Innovation and Research Unit, IRCCSFondazione Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, 71013 San Giovanni Rotondo, Foggia, Italy.
Ericsson Nikola Tesla d.d., Krapinska 45, 10002 Zagreb, Croatia.
Sensors (Basel). 2023 Jan 10;23(2):797. doi: 10.3390/s23020797.
Assistive devices could promote independent living and support the active and healthy aging of an older population; however, several factors can badly influence the long-term use of new technologies. In this context, this paper presents a two-step methodology called “pre-validation” that aims to identify the factors that can bias the use of new services, thus minimizing the risk of an unsuccessful longer trial. The proposed pre-validation methodology is composed of two main phases that aim to assess the usability and the reliability of the technology assessed in a laboratory environment and the usability, acceptability, user experience, and reliability of the technology in real environments. The tested services include the socialization scenario, in which older adults are better connected to the community via technological solutions (i.e., socialization applications), and the monitoring scenario, which allows for the introduction of timely interventions (technologies involved include environmental monitoring sensors, a telepresence robot, wearable sensors, and a personalized dashboard). The obtained results underline an acceptable usability level (average System Usability Scale score > 65) for the tested technologies (i.e., socialization applications and a telepresence robot). Phase Two also underlines the good acceptability, user experience, and usability of the tested services. The statistical analysis underlines a correlation between the stress related to the use of technology, digital skills, and intention of use, among other factors. Qualitative feedback also remarks on a correlation between older adults with low digital skills and an anxiety about using technology. Positive correlation indexes were highlighted between the trust and usability scores. Eventually, future long-term trials with assistive technology should rely on motivated caregivers, be founded on a strong recruitment process, and should reassure older adults—especially the ones with low digital literacy—about the use of technology by proposing personalized training and mentoring, if necessary, to increase the trust.
辅助设备可以促进老年人的独立生活和积极健康的老龄化；然而，有几个因素可能会严重影响新技术的长期使用。在这种情况下，本文提出了一种称为“预验证”的两步方法，旨在确定可能影响新服务使用的因素，从而最大限度地降低不成功的长期试验的风险。所提出的预验证方法由两个主要阶段组成，旨在评估在实验室环境中评估的技术的可用性和可靠性，以及技术在真实环境中的可用性、可接受性、用户体验和可靠性。测试的服务包括社交场景，在该场景中，老年人可以通过技术解决方案（即社交应用程序）更好地与社区联系；以及监控场景，该场景允许及时进行干预（涉及的技术包括环境监测传感器、远程呈现机器人、可穿戴传感器和个性化仪表板）。所获得的结果表明，所测试技术（即社交应用程序和远程呈现机器人）具有可接受的可用性水平（平均系统可用性量表得分>65）。第二阶段还强调了所测试服务的良好可接受性、用户体验和可用性。统计分析强调了与使用技术相关的压力、数字技能和使用意图等因素之间的相关性。定性反馈还指出，数字技能较低的老年人与对使用技术的焦虑之间存在相关性。信任和可用性得分之间存在正相关指数。最终，辅助技术的未来长期试验应该依靠有动力的护理人员，建立在强大的招募过程基础上，并通过提出个性化培训和指导（如有必要），让老年人，尤其是数字素养较低的老年人对技术的使用感到放心，以增加信任。
