Regular biography
Laurel Riek is a faculty member in the Department of Computer Science at the University of California, San Diego. Her research interests include areas related to computer science, though specific details are not provided. She maintains a professional website at https://cse.ucsd.edu/people/faculty-profiles/laurel-riek, where additional information about her work can be found. Contact details, including her email and phone number, are available on her profile page.
Scholar-generated biography
Laurel Riek is a Professor in Computer Science and Engineering and Emergency Medicine at UC San Diego, focusing on Healthcare Robotics, Human-Robot Interaction, Assistive Robotics, and Health Informatics. Her research explores how robots can support healthcare delivery, enhance human-robot collaboration, and improve patient outcomes through empathetic and adaptive robotic systems. She investigates the role of anthropomorphism, empathy, and social cues in human-robot rapport, as well as the ethical and practical challenges of integrating robotics into clinical and caregiving environments. Her work emphasizes the importance of human-centered design, particularly in mental health care, dementia support, and neurorehabilitation, aiming to create technologies that are both effective and socially responsive.