Fostering Resilient Aging with a Self-efficacy and Independence Enabling Robot (FRASIER)

With the percentage of the elderly population rapidly increasing as the Baby Boomer generation reaches retirement, the demand for assistive care will soon override the supply of caregivers available. Additionally, as most individuals age, the number of age-related limitations preventing them from completing everyday tasks independently may increase. Through FRASIER (Fostering Resilient Aging with a Self-efficacy and Independence Enabling Robot), the project team developed an assistive robot with a goal of providing a solution to this challenge

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

User-centered design of an interactive social service concept for elderly people

The population is greying rapidly. Technologies are booming to maintain independence and wellbeing of the elderly people. Many designs and researches are particularly focused on physiological and safety needs of the elderly people. Though technologies have capabilities to affect the social aspects of the elderly people in a positive way, there are fewer researches commenced to date. The main purpose of this thesis work is to find out the needs of the elderly people and design appropriate technological solution for the elderly people addressing those needs using User Centered Design Approach. Various data collection methods such as semi-structured thematic interviews, observation and diary method were utilized to collect user needs. Then user data were consolidated using affinity diagram and the needs were classified using Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Based on the user studies and the literature review of existing technologies, the need for social technology was figured out and the design phase involved the development of Social TV prototype. The design process was iterative in terms of creating scenarios and storyboards as well as User Environment Design to attain simplicity in design. Then the mid-fidelity prototype of social TV named ElderTV was developed to demonstrate the concept. The evaluation of the prototype was conducted utilizing sociability heuristics for social TV where the designed prototype was compared against each heuristics rules and these rules served as design guidelines during the design phase of the prototype. The resulted social TV concept for elderly people is designed to address elderly peoples’ needs to strengthen the existing social ties. The concept is expected to extend TV viewing activity of the elderly people into shared experience by allowing them to communicate with a circle of friends and families. The prototype is intended to illustrate how elderly people can share feeling of togetherness while watching television and alleviate the loneliness and isolation of the elderly