Lee Hocheol, Chung Min Ah, Kim Hyeji, Nam Eun Woo
Healthy City Research Center, Yonsei University, Wonju, Republic of Korea.
Yonsei Global Health Center, Yonsei University, Wonju, Republic of Korea.
JMIR Aging. 2022 Jun 28;5(2):e38896. doi: 10.2196/38896.
With rapidly aging populations in most parts of the world, it is only natural that the need for caregivers for older adults is going to increase in the near future. Therefore, most technologically proficient countries are in the process of using artificial intelligence (AI) to build socially assistive robots (SAR) to play the role of caregivers in enhancing interaction and social participation among older adults.
This study aimed to examine the effect of intervention through AI SAR on the cognitive function of older adults through a systematic literature review.
We conducted a meta-analysis of the various existing studies on the effect of AI SAR on the cognitive function of older adults to standardize the results and clarify the effect of each method and indicator. Cochrane collaboration and the systematic literature review flow of PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Item Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) were used on original, peer-reviewed studies published from January 2010 to March 2022. The search words were derived by combining keywords including Population, Intervention, and Outcome-according to the Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome, Time, Setting, and Study Design principle-for the question "What is the effect of AI SAR on the cognitive function of older adults in comparison with a control group?" (Population: adults aged ≥65 years; Intervention: AI SAR; Comparison: comparison group; Outcome: popular function; and Study Design: prospective study). For any study, if one condition among subjects, intervention, comparison, or study design was different from those indicated, the study was excluded from the literature review.
In total, 9 studies were selected (6 randomized controlled trials and 3 quasi-experimental design studies) for the meta-analysis. Publication bias was examined using the contour-enhanced funnel plot method to confirm the reliability and validity of the 9 studies. The meta-analysis revealed that the average effect size of AI SAR was shown to be Hedges g=0.43 (95% CI -0.04 to 0.90), indicating that AI SAR are effective in reducing the Mini Mental State Examination scale, which reflects cognitive function.
The 9 studies that were analyzed used SAR in the form of animals, robots, and humans. Among them, AI SAR in anthropomorphic form were able to improve cognitive function more effectively. The development and expansion of AI SAR programs to various functions including health notification, play therapy, counseling service, conversation, and dementia prevention programs are expected to improve the quality of care for older adults and prevent the overload of caregivers. AI SAR can be considered a representative, digital, and social prescription program and a nonpharmacological intervention program that communicates with older adults 24 hours a day. Despite its effectiveness, ethical issues, the digital literacy needs of older adults, social awareness and reliability, and technological advancement pose challenges in implementing AI SAR. Future research should include bigger sample sizes, pre-post studies, as well as studies using an older adult control group.
随着世界上大多数地区人口迅速老龄化，在不久的将来，对老年人护理人员的需求增加是很自然的。因此，大多数技术熟练的国家正在利用人工智能（AI）制造社会辅助机器人（SAR），以在增强老年人互动和社会参与方面发挥护理人员的作用。
本研究旨在通过系统的文献综述，探讨通过人工智能社会辅助机器人进行干预对老年人认知功能的影响。
我们对现有的关于人工智能社会辅助机器人对老年人认知功能影响的各种研究进行了荟萃分析，以规范结果并阐明每种方法和指标的效果。对2010年1月至2022年3月发表的原始的、经过同行评审的研究，使用Cochrane协作网和PRISMA（系统评价和荟萃分析优先报告项目）的系统文献综述流程。根据人群、干预、对照、结局、时间、地点和研究设计原则，通过组合包括人群、干预和结局等关键词，得出搜索词，用于回答“与对照组相比，人工智能社会辅助机器人对老年人认知功能有什么影响？”这个问题（人群：年龄≥65岁的成年人；干预：人工智能社会辅助机器人；对照：对照组；结局：认知功能；研究设计：前瞻性研究）。对于任何研究，如果受试者、干预、对照或研究设计中的一个条件与所指出的不同，则该研究被排除在文献综述之外。
总共选择了9项研究（6项随机对照试验和3项准实验设计研究）进行荟萃分析。使用等高线增强漏斗图法检查发表偏倚，以确认这9项研究的可靠性和有效性。荟萃分析显示，人工智能社会辅助机器人的平均效应大小为Hedges g = 0.43（95%CI -0.04至0.90），表明人工智能社会辅助机器人在降低反映认知功能的简易精神状态检查表得分方面是有效的。
所分析的9项研究使用了动物、机器人和人类形式的社会辅助机器人。其中，拟人形式的人工智能社会辅助机器人能够更有效地改善认知功能。预计将人工智能社会辅助机器人程序开发和扩展到包括健康通知、游戏治疗、咨询服务、对话和痴呆预防项目等各种功能，可以提高老年人的护理质量并防止护理人员负担过重。人工智能社会辅助机器人可以被视为一种代表性的、数字化的和社会处方程序以及一种每天24小时与老年人交流的非药物干预程序。尽管其有效，但伦理问题、老年人的数字素养需求、社会意识和可靠性以及技术进步在实施人工智能社会辅助机器人方面带来了挑战。未来的研究应包括更大的样本量、前后对照研究以及使用老年对照组的研究。
