Designing for older adults: reflecting on two examples

Elena Nazzi – IDEA meeting 14.10.11elna@itu.dk

The prayer companionOpenness and Specificity, Materiality and Spirituality

Research-through-design

Designing for a specific category of people

• Design focus: “We did not focus on needs or problems that the nuns might have, but instead on providing resources for new engagements with the world that they might find meaningful and compelling” p.2058

• Designing for older adults: “…we did not built a device for older people in general, but for a specific category of people—nuns— who happen to be old.” p.2064

• Suggestion: “rather than designing for an aging population, we should design for the aging members of many different populations” p.2064

Desiring to be in touch in a changing communications landscape: attitudes of older adults

• Focus groups with prototype examples of communication technologies

• “explore further who older adults would like to feel connected to, how they currently go about sustaining contact with important others, and what the notion of being in touch means to them” p. 3

Lindley, Harper, Sellen - CHI2009

Focus groups and Grounded Theory to inform design

Attitudes of older adults to keep in touch

Implications for Design of technology to support keeping in touch

• Allow for a level of intimacy that is personalized• Allow for more focused, intense means of

communication, as well as for time to reflect• Time is dedicated to contact, this contact should be

non-intrusive• Ease when making contact• Support reciprocity (allowing for asymmetry)

Difference in keeping in touch with friends and family and with peripheral contacts

Self reflection

Points for reflection

• IxD research on “older adults” and IxD research on “specific groups of people that happen to be old”

• Focus groups to inform design and design to inform design

• How we relate our projects to these two approaches?

References

• Lindley, S., Harper, R., & Sellen, A. (2009). Desiring to be in Touch in a Changing Communications Landscape : Attitudes of Older Adults. Building, 1693-1702.

• Gaver, W., Blythe, M., Boucher, A., Jarvis, N., Bowers, J., & Wright, P. (2010). The Prayer Companion Openness and Specificity , Materiality and Spirituality. Design.