World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
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Electronics and Electrical Engineering
USA
2026

D-Index & Metrics

Best Female Scientists

D-Index
106
Citations
45708
World Ranking
1038
National Ranking
629

Computer Science

D-Index
107
Citations
45592
World Ranking
265
National Ranking
145

Electronics and Electrical Engineering

D-Index
99
Citations
40440
World Ranking
194
National Ranking
94

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Electronics and Electrical Engineering in United States Leader Award
  • 2025 - Research.com Electronics and Electrical Engineering in United States Leader Award
  • 2020 - ACM Fellow For contributions to socially assistive robotics and human-robot systems
  • 2011 - IEEE Fellow For contributions to robot coordination and learning in human-robot systems
  • 2007 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

Overview

Maja J. Matarić is affiliated with the University of Southern California in the United States. Their research focuses primarily on psychology and computer science, with main fields of study including social psychology, artificial intelligence, cognitive neuroscience, human-computer interaction, and experimental and cognitive psychology.

The scientist's work covers several main topics, such as social robot interaction and human-robot interaction (HRI), autism spectrum disorder research, assistive technology in communication and mobility, AI in service interactions, emotion and mood recognition, virtual reality applications and impacts, and innovative human-technology interaction.

Maja J. Matarić has frequently published in several venues, including:

  • arXiv (Cornell University)
  • 2022 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN)
  • Science Robotics
  • ACM Transactions on Human-Robot Interaction
  • International Journal of Social Robotics

Coauthorship plays a significant role in their research output, with frequent collaborators including Stefanos Nikolaidis, Nathaniel Dennler, Zhonghao Shi, Thomas R. Groechel, and Leena Mathur.

Key recent papers authored or coauthored by Maja J. Matarić include:

  • "Modeling engagement in long-term, in-home socially assistive robot interventions for children with autism spectrum disorders," 2020, Science Robotics
  • "The Opportunities and Risks of Large Language Models in Mental Health," 2024, JMIR Mental Health
  • "Are We There Yet? Comparing Remote Learning Technologies in the University Classroom," 2020, IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters
  • "Socially-Assistive Robots Using Empathy to Reduce Pain and Distress during Peripheral IV Placement in Children," 2020, Pain Research and Management
  • "Toward Personalized Affect-Aware Socially Assistive Robot Tutors for Long-Term Interventions with Children with Autism," 2022, ACM Transactions on Human-Robot Interaction

Maja J. Matarić has been recognized through several honors, including being named an ACM Fellow in 2020 for contributions to socially assistive robotics and human-robot systems and an IEEE Fellow in 2011 for contributions to robot coordination and learning in human-robot systems. Additionally, they have been acknowledged as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) since 2007.

Best Publications

  • A Formal Analysis and Taxonomy of Task Allocation in Multi-Robot Systems

    Brian P. Gerkey;Maja J. Matarić

  • Mobile Sensor Network Deployment using Potential Fields: A Distributed, Scalable Solution to the Area Coverage Problem

    Andrew Howard;Maja J. Matarić;Gaurav S. Sukhatme

  • Sold!: auction methods for multirobot coordination

    B.P. Gerkey;M.J. Mataric

  • Robots for Use in Autism Research

    Brian Scassellati;Henny Admoni;Maja J. Matarić

  • Defining socially assistive robotics

    D. Feil-Seifer;M.J. Mataric

  • An Incremental Self-Deployment Algorithm for Mobile Sensor Networks

    Andrew Howard;Maja J. Matarić;Gaurav S. Sukhatme

  • Integration of representation into goal-driven behavior-based robots

    M.J. Mataric

  • Reinforcement learning in the multi-robot domain

    Maja J. Mataric

  • Reward functions for accelerated learning

    Maja J. Mataric

  • Behaviour-based control: examples from navigation, learning, and group behaviour

    Maja J. Mataric

  • Interaction and intelligent behavior

    Maja J. Mataric

  • A general algorithm for robot formations using local sensing and minimal communication

    J. Fredslund;M.J. Mataric

  • From Local Interactions to Collective Intelligence

    Maja J. Matarić

  • Cooperative multi-robot box-pushing

    M.J. Mataric;M. Nilsson;K.T. Simsarin

  • Most valuable player: a robot device server for distributed control

    B.P. Gerkey;R.T. Vaughan;K. Stoy;A. Howard

  • Automated Derivation of Primitives for Movement Classification

    Ajo Fod;Maja J. Matarić;Odest Chadwicke Jenkins

  • Natural methods for robot task learning: instructive demonstrations, generalization and practice

    Monica N. Nicolescu;Maja J. Mataric

  • User—robot personality matching and assistive robot behavior adaptation for post-stroke rehabilitation therapy

    Adriana Tapus;Cristian Tapus;Maja J. Mataric

  • Socially assistive robotics [Grand Challenges of Robotics]

    A. Tapus;M.J. Mataric;B. Scasselati

  • A socially assistive robot exercise coach for the elderly

    Juan Fasola;Maja J Matarić

  • A laser-based people tracker

    A. Fod;A. Howard;M.A.J. Mataric

  • Issues and approaches in the design of collective autonomous agents

    Maja J. Matarić

Frequent Co-Authors

Stewart W. Wilson
Stewart W. Wilson University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Jordan Pollack
Jordan Pollack Brandeis University
Gaurav S. Sukhatme
Gaurav S. Sukhatme University of Southern California
Odest Chadwicke Jenkins
Odest Chadwicke Jenkins University of Michigan–Ann Arbor
Shrikanth S. Narayanan
Shrikanth S. Narayanan University of Southern California
François Michaud
François Michaud Université de Sherbrooke
Aude Billard
Aude Billard École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
Bilge Mutlu
Bilge Mutlu University of Wisconsin–Madison

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