On education

On education (editorial). Gerontechnology 2008; 7(1):1-2. Gerontechnology may be variously described as a hypothesis, a philosophy, a movement, or an application-oriented field of study, but it always combines gerontology and technology, and has increased well-being of aging individuals as its measure of success. From the start it has also been developed as a higher-education teaching endeavour that stresses multidisciplinary aspects and the suitability for generalization of existing theories from the relevant monodisciplines. In a rising number of master classes for PhD students the theoretical and practical bases are made explicit

Persuasive GERONtechnology : an introduction

The motivationally positive property of technologies has both a functional and an attractiveness component. The first one concerns the use of interactive technology to encourage or discourage specific behaviours by controlling the conditions under which they occur. Riding a motorcycle for the excitement, is a good example of the second component. Gerontechnology, as a service of human health and well-being during development and aging, has been defined in 1991. After 15 years it is time to view the persuasiveness of current and future practices to focus our behaviour and attitude towards a lifespan with enlarged vitality and independence

Oude vrouwen en haar technologie

‘Oude vrouwen en haar technologie’ bekijkt de huidige problemen die ons benauwen vanuit het (pre)historisch perspectief van de voormoederen van Annelies van Bronswijk. In haar afscheidscollege komen de (bouw)technologische antwoorden aan bod op gezondheidseffecten van de periodieke opwarming van de aarde, de wisselende behaalde leeftijden van vrouwen, de zorg en de maatschappelijke duurzaamheid. De definitie ‘technologisch oud’ is gebaseerd op hersenonderzoek en op de sociologie, die de grens leggen rond het 30ste levensjaar. We zullen zien in hoeverre de huidige situatie inderdaad nieuw is, of slechts een herhaling van zetten uit (oer)oude tijden. Dat maakt de toekomst extra interessant

Failure stress as a motivator for creative construction management

A building assignment is a complex task that demands collaborative working in order to achieve added value for users and society through creative construction management. Modular building systems are used in workshops in the building environment domain to make students aware of various phenomena that occur in the process of creative construction. Existing modular building systems used in training do not include the experience of failure as a motivator for creative construction. This article validates an innovative set of modular building materials (Handstorm®) that has a high innate risk of construction failure, as a tool in using failure as a motivator in creative construction. It reports on the effect of both innate failures – such as instability or collapsing – and emotional failures, such as the success of a competitor or losing a competition. The results indicate that the presence of failure stress is a valid motivator in teaching creative construction management

Impact of management attitudes on perceived thermal comfort

Objectives This study examined the influence of some organizational and management characteristics on the perception of indoor environment qualities such as thermal comfort and related stress. Methods One open office in each of three organizations in Eindhoven was studied. An office environment survey, a questionnaire on extended cognitive failure, and a questionnaire on effort-reward imbalance were combined to assess the perceived management attitudes and perceived (dis)comfort of 50 workers in each of two of the offices and of 43 persons in the third. The study included data on perceived and measured thermal comfort and indoor-air quality, self-reported personal factors, and organizational factors (N=46). Results Perceived thermal comfort correlated with perceived symptoms of the sick building syndrome; it also correlated or was associated with the following three management-related parameters: (i) employees' stress, (ii) employees' overcommitment to work, and (iii) employees' perceived privacy. Conclusions The managerial characteristics of an organization influences thermal comfort as perceived by employees

Indoor environment in Dutch primary schools and health of the pupils

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