Website task performance by older adults

The present study examined influences of fluid intelligence and website experience on a website task by 99 community-dwelling older adults (41 males, 58 females, age range 58 - 90 years) who were screened for visual acuity and major health problems. They were divided into three groups, dependent on their prior website experience (19 with no prior website experience, 55 with low website experience and 25 with high website experience). Perpendicular to this, the participants were divided into low- and high-fluid intelligence groups and into young - old and old - old age groups. Participants performed a website information retrieval task using three health information websites. Performance was assessed by the time taken to retrieve target information. Overall, the three websites significantly differed in the time taken to locate the target information. The website task performance was not significantly influenced by fluid intelligence score or age, but there was a significant influence by prior website experience.     

Personalization of Web browsing: adaptations to meet the needs of older adults

Despite difficulties in using the Web, older adults are motivated to use it. This paper reports on work underway to ease Web access for this population. Although Web accessibility standards provide specifications that Web content providers must incorporate if their pages are to be accessible, these standards do not guarantee a good experience for all Web users. This paper will discuss user controls that make a number of dynamic adaptations to page presentation and input that can greatly increase the usability of Web pages for older users. The paper will discuss the authors original work on the topic, lessons learned, and usage patterns. Current extensions to that work are also discussed.     

Multimodality and interactional differences in older adults

Many age-associated impairments such as loss of memory and vision make computer use difficult for older adults. This paper is concerned with interface design in a voice Web browser, which compensates for age-associated impairments, particularly loss of memory and vision. It describes a special Voice Help facility talking to older adults through their browser interaction, and reports experiments to establish the mixes of output media (text and speech) that are most effective for information transfer. In particular, the paper demonstrates that older adults retention of spoken output is different to that of younger people. The paper provides information on absorption rates for different media for older adults, which supports the design of multimodal systems suited to older adults. This is important for the development of systems that enable older adults to absorb information easily.     

Website design attributes for retrieving health information by older adults: an application of architectural criteria

The objectives of this research were to identify design attributes to develop easy-to-use websites for older adults. Forty-one males and 58 females (age range 58–90) were asked to retrieve information on a health-related topic from the NHS Direct and Medicdirect websites, and were asked to fill in a website evaluation questionnaire. An exploratory factor analysis of data identified navigation/search usability, link usability, usefulness and colour as important dimensions of a senior-friendly website. A two-stage, three-component regression model with these dimensions as predictor variables and the satisfaction level in using a website as the dependent variable has been proposed.     

Internet use and depression among older adults

The findings regarding the impact of Internet use on well-being are mixed and studies are often criticized due to small samples and lack of consistency in measurement. Fewer studies have examined this issue among older adults. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between Internet use and depression among retired Americans age 50 years or older. Using data from the Health and Retirement Survey, the study estimates the relationship between Internet use and depression through combined use of regression and propensity score methodologies. All empirical methods indicate a positive contribution of Internet use to mental well-being of retired older adults (?50 years), reducing depression categorization by approximately 20–28%.     

Decision tree models for characterizing smoking patterns of older adults

The main objective of the present paper is to characterize smoking behavior among older adults by assessing the psychological distress, physical health status, alcohol use, and demographic variables in relations to the current smoking. We targeted 466 senior American smokers who are 65 years of age or older from the 2006 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH, 2006). We employed a decision tree algorithm to conduct classification analysis to find the relationship between the average numbers of cigarette use per day. The results showed that the most important explanatory variable for prediction of the average number of cigarette use per day is the age when first started smoking cigarettes every day, followed by education level, and psychological distress. These results suggest that social workers need to provide more customized and individualized intervention to older adults.     

Investigating the problems faced by older adults and people with disabilities in online environments

Irresponsible and inaccessible web design causes unnecessary problems to certain website users. By applying the web content accessibility guidelines to a website the amount of possible users who can successfully view the content of that site will increase especially for those who are in the disabled and older adult categories of online users. We present the results of assessing the compliance of a selection of websites with guidelines set out by the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI). It was found that most sites evaluated were inaccessible to those with disabilities. Only one of the selected sites passed all three priority levels set out by the WAI. In many cases, minor modifications to sites will make them accessible to people with disabilities. Therefore it can only be speculated that the reasons for lack of conformance may vary from lack of awareness of the issue, time constraints or the general stress of having to keep up with new technologies. Companies who overlook users with disabilities however may be doing so at long-term risk to their legal position, public image and ultimately business success.     

Investigating the problems faced by older adults and people with disabilities in online environments

Irresponsible and inaccessible web design causes unnecessary problems to certain website users. By applying the web content accessibility guidelines to a website the amount of possible users who can successfully view the content of that site will increase especially for those who are in the disabled and older adult categories of online users. We present the results of assessing the compliance of a selection of websites with guidelines set out by the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI). It was found that most sites evaluated were inaccessible to those with disabilities. Only one of the selected sites passed all three priority levels set out by the WAI. In many cases, minor modifications to sites will make them accessible to people with disabilities. Therefore it can only be speculated that the reasons for lack of conformance may vary from lack of awareness of the issue, time constraints or the general stress of having to keep up with new technologies. Companies who overlook users with disabilities however may be doing so at long-term risk to their legal position, public image and ultimately business success.     

Development and validation of a computer expertise questionnaire for older adults

Prior computer expertise represents one of the most important predictors of performance when interacting with ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) and acquiring computer skills. Due to demographic changes, the older adult will become increasingly important as a potential user. However, there is a lack of instruments for the assessment of computer expertise in older adults, especially for novice users with restricted prior computer knowledge. A computer expertise (CE) questionnaire for older adults was developed, analysed (Study I) and validated (Study II). Item-analysis showed that the CE-questionnaire is particularly appropriate for the computer knowledge level of older adults and measures computer expertise sufficiently. Furthermore, it was found that computer experience (in terms of frequency of computer usage) is a poor predictor of actual computer performance, which has important implications for the theoretical conceptualization of computer expertise and its assessment.     

Development and validation of a computer expertise questionnaire for older adults

Prior computer expertise represents one of the most important predictors of performance when interacting with ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) and acquiring computer skills. Due to demographic changes, the older adult will become increasingly important as a potential user. However, there is a lack of instruments for the assessment of computer expertise in older adults, especially for novice users with restricted prior computer knowledge. A computer expertise (CE) questionnaire for older adults was developed, analysed (Study I) and validated (Study II). Item-analysis showed that the CE-questionnaire is particularly appropriate for the computer knowledge level of older adults and measures computer expertise sufficiently. Furthermore, it was found that computer experience (in terms of frequency of computer usage) is a poor predictor of actual computer performance, which has important implications for the theoretical conceptualization of computer expertise and its assessment.     

Video game training to improve selective visual attention in older adults

The current study investigated the effect of video game training on older adult’s useful field of view performance (the UFOV® test). Fifty-eight older adult participants were randomized to receive practice with the target action game (Medal of Honor), a placebo control arcade game (Tetris), a clinically validated UFOV training program, or into a no contact control group. Examining pretest–posttest change in selective visual attention, the UFOV improved significantly more than the game groups; all three intervention groups improved significantly more than no-contact controls. There was a lack of difference between the two game conditions, differing from findings with younger adults. Discussion considers whether games posing less challenge might still be effective interventions for elders, and whether optimal training dosages should be higher.     

Daily living activities in older adults: Part II—effect of age on physical activity patterns in older Mexican American adults

This paper, the second of a two-part paper, reports results from an experimental study conducted to understand physical activity patterns, and determine the effect of age on physical activity patterns in older Mexican American adults. The Yale Physical Activity Survey was administered to 49 older Mexican American adults (42 females and seven males), aged 68–80 years, recruited from senior recreation centers in the city of El Paso. Based on participant responses to questions about the type and duration of different types of physical activities, overall physical activity indices including the total time (h/week), the total energy expenditure (kcal/week), a summary index score, a vigorous activity score (units/month), a leisurely walking score (units/month), a moving score (units/month), and a standing and sitting score (both in units/month) were computed. These responses were then regressed with age (as the predictor variable). Since the number of older males in the study was small, data from men and women were combined. Results indicate that the standing score index (p<0.1) and the sitting score index (p<0.05) are linearly related to age. None of the other Yale Physical Activity Survey indices including the total time index and the weekly energy expenditure index are linearly related to age. Fitted line plots for Yale indices that do not show a linear relationship with age indicate that total time, energy expenditure, leisurely walking index score, and summary index score, all have a quadratic fit with age. A cubic fit is indicated for the vigorous activity score and the moving index score.

Relevance to industry

Understanding physical activity patterns (both work and leisure activities in daily living) in older adults is important for estimation of activity metabolism for among older adults.     

Computer use by older adults: A multi-disciplinary review

As the populations of most of the world’s developed nations experience an increase in average age, a similar trend is being observed in the population of computer and Internet users. In many cases, older adults are the fastest growing computer and Internet user group in both personal and workplace contexts. However, the needs and concerns of older adults as computer users differ from those of younger users as a result of the natural changes associated with the aging process. Much research has been conducted in a variety of fields in order to understand how these changes experienced by older adults impact their use of computers and the Internet. This article reviews this existing research and provides a holistic view of the field. Since the study of computer use by older adults is a multi-disciplinary topic by nature, we provide a synthesis of the findings across these many disciplines, and attempt to highlight any gaps that exist. We use Social Cognitive Theory as a lens to view and organize the literature, as well as illustrate means through which computer use by this user group can be encouraged. Finally, suggestions for future research are proposed, and implications for research and practice are discussed.     

Connecting generations: developing co-design methods for older adults and children

As new technologies emerge that can bring older adults together with children, little has been discussed by researchers concerning the design methods used to create these new technologies. Giving both children and older adults a voice in a shared design process comes with many challenges. This paper details an exploratory study focusing on connecting generations through cooperative design (co-design) methods that can enable idea construction and elaboration to flourish. Design techniques were adapted that ranged from low-tech prototyping and sticky-note feedback to distributed collaboration. The critical finding in this research was that children and older adults need not only time together to start the collaboration but also time apart to further the collaboration at a distance. This case study research reports on how our methods evolved and how others can apply these methods for their own work.     

Obstacles to social networking website use among older adults

Social networking websites (SNSs) have become popular among younger adults, but internet-using older adults have not adopted this communication medium nearly as quickly ( and ). This study seeks to understand what factors encourage or discourage older adults from using SNS, like Facebook, to help understand what may be done to ensure both generations have communication media over which they enjoy and feel comfortable communicating. Using the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM;  and ) as a framework, 124 internet-using older adults aged 60–90, completed attitudinal measures of perceived usefulness of SNS, perceived ease of use of websites, social pressures to use SNS, and trust in SNS, as well as behavioral measures of current internet use, SNS use, and intention to use SNS in the future. Regression analyses revealed significant predictors of SNS include perceived usefulness, trust in SNS, and frequency of internet use. Unexpectedly, factors of ease of use and social pressures were not significant predictors. Implications for the TAM and for individuals with an interest in getting older adults to use SNS are discussed.     

Remote patient monitoring acceptance trends among older adults residing in a frontier state

This pilot study aims to present a methodological approach for investigating remote patient monitoring system acceptance trends for older adults residing in a frontier state. For this purpose, extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) variables, which included subjective norm, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and behavioral intention were investigated using growth curve methods and modern resampling techniques. Results revealed our methodological and analytical approach shows promise for investigating technology acceptance over time on subjects where little literature exists and where recruiting adequate sample sizes for statistical power purposes may be challenging. Results of the data analysis showed there was a significant and reliable linear trend on subjective norm. Time did not predict perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, or behavioral intention, indicating the levels of these factors were high and stable over the course of the study. Older adults accepted remote patient monitoring, and family and friends may influence technology acceptance promoting behaviors. The longer participants used the technology, the more they perceived those important to them would want them to use it. Attention to social influence to optimize the implementation of in-home health monitoring among this population is warranted. Recommendations for future research are provided.     

Learning to use new technologies by older adults: Perceived difficulties,experimentation behaviour and usability

This paper examines the factors and theoretical frameworks for the adoption of technology for older adults, and proposes two models of technology acceptance and rejection, one from an ease of learning perspective, and one from a system and user perspective. Both models are supported from reports on two case studies of older adults using handheld touchscreen tablet devices; one in which the participants are supported during tasks primarily related to walking and navigation, and one in which participants are unsupported in communication related tasks. The first study shows the powerful role that facilitating conditions have for learning how to use digital technologies for this user group, whether supporting through step by step guidance, providing a friendly space to use trial and error methods, and/or provision of a manual. The second study shows the pitfalls of a lack of facilitating conditions during initial use, and highlights potential for appropriate design in helping to avoid some user errors during this phase.     

Detecting abnormal behaviours of institutionalized older adults through a hybrid-inference approach

Residences for geriatric patients are usually understaffed, with each caregiver being in charge of several residents. A caregiver must assess the well being of residents and report to the medical staff if there is something unusual with a resident. Deviations from the routine will trigger an alarm, and automatic tools can help in making timely decisions.In this paper, we explore three visualization metaphors aiming at providing caregivers with an individualized overview of the activities carried out by residents in a given time frame. We postulate that this overview is sufficient to distinguish between normal and abnormal periods of time when visually compared in groups. We also present two automated approaches, data driven and knowledge driven respectively, to detect abnormalities. The visualization and the automated approaches are tested on a naturalistic dataset obtained from a long-term personalized sensing and annotation campaign in a residence for geriatric patients. Data is of two types, obtained from IoT infrastructure and wearables and from manual annotations made by the staff. Both approaches were empirically evaluated and validated in the paper. A side product of this research is a large repository of cleansed data from the sensing and annotation campaign for 45 older adults over a period of 39 months.     

Daily living activities in older adults: Part I—a review of physical activity and dietary intake assessment methods

The aging process is expected to change advanced activities of daily living (such as employment and work activities), to basic activities of daily living (BADL; such as self-care activities, which is also considered work among older adults). In effect, older adults spend more energy on physical activities related to BADL, compared to heavy physical activity in any industrial work. Hence, accurate assessment of the type and extent of physical activity becomes critical for estimation of the activity metabolism, especially in older adults. Once an assessment of activity metabolism is made, energy balance can be quantified by comparing energy expenditure (including resting activity, and digestive metabolism) with caloric intake. Instruments and techniques available to quantify physical activity in older adults, and caloric intake in older adults are reviewed in this paper. The emphasis in this review is on questionnaire-based instruments that minimize burden on the investigator and the participant. Validity and reliability of the assessment instruments are also discussed.

Relevance to industry

Since most work activities requiring energy expenditure among older adults, especially retirees, consist of BADL, accurate assessment of activity metabolism and dietary intake is necessary for designing these work activities for older adults.     

Individual differences in response to cognitive training: Using a multi-modal,attentionally demanding game-based intervention for older adults

The effectiveness of a game-based cognitive training intervention on multiple abilities was assessed in a sample of 39 older adults aged 60–77. The intervention task was chosen based on a cognitive task analysis designed to determine the attentional and multi-modal demands of the game. Improvements on a measure of attention were found for the intervention group compared to controls. Furthermore, for the intervention group only, initial ability scores predicted improvements on both tests of attention and spatial orientation. These results suggest cognitive training may be more effective for those initially lower in ability.