, while another developed a very close attachment, refusing to eat meals or go to bed without having it by her side. Staff ended up having to keep a close eye on Paro’s interactions with residents, and it didn’t seem to reduce the repetitive behavior patterns of those with severe dementia. Pepper was used to run recreation sessions that were held every afternoon. Instead of leading an activity like karaoke or having a conversation with residents. But care workers quickly realized that to get residents to participate in the exercise routine, they had to stand next to the robot, copying its movements and echoing its instructions. Since there was a relatively small set of songs and exercise routines, boredom also started to set in after a few weeks, and they ended up using Pepper less often.

消耗更多人力

賴特認為(wei) ，這些機器人未能實現“減少人力”的承諾，反而需要護理人員額外付出精力來管理它們(men) ：機器人需要搬運、維護、清潔、啟動、操作、向老人反複解釋其用途，在使用過程中持續監控，並在使用後妥善存放。

越來越多的研究表明，護理機器人往往增加了護理人員的工作量，而不是減少它。然而，更值得注意的是，它們(men) 改變了護理工作的性質：過去，護理人員會(hui) 自主設計娛樂(le) 活動，並會(hui) 主動與(yu) 老人交談互動，然而在使用機器人後，護理人員們(men) 主要在遠處監控情況，他們(men) 必須縮短與(yu) 老人的互動時間，以便騰出時間將機器人推回儲(chu) 藏室。原本注重社交和溝通的護理工作都被新的任務所取代，這些任務涉及的更多是與(yu) 機器人互動，而非與(yu) 老人互動。

結果，護理機器人不僅(jin) 未能為(wei) 護理人員節省時間，反而減少了他們(men) 進行社交和情感護理的機會(hui) ，降低了老年護理的人文關(guan) 懷。

Wright concluded that the machines failed to save labor. The care robots themselves required care: they had to be moved around, maintained, cleaned, booted up, operated, repeatedly explained to residents, constantly monitored during use, and stored away afterwards.

Indeed, a growing body of evidence from other studies is finding that robots tend to end up creating more work for caregivers. But what was interesting was the type of work that they created. In the past, caregivers would design their own recreational activities and would initiate conversations and interactions with the elderly, however, with the use of the robot, caregivers, who primarily monitor the situation from a distance, must shorten their interactions with the elderly in order to free up time to push the robot back into the storage room. In other words, existing social and communication-­oriented tasks tended to be displaced by new tasks that involved more interaction with the robots than with the residents.

Instead of saving time for staff to do more of the human labor of social and emotional care, the robots actually reduced the scope for such work.

Weekly關(guan) 鍵詞 Key Words

care robots 護理機器人

所屬話題

#The Best is Yet to Be, or Not To Be?

相關(guan) 閱讀

https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/01/09/1065135/japan-automating-eldercare-robots/

Weekly FUN Quiz

相信現在你已經對“養(yang) 老機器人”有了一定的了解啦！那就快來參與(yu) 本期Weekly FUN Quiz👇，告訴老師你的答案吧！

Quiz

According to James Wright, which of the following descriptions of care robots is most accurate? 根據詹姆斯·賴特，以下哪項對護理機器人的描述最準確？

A. Creative but ineffective 有創意但效果不佳

B. Popular but time consuming 受歡迎但費時

C. Independent but idealist 獨立但不現實

D. Expensive and heavy 昂貴而沉重

E. Emotionally interactive 情感互動性高