Investigation of mobile devices usage and mobile augmented reality applications among older people

Mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones have allow users to communicate, entertainment, access information and perform productivity. However, older people are having issues to utilise mobile devices that may affect their quality of life and wellbeing. There are some potentials of mobile Augmented Reality (AR) applications to increase older users mobile usage by enhancing their experience and learning. The study aims to investigate mobile devices potential barriers and influence factors in using mobile devices. It also seeks to understand older people issues in using AR applications

A confirmatory factor analysis on task-technology fit for a student portal

This research seeks to identify the predictors of task-technology fit in the context of student portal. The population comprises undergraduate students who are registered and active at three faculties in a public institution of higher learning in Malaysia. The sample is 570 students drawn using cluster sampling approach based on courses offered according to the level of study at each faculty. The study adapted six measures from past e-commerce study and found five predictors of task-technology fit

Rising ageing population: a preliminary study of Malaysian older people expectations in Information and Communication Technology

The older people population in the world is showing a steady increase and Malaysia is projected to having an ageing population in 2025 as the percentage will reach over 7.1% (an indicator of an ageing population) of the total population. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) offers opportunities to create conducive environment for older people, but there may be a significant number of older people particularly in Malaysia who are not informed, astute, and learned consumers with respect to ICT and so could be denied many of the technology potential benefits. Drawing upon data from group sessions held with 51 participants of various age groups, this paper reports on a preliminary study to explore the current state of Malaysian older people interaction with and expectations in ICT including mobile communications in aspects of their everyday life. Comparison in terms of mobile device usage among participants was also presented. The study has highlighted (1) ways in which ICT has supported and can support older people and (2) mobile usage patterns of younger and older users

Clinic management system: business process re-engineering based on user experience (UX)

Clinic management systems function is to arrange and organize the inherent process in the health facility to be harmonized with the patient’s demand. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the common themes to be used in user interface of the application through identification of user specification based on the context. The user experience has been utilized to consider the critical aspect of successes of implementation related to human factor of mental model, which are utility, ease of use and efficiency. The contribution of this paper is twofold. Firstly, the design process should be done through tremendous re-design of primary business process to obtain excessive improvement in the capacity, capability and quality of the service. Secondly, the information presentation should be provided in alternative way involving the effort to have more platform and modes to increase accessibility and availability

Mobile devices: older people’s learning experiences

Mobile devices are important to support older people in many ways, especially to promote independent ageing. However, rapid development of mobile devices which focus on younger people has incurred issues among older people to learn using it. Thus, this study aims to understand mobile device learning experiences among older people. Qualitative method was used in the study - interviews and focus groups, to collect data among 21 older people, aged 55 and above. It is found that older people initially experienced three stages of learning process: beginner, intermediate and advance. There are several learning techniques or resources required by older people to learn to use mobile devices. These resources are very critical for older people to maintain their positive emotions and attitudes. This study enhanced knowledge in user experience domain which can assist mobile designer to develop useful and usable mobile devices or technologies for older people and others

An exploratory study on the use of social companion robot for adults with motor disabilities

Assistive technology has been a significant topic in both the research and manufacturing industry for the past decades focusing on improving social interaction, supporting health care, business, education, and daily activities. There are different types of assistive technologies such as wearable devices, mobile applications, automated home appliances, and robots. There is lack of study conducted to investigate the use of robots among disabled users, such as adult users with motor disabilities. The aim of this study is to explore the use of a companion robot called Zenbo in assisting motor disability users in Saudi community. This paper presented a preliminary work on Zenbo’s design evaluation in terms of functionality, acceptability, and effectiveness. The study used a mixed method such as observation (hands-on), interview, and survey questions to evaluate the purpose of the study. The findings showed positive acceptance of Zenbo as a companion robot due to the physical design. However, the interaction of Zenbo to notify the users through user interface and wheel light, and processing voice command were found ineffective and require more improvement

An initial sustainable e-learning and gamification framework for higher education

The movements towards achieving sustainable goals among many countries have risen throughout the years. A part of the sustainable goals – the COVID-19 pandemic has forced many universities to move to online learning to sustain students' education. Indeed, e-learning has been delivering through the website since 1960. There is a need to develop new e-learning models that transform education to support sustainable development goals and achieve education's objectives. Interestingly, e-learning needs to integrate gamification context to increase learners' engagement and passion while promoting lifelong learning. To identify the relationship between e-learning and gamification, this paper examined and assessed various e-learning and gamification models and frameworks, specifically in sustainability, to develop an initial sustainable e-learning and gamification framework for higher education. The framework intends to assist higher education institutions in designing a gamified e-learning that promotes better learning engagement, education equity, skill development, social engagement, well-being, and lifelong learning among their learners. Thus, enabling a sustainable education throughout surviving the pandemic

Mobile technology for older people: use of personas

This paper is concerned with the use of mobile phone by Malaysian older people and the main focus was the appropriate methods for collecting data. There are a number of problems with conventional techniques when using older people as participants. This was due to the fact that older people had an extremely wide range of characteristics and impairments compared to other groups. It seemed that there should be more techniques adapted and used in gathering user requirements for mobile phone and older people. In fact, there is a need for an evaluation of existing methods with respect to older people. In this study, two similar experiments were carried out that focus on focus groups. In addition, the use of personas as a tool in elicitation was explored. The purpose of using personas in the study was to personalize and engage the users into discussion where they were able to be more open in providing feedback about mobile phone usage. Personas were also used in order to get better understanding and information about the strengths of the methods used in this study

Qualitative findings on the use of mobile phones by Malaysian older people

This paper reports on qualitative findings that have been obtained from a study about mobile phone usage by Malaysian older people. The information has been classified into various categories such as usage, difficulties encountered with the physical interface of the mobile phone, functions complexity, cost, language related issues, ideal phone and etc. In this study, two similar experiments were carried out that focus on focus groups. In addition, the use of personas as a tool in elicitation was explored. Mobile phones can potentially play an important role in helping older people in many ways if the problems related to the use of mobile phone can be solved. It is customer product that relates to theories of identity, culture and social structure. The findings presented in this paper may have implications for the design of mobile phones in general. It may be concluded that the usability of current mobile phones has to be enhanced in order to cater the needs of other groups of users, including older people