Abstract
Loneliness in later life has been associated with frailty and earlier mortality. Sensor-based monitoring systems aim to help identify and prevent more severe forms of social isolation and loneliness at old age. The technological development requires an understanding how to reach acceptance and usefulness of the proposed technology in the wider system by involving those it affects. In this co-design study, we engage people that experienced loneliness after the age of 65 and stakeholders to collaboratively design a loneliness monitoring system that is embedded in wearables and smart home furniture. Such involvement will help inform the technology design at early stages. This paper contributes to literature on loneliness monitoring systems for older people that has lacked people and stakeholder involvement and a human-centered approach to design. We present found requirements for the positioning of sensors, symptoms and objects associated with loneliness, and recommendations for greater detection accuracy.
Keywords
loneliness; health monitoring; human-centered design; older people
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.545
Citation
Probst, F., and Liu, W. (2024) Co-Design of a Loneliness Monitoring System with Older People and Stakeholders, in Gray, C., Ciliotta Chehade, E., Hekkert, P., Forlano, L., Ciuccarelli, P., Lloyd, P. (eds.), DRS2024: Boston, 23–28 June, Boston, USA. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.545
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Conference Track
Research Paper
Included in
Co-Design of a Loneliness Monitoring System with Older People and Stakeholders
Loneliness in later life has been associated with frailty and earlier mortality. Sensor-based monitoring systems aim to help identify and prevent more severe forms of social isolation and loneliness at old age. The technological development requires an understanding how to reach acceptance and usefulness of the proposed technology in the wider system by involving those it affects. In this co-design study, we engage people that experienced loneliness after the age of 65 and stakeholders to collaboratively design a loneliness monitoring system that is embedded in wearables and smart home furniture. Such involvement will help inform the technology design at early stages. This paper contributes to literature on loneliness monitoring systems for older people that has lacked people and stakeholder involvement and a human-centered approach to design. We present found requirements for the positioning of sensors, symptoms and objects associated with loneliness, and recommendations for greater detection accuracy.