Aging and Technology Perspectives of Web-Based Chronic Disease Self-Management

Many people suffer from chronic disease; however, older adults are at greatest risk of chronic conditions. Although social workers regularly engage with chronically ill older adults, they are not noticeably involved with the research and development of chronic disease management. As such, with recent movements toward health information technology, the efficacy of technology-based chronic disease management is not well established for older adults. Informed by theories of self-management, human development, and technology design, this research investigated lifespan differences of web-based chronic disease self-management. Using a sequential mixed methods design, a secondary data analysis of a diabetes specific web-based self-management intervention (n=462) was performed, followed by qualitative focus groups with 40 older intervention participants, and then mixed for overall interpretation. Results indicated that social workers must take a leadership role in the evaluation and implementation of web-based self-management for older adults to address identified lifespan differences

Survey on virtual coaching for older adults

Virtual coaching has emerged as a promising solution to extend independent living for older adults. A virtual coach system is an always-attentive personalized system that continuously monitors user's activity and surroundings and delivers interventions - that is, intentional messages - in the appropriate moment. This article presents a survey of different approaches in virtual coaching for older adults, from the less technically supported tools to the latest developments and future avenues for research. It focuses on the technical aspects, especially on software architectures, user interaction and coaching personalization. Nevertheless, some aspects from the fields of personality/social psychology are also presented in the context of coaching strategies. Coaching is considered holistically, including matters such as physical and cognitive training, nutrition, social interaction and mood.The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 769830

A new theory of urban design and responsive environments : a comparative study of two approaches to urban design

Department: Architecture

Ensinar inglês através da meditação guiada

In our never-ending search for the most efficient and eloquent ways of teaching English as a foreign language, we have identified “Guided meditation” as an interesting and challenging alternative approach and strategy. This paper discusses the notions of “linguistics”, “applied linguistics” and “psycholinguistics” and it tackles several teaching methods connected to guided meditation, such as “Suggestopedia” and the “Natural Approach”. It further deals with the main differences between “mindfulness”, “guided meditation” and “transcendentalism”, and then it aims at showing and explaining ways of using guided meditation practice for boosting teaching and learning English as a foreign language, mainly based on Tatiana Slama-Cazacu’s dynamic-contextual methodology (1999). The paper also designs an experiment that is going to be implemented in the first semester of the academic year 2021-2022, based on the hypothesis that the students engaged in guided meditation strategies can generate new ideas (be creative), cooperate with their colleagues, learn, reflect and think critically, improving thus their communication abilities in English. For this purpose, the research framework of the paper presents the subjects, the main research methods, the data collection instruments and the stages of the experiment (administering an initial and an achievement test, a pre-survey and a post-survey, conceiving activities, collecting work samples and the teacher’s observation notes).Resumo: Em nossa busca incessante pelas formas mais eficientes e eloquentes de ensinar inglês como língua estrangeira, identificamos a “meditação guiada” como uma abordagem e estratégia alternativa interessante e desafiadora. Este artigo discute as noções de “linguística”, “linguística aplicada” e “psicolinguística” e aborda diversos métodos de ensino ligados à meditação guiada, como a “Sugestopedia” e a “Abordagem Natural”. Aborda ainda as principais diferenças entre “mindfulness”, “meditação guiada” e “transcendentalismo” e, em seguida, visa mostrar e explicar formas de utilização da prática da meditação guiada para potencializar o ensino e aprendizagem de inglês como língua estrangeira, principalmente com base na Metodologia dinâmica-contextual de  Tatiana  Slama-Cazacu (1999). O trabalho também projeta um experimento que será implementado no primeiro semestre do ano letivo 2021-2022, com base na hipótese de que os alunos envolvidos em estratégias de meditação guiada podem gerar novas ideias (ser criativos), cooperar com seus colegas, aprender, refletir e pensar criticamente, melhorando assim suas habilidades de comunicação em inglês. Para isso, a estrutura de pesquisa do artigo apresenta os sujeitos, os principais métodos de pesquisa, os instrumentos de coleta de dados e as etapas do experimento (administração de um teste inicial e de desempenho, um pré-pesquisa e um pós-pesquisa, conceber atividades, recolha de amostras de trabalho e notas de observação do professor).   Palavras-chave: Meditação guiada; Inglês para Fins Específicos; ensino; atenção plena; psicolinguística.  

Artificial Intelligence-based Smarter Accessibility Evaluations for Comprehensive and Personalized Assessment

The research focuses on utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) algorithms to enhance accessibility for people with disabilities (PwD) in three areas: public buildings, homes, and medical devices. The overarching goal is to improve the accuracy, reliability, and effectiveness of accessibility evaluation systems by leveraging smarter technologies. For public buildings, the challenge lies in developing an accurate and reliable accessibility evaluation system. AI can play a crucial role by analyzing data, identifying potential barriers, and assessing the accessibility of various features within buildings. By training ML algorithms on relevant data, the system can learn to make accurate predictions about the accessibility of different spaces and help policymakers and architects design more inclusive environments. For private places such as homes, it is essential to have a person-focused accessibility evaluation system. By utilizing machine learning-based intelligent systems, it becomes possible to assess the accessibility of individual homes based on specific needs and requirements. This personalized approach can help identify barriers and recommend modifications or assistive technologies that can enhance accessibility and independence for PwD within their own living spaces. The research also addresses the intelligent evaluation of healthcare devices in the home. Many PwD rely on medical devices for their daily living, and ensuring the accessibility and usability of these devices is crucial. AI can be employed to evaluate the accessibility features of medical devices, provide recommendations for improvement, and even measure their effectiveness in supporting the needs of PwD. Overall, this research aims to enhance the accuracy and reliability of accessibility evaluation systems by leveraging AI and ML technologies. By doing so, it seeks to improve the quality of life for individuals with disabilities by enabling increased independence, fostering social inclusion, and promoting better accessibility in public buildings, private homes, and medical devices

The Cognitive Ecology of the Internet

In this chapter, we analyze the relationships between the Internet and its users in terms of situated cognition theory. We first argue that the Internet is a new kind of cognitive ecology, providing almost constant access to a vast amount of digital information that is increasingly more integrated into our cognitive routines. We then briefly introduce situated cognition theory and its species of embedded, embodied, extended, distributed and collective cognition. Having thus set the stage, we begin by taking an embedded cognition view and analyze how the Internet aids certain cognitive tasks. After that, we conceptualize how the Internet enables new kinds of embodied interaction, extends certain aspects of our embodiment, and examine how wearable technologies that monitor physiological, behavioral and contextual states transform the embodied self. On the basis of the degree of cognitive integration between a user and Internet resource, we then look at how and when the Internet extends our cognitive processes. We end this chapter with a discussion of distributed and collective cognition as facilitated by the Internet

Using Media Equation Theory to Assess the Effectiveness of Virtual Reality Technology in Organizational Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Training

The emergence of immersive virtual reality media technology is providing human beings with a new communication platform to engage beyond the traditional frameworks of video media, audio media, and static webpages on the Internet. These communication media technologies offer users an immersive environment in which they are able to communicate and interact with fellow human beings and non-human entities in life-like mannerisms. Most importantly, this technology also has the potential to bridge gaps and solve problems within the context of certain cultural and societal issues. The issue of communication deficiencies surrounding the area of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) is one that holds significant value for many individuals, organizations, and institutions. This research study explores how the use of virtual reality media in the form of a DEIB training module can aid in more efficient and meaningful organizational training related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging communication strategies

Proceedings of the International Workshop on EuroPLOT Persuasive Technology for Learning, Education and Teaching (IWEPLET 2013)

"This book contains the proceedings of the International Workshop on EuroPLOT Persuasive Technology for Learning, Education and Teaching (IWEPLET) 2013 which was held on 16.-17.September 2013 in Paphos (Cyprus) in conjunction with the EC-TEL conference. The workshop and hence the proceedings are divided in two parts: on Day 1 the EuroPLOT project and its results are introduced, with papers about the specific case studies and their evaluation. On Day 2, peer-reviewed papers are presented which address specific topics and issues going beyond the EuroPLOT scope. This workshop is one of the deliverables (D 2.6) of the EuroPLOT project, which has been funded from November 2010 – October 2013 by the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) of the European Commission through the Lifelong Learning Programme (LLL) by grant #511633. The purpose of this project was to develop and evaluate Persuasive Learning Objects and Technologies (PLOTS), based on ideas of BJ Fogg. The purpose of this workshop is to summarize the findings obtained during this project and disseminate them to an interested audience. Furthermore, it shall foster discussions about the future of persuasive technology and design in the context of learning, education and teaching. The international community working in this area of research is relatively small. Nevertheless, we have received a number of high-quality submissions which went through a peer-review process before being selected for presentation and publication. We hope that the information found in this book is useful to the reader and that more interest in this novel approach of persuasive design for teaching/education/learning is stimulated. We are very grateful to the organisers of EC-TEL 2013 for allowing to host IWEPLET 2013 within their organisational facilities which helped us a lot in preparing this event. I am also very grateful to everyone in the EuroPLOT team for collaborating so effectively in these three years towards creating excellent outputs, and for being such a nice group with a very positive spirit also beyond work. And finally I would like to thank the EACEA for providing the financial resources for the EuroPLOT project and for being very helpful when needed. This funding made it possible to organise the IWEPLET workshop without charging a fee from the participants.