# Unpacking Human Teachers' Intentions For Natural Interactive Task Learning

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2102.06755 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2102.06755/

## Key facts

- Cited by 6 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 12 Feb 2021.

## Built on by (most cited first, 6 of 6)

- [VAL: Interactive Task Learning with GPT Dialog Parsing](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.01627/) (2023)
- [A Cognitive Framework for Delegation Between Error-Prone AI and Human Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2204.02889/) (2022)
- [Modeling Human Behavior Part II -- Cognitive approaches and Uncertainty](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2205.06483/) (2022)
- [Modeling Human Behavior Part I -- Learning and Belief Approaches](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2205.06485/) (2022)
- [How Do Human Users Teach a Continual Learning Robot in Repeated Interactions?](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.00123/) (2023)
- [Analogical Concept Memory for Architectures Implementing the Common Model of Cognition](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2210.11731/) (2022)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Interactive Task Learning (ITL) is an emerging research agenda that studies the design of complex intelligent robots that can acquire new knowledge through natural human teacher-robot learner interactions. ITL methods are particularly useful for designing intelligent robots whose behavior can be adapted by humans collaborating with them. Various research communities are contributing methods for ITL and a large subset of this research is robot-centered with a focus on developing algorithms that can learn online, quickly. This paper studies the ITL problem from a human-centered perspective to provide guidance for robot design so that human teachers can naturally teach ITL robots. In this paper, we present 1) a qualitative bidirectional analysis of an interactive teaching study (N=10) through which we characterize various aspects of actions intended and executed by human teachers when teaching a robot; 2) an in-depth discussion of the teaching approach employed by two participants to understand the need for personal adaptation to individual teaching styles; and 3) requirements for ITL robot design based on our analyses and informed by a computational theory of collaborative interactions, SharedPlans.