New & Emerging Technologies

for Old & Ageing PeopleLouis Neven - Avans University of Applied Science

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Introduction Dr. Louis Neven – Lector Active Ageing

innovations for active older people

U Twente, U Lancaster, U Utrecht -> Avans Hogeschool

STS/Innovation Studies: has a lot to do with sociology

Sociologists study the everyday lives of people and their functioning in their surroudings,

social ties, families, laws, norms, values, role patterns, cultural connections etc.

I study how this relates to technology; i.e. the relation between people and technology

You could say I am a Sociologist of Technology

Would you rather be a sociologist of technology or an engineer?

You are both!

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Because you makeUser Representations(Akrich 1995)

Imaginations of the future user

- Who is this person?- What do they do?- What do they look like?- What do their lives look like?- What do they think is cool?- What do they think is wrong?- What problems do they have?- What do they like? Etc.

You form a mental image of who the future user of a technology will be.

This is a user representation.

And this matters. A lot.

User representations

User representations are important

They influence the design of technologies

Effect acceptability, appropriation and use of technology

May lead to forced use, stigmatization and other ethical problems if you get it

wrong

If you get it right: Key success factor in design for end users

Particularly older people, which is the topic of today

Illustrate this with the case of robots for older people

break

7 suggestions for the design of technologies for older people

But first a short introduction to ageing

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Should you be interested in Ageing? 1 in 9 persons worldwide is currently above 60

In 2050 this will rise to 1 in 5 (UNFPA 2012)

In western societies currently 1 in 6 is above 65

In 2060 this will be nearly 1 in 3 (EC 2012)

In the Netherlands currently 2.500.000 people are above 65

and 800.000 are above 80 (CBS 2011)

Which is before the retirement of the vast majority of the baby-boom generation

EU: ageing is a “grand challenges” for Europe

Ambient Assisted Living: investment in assistive technology for older people

(measured in billions)

In addition: older people are relatively affluent

And will increasingly provide for their own care (technology)

The “silver market” is going to be very big

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One area of investment: Robots & Older people: aibo

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Robots & older people (2): Paro

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Robots & older people (3): Ifbot

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Introduction

So the development of robotics – and for that matter other

technologies as well – for older people is big business

How is the older user of a (health) robot represented in the

development of such a robot.

Focus on a laboratory test with a human interaction robot (iRo)

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iRo – a human interaction robot

IRo

Small and immobile, sits on table

Speak to iRo in plain Dutch, will reply likewise

Facial expression, emotional responses

Can be programmed to do various tasks

E.g. set alarm clock, remember people to measure blood pressure, provide

companionship

In this case programmed as a game companion

Cognitively challenging games

Study of a test with iRo and older test participants

Analysed the way the older user was represented in these tests

Multi-method approach: interviews, observations, document analysis

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Developing iRo & learning about (older) users

Dutch multi-national company

Technologies for health and well-being

Increasing focus on older users

iRo developed by research department

Research prototype to study human-robot interaction

With a view to further development into a product

Knowing the user

Literature review, workshop, consultation with experts

Learning about practices: testing

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The tests

Two rounds of tests:

Laboratory test

Field test

Participants

65 years and older, living in single person household, equal gender

distribution, cognitively healthy

Goals: technical, easy to use, enjoyment, recruiting for field test

According to researchers tests went well

A few problems, participants enthusiastic about games, generally

liked iRo

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User Representation: Needing and wanting iRo

Ageing society

Number of older people is growing, cost of (health) care is increasing, shortage of

qualified care workers

Older people want to live independently as long as possible

Quality of life may be reduced when they live alone

Older people worried about their mental health

Robots

Practical assistance, which allows people to stay at home

Intellectual and emotional companion older people can bond with

Older people seen as needing, but eventually also wanting robots

Clear-cut case for the development of robotics

Researchers not the only ones making user representations

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Test users have a different image

‘I still lead too much of an active life; I’ve always been amongst people. I don’t need an

iRo, not yet anyway.’ (Mrs. A)

‘I collect old army radios, you see. (…) I don’t need to be kept busy. But I think there are

plenty of old people sitting behind their geraniums who need to be kept busy, for them

it would be good.’ (Mr. B)

‘If you were, say, old and growing demented, then I could imagine this being a good

thing, but for me? (…) You’d have to be a lonely old person, chained to your home

with few contacts. I still go to my checkers club.’ (Mr. C)

10 out of 12 participants gave this response

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Test users images: how not to be old and lonely

For the participants, iRo was a signifier of old age, loneliness and

needing care

Participants did not see themselves as such

Active dissociating from ‘old people’

Presented themselves as (socially) active, independent, and physically

and cognitively healthy

Researchers attributed reaction to the media

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Being helpful and not old

Participating in the field test

Counterintuitive

Participating in tests to help other, older, people

‘I think it’s fun and interesting, not because I want one but to help somebody else. I like that (...) I think I am helping people with this.’ (Mrs. D)

Position themselves as active, healthy, altruistic, helpful older people, seemingly (still) untouched by the negative consequences of aging.

Further widening the gap with the perceived prospective user of iRo

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Researchers’ responses

Taken into account in a very limited way

Downplaying of responses

Cause is media

Quick fix: early introduction of iRo

Keeping responses from skewing the results

Additional user representation: what older people are like as test users

Hard to recruit, not open, turn up early, take more time, an outing, limited

attention span, quite easily overburdened, more explanation

older participants are thus positioned as different and difficult

Thus created a setting in which they could negate the participants ideas

about the imagined user of iRo.

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Conclusion

Representation of being old and frail could lead to resistance and non-use:

problems of appropriation

Reflecting on representations into account could prevent ageist designs

More reflexive redesign of technologies, better adapted to the practices and

identities of older users

A smart designer does not just know the technology, but knows his (older)

users as well

That is not particularly easy, but it is very important, if you want to produce

a successfull innovation

Questions about this case?

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What are older people like? And how to design for them?

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Seven Suggestions for Design (1)

Reflect on cultural representations of older people

Cultural representations of ageing

Images of older people (e.g. in the media): all the same, frail, ill, grey, slow, lonely,

cost a lot of money, don’t contribute, (cognitive) health problems, but deserve respect.

While older people are very diverse

Ageism: Most accepted – and understudied – form of discrimination

Internalisation by older people themselves

Particularly: The ageism of good intentions

Example: Belgian ING bank

Beware of normative elements in “innovating for older people”, they may lead to lack of

reflexivity with regard to user representations of older people (and thus flawed

technologies)

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Seven Suggestions for Design (2)

Reflect on the effects of the ageing-and-innovation discourse

Very dominant discourse in the context of technology & ageing

Crisis account: People are getting older, increased need and costs of (health) care, too

few care workers to care for older people.

This can be solved with the introduction of new technologies

Triple win

Positions people as ill, frail and in need of help

Move beyond this reasoning, and provide better arguments

Beware of positioning people as old, lonely and frail

Also chances: Tap into third age repertoire of successful ageing

EVEN if people ARE a bit frail or need help with some things

an example

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Examples 1: Nordic walking sticks (1)

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Examples 1: Nordic walking sticks (2)

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Example 1: Nordic Walking sticks (3)

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Seven Suggestions for Design (3)

Older people are not technologically illiterate

Older people have a different technological literacy

In a sense older people lead highly technological lives

More technologies and expertise (then you might think)

Potentially more dependent of technologies

More likely actual cyborgs (pace-makers & other implants)

More technologies during their lives (increased reflexivity)

Different technological generation (Docampo Rama 2001)

Software, electro-mechanical, mechanical generations

Although they may not be as apt in using current technologies, older people are far

from technologically illiterate.

Tap into the literacy that they do have (the case of Cees)

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The case of Cees

Innovation? €300

,-

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Seven Suggestions for Design (4)

Some older people can participate in design processes

Secondary representations

what older people are like as participants in design processes

‘quickly overburdened’, ‘can’t think conceptually’, ‘please-me answers’, ‘don’t know

what’s possible’, ‘discard options beforehand’

These are often homogeneous images, but older people are divers

Some older people are very capable of participating in design

Morecambe, Preston

Find them, cherish them, pay them

Thus generating alternate views of older people (also pr)

Older people as experts

Where are the older designers? (mining engineer and army radio man)

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Seven Suggestions for Design (5)

Reflexive design

Risk of naturalisation/normalisation of bad design

Engraining exclusion, passivity, lack of options

Some use of technology is forced!!

Especially for older people

If stereotypical and ageist ideas about older people form the basis for the

design of technologies for older people, these technologies may further

reinforce and naturalise these stereotypical and ageist ideas

Thus reflexivity with regard to the way older users are represented in design

processes and the way these images are built into technology is called for

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Seven Suggestions for Design (6)

Adaptability as an essential pre-requisite

recognise that singular images of older users are simplifications

even though older people are often seen as a homogeneous group

Older people and their practices are diverse

Practices, health conditions change

(other) new technologies are introduced

→ allow for adaptability by people with different technological literacies

(as older people, care workers, informal carers may have)

Some older people may have more skills for adapting technology than you might

think

Older people as lead-users (not laggards)(Vivette van Cooten, Louis Neven, Alexander Peine)

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Seven Suggestions for Design (7)

Resistance as input for design

Resistance may be the result of the (implied) user representation

Allow for resistance, non-use, selective use, “sabotage” etc.

Study forms of resistance as they are instances of reflexive learning

on the part of the user about who she or he is, what she or he wants,

needs, prefers, dislikes etc.

“Small” or “insignificant” issues can have big impacts on how a

technology and the user is perceived

Consider resistance in the context of appropriation

Example: the problems of appropriating iRo

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Wrapping up

‘But obviously not for me’

User representations can be designed into

technologies

Potentially ageist results

They may then affect use practices

And (older) people may reject a

technology

Failure is expensive

understanding (older) people leads to

more sophisticated user represen-tations

A key to a successful design

Suggestions for representing older people

1. Reflect: cultural representations of ageing

• Ageism of good intentions

2. Reflect on Ageing & Innovation discourse

• Third age views provides options

3. Older people are not tech. illiterate

4. Older people can participate in design

5. Reflexive Design

6. Adaptability as pre-requisite

7. Resistance as input

Opdracht

Hoe kun je zien dat het een

ontwerp voor ouderen is?

Wat veronderstelt dit over oud

zijn? (user representations)

Stel je de vraag: hoe zou ik het

vinden als iemand dit voor mij

ontworpen had?

Zoek 5 technologieën voor

ouderen (beeldmateriaal)

Als je zelf oud was, hoe zou je

het ontwerp dan veranderen?

Voorbeelden technologieën

Doro telefoons, andere

ouderen telefoons

Telecare systemen en andere

monitoring apparatuur

Multifunctionele

Beeldbelsystemen voor

ouderen

Hulpmiddelen (ouderenwinkels,

welzorg)

Etc.

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