Ageing and Technology: Perspectives from the Social Sciences

The booming increase of the senior population has become a social phenomenon and a challenge to our societies, and technological advances have undoubtedly contributed to improve the lives of elderly citizens in numerous aspects. In current debates on technology, however, the "human factor" is often largely ignored. The ageing individual is rather seen as a malfunctioning machine whose deficiencies must be diagnosed or as a set of limitations to be overcome by means of technological devices. This volume aims at focusing on the perspective of human beings deriving from the development and use of technology: this change of perspective - taking the human being and not technology first - may help us to become more sensitive to the ambivalences involved in the interaction between humans and technology, as well as to adapt technologies to the people that created the need for its existence, thus contributing to improve the quality of life of senior citizens

Ageing and Technology

The booming increase of the senior population has become a social phenomenon and a challenge to our societies, and technological advances have undoubtedly contributed to improve the lives of elderly citizens in numerous aspects. In current debates on technology, however, the »human factor« is often largely ignored. The ageing individual is rather seen as a malfunctioning machine whose deficiencies must be diagnosed or as a set of limitations to be overcome by means of technological devices. This volume aims at focusing on the perspective of human beings deriving from the development and use of technology: this change of perspective – taking the human being and not technology first – may help us to become more sensitive to the ambivalences involved in the interaction between humans and technology, as well as to adapt technologies to the people that created the need for its existence, thus contributing to improve the quality of life of senior citizens

Determinanten der informellen Pflege in Deutschland: Gesundheitsökonomische Beiträge zur Untersuchung von Bereitschaft und Präferenzen

Aufgrund des demografischen Wandels wird die Zahl pflegebedürftiger Menschen in Deutschland weiter steigen. Im Jahr 2019 wurden 80% der Pflegebedürftigen in Deutschland zu Hause versorgt; die Mehrheit davon durch Angehörige, Freunde oder Nachbarn (56%). Diese sogenannte informelle Pflege ist mit deutlichen Kostenvorteilen für die Pflegeversicherung verbunden und entspricht den Wünschen der meisten Älteren. Aufgrund bestehender Mängel an professionellen Pflegekräften und Pflegestrukturen in Deutschland ist mit einem Anstieg des Bedarfs an informeller Pflege zu rechnen. Die Sicherstellung der künftigen Pflege hängt somit unter anderem von der Bereitschaft nahestender Personen ab, diese Art der Pflege zu übernehmen. Das informelle Pflegepotenzial könnte jedoch in Zukunft abnehmen, unter anderem durch Veränderungen der Voraussetzungen für die Übernahme der Pflege, wie beispielsweise ein abnehmendes Pflichtgefühl in der Gesellschaft. Das Ziel dieser Dissertation liegt in der Untersuchung der Pflegepräferenzen und erwarteten Pflegebereitschaft der deutschen Allgemeinbevölkerung. Hierbei werden mithilfe von neun Modulen zentrale Determinanten der informellen Pflege untersucht, methodische Aspekte bei der Ermittlung von Pflegepräferenzen aufgezeigt und die Bedeutung einer Lohnersatzleistung für informell Pflegende, als geeignetes Instrument zur Erhöhung der Pflegebereitschaft, diskutiert. Eingeordnet werden die eingeschlossenen Publikationen in das Informal Care Model von van Groenou und de Boer (2016) und in Deutschland in Hinblick auf die Modelldimensionen untersucht. In den letzten Jahren zeigt sich als Vorgehensweise eine zunehmende Nutzung von wahlbasierten „stated-preference“ Methoden, wie dem Discrete Choice Experiment (DCE) zur Ermittlung und Quantifizierung von Pflegepräferenzen. Umfangreiche Vorstudien (systematische Literaturrecherchen, qualitative Interviews) wurden in dieser Dissertation zur Problemdefinition und Identifikation relevanter Entscheidungskriterien für die Präferenzerhebung mittels DCE angewandt. Erstmals wurde die erwartete Pflegebereitschaft der Allgemeinbevölkerung in Deutschland mittels dieser Methodik erhoben. Dabei konnten wichtige Erkenntnisse relevanter Einflussfaktoren auf die Pflegebereitschaft generiert sowie Präferenzheterogenitäten aufgezeigt werden. Der Einbezug einer Lohnersatzleistung hat die Berechnung monetärer Mindestsätze für die Erbringung informeller Pflege in Deutschland ermöglicht. Die Ergebnisse der Analysen haben gezeigt, dass ein finanzieller Ausgleich die Pflegebereitschaft bestimmter Subgruppen erhöhen könnte, während andere den Pflegeumfang oder die Häufigkeit einer professionellen Unterstützung als wichtiger einstuften. Somit bedarf es flexibler Ansätze zur Erhöhung der Pflegebereitschaft. Die neun Publikationen konnten zudem den wachsenden Stellenwert der Präferenzerhebung im Bereich der Langzeitpflege ganzheitlich aufzeigen.The number of people in need of care will continue to rise in Germany due to demographic changes. In 2019, 80% of those in need of care in Germany were cared for at home, the majority by relatives, friends or neighbors (56%). This so-called informal care is associated with significant cost benefits for the long-term care insurance and corresponds to the wishes of most older adults. Due to existing shortages of professional caregivers and care structures in Germany, the need for informal care is expected to increase in the future. Securing future care thus depends, among other aspects, on the continued willingness of close relatives to provide informal care. However, the potential for informal care could decrease in the future due to, amongst others, changes in the prerequisites for taking on the role of informal caregiver, for example a decreasing sense of obligation in the society. The aim of this dissertation is to investigate care preferences and expected willingness to provide informal care in the German general population. With the help of nine modules, central contributing factors of informal care are examined, methodological aspects when eliciting care preferences are highlighted, and the significance of a monetary compensation for informal caregivers as a suitable instrument for increasing willingness to care is discussed. The included publications are classed in the Informal Care Model by van Groenou and de Boer (2016) and examined with regard to the model dimensions in Germany. In recent years, choice-based "stated-preference" methods such as the Discrete Choice Experiment (DCE) have been increasingly utilised to conduct and quantify care preferences. Extensive preliminary studies (systematic literature reviews, qualitative interviews) were applied in this dissertation to specifically define the problem at hand and identify relevant decision-criteria for eliciting preferences using a DCE. For the first time, the expected willingness to provide care in the German general population was surveyed using this methodology. Important insights into relevant factors that influence willingness to provide informal care were generated and preference heterogeneities were identified. The inclusion of a monetary compensation enabled the calculation of minimum rates that were accepted for the provision of informal care in Germany. The results of the analyses showed that a financial compensation could increase the willingness to care of certain subgroups, while others rated the extent of care or the frequency of professional support as more important. Thus, flexible approaches are needed to increase readiness to care. The nine publications were also able to demonstrate the growing importance of preference elicitation in the field of long-term care in a holistic manner

Can a service robot which supports independent living of older people disobey a command? The views of older people, informal carers and professional caregivers on the acceptability of robots

Sustaining independent living for elderly people in their own homes is desirable for various reasons. As older people become frail or disabled, a ‘gap’ appears between the abilities they still have and the abilities that are required for independent living. To a certain extent robots may close this gap by providing functionality lost through frailty or disability. A scenario was created involving a re-enablement coach robot. This scenario was discussed with older people, informal carers, and care professionals in focus groups in the Netherlands, United Kingdom and France. The results provided insights into the acceptability of robots and showed that older people were open to the idea of having a robot supporting them in their daily life. Participants were also willing to have a robot perform higher level coordinating tasks while playing the role of the re-enablement coach. However, participants wanted the robot to operate at the same level of intelligence as a human carer. This implies that more attention needs to be given to the development of the social skills and behaviour of such robots. Additionally, participants acknowledged that such a robot would create tension between respecting the autonomy of the user (i.e. robot obeys all commands given by the user) and the promotion of independence in the long term (i.e. robot is programmed to maintain the abilities the user still has). Our results indicate that people preferred to resolve this tension in favour of autonomy. This choice, however, may decrease the user’s abilities in the longer term and thereby undermine users’ ability to live independently

Robotics, AI, and Humanity

This open access book examines recent advances in how artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics have elicited widespread debate over their benefits and drawbacks for humanity. The emergent technologies have for instance implications within medicine and health care, employment, transport, manufacturing, agriculture, and armed conflict. While there has been considerable attention devoted to robotics/AI applications in each of these domains, a fuller picture of their connections and the possible consequences for our shared humanity seems needed. This volume covers multidisciplinary research, examines current research frontiers in AI/robotics and likely impacts on societal well-being, human – robot relationships, as well as the opportunities and risks for sustainable development and peace. The attendant ethical and religious dimensions of these technologies are addressed and implications for regulatory policies on the use and future development of AI/robotics technologies are elaborated

Imagining Law: Essays in Conversation with Judith Gardam

By any measure, Judith Gardam has accomplished much in her professional life and is rightly acknowledged by scholars throughout the world as an expert in her many fields of diverse interest — including international law, energy law and feminist theory. This book celebrates her academic life and work with twelve essays from leading scholars in Gardam’s fields of expertise