A Theoretical Integration of Robot Explanations: From Mechanical and Teleological to Emotional Explanations

Kazunori Terada

Abstract: In human-robot collaboration, effective communication of robot intentions and actions is crucial for safety and efficiency. While various explanation methods have been proposed, a unified framework integrating different explanation approaches from a theoretical perspective remains a challenge. This paper presents a three-style framework that formally integrates mechanical, teleological, and emotional explanations for robot actions. Building upon traditional mechanical explanations describing causal chains and teleological explanations focusing on goals, we formalized emotional explanations based on utility changes, grounded in Appraisal theory. These three complementary styles were unified through a common mathematical foundation of state transitions and utility functions, enabling systematic selection and integration of explanations according to the situation. We provide guidelines for selecting appropriate explanation styles based on task phases and explanatory purposes, while discussing implementation challenges and future directions including personalization and real-time adaptation mechanisms.

External IDs:doi:10.1109/hri61500.2025.10974053