AHFE Open AccessHuman Factors in Aging and Special Needs
Editors: Jay Kalra
Topics: Aging and Special Needs
Publication Date: 2025
ISBN: 978-1-964867-50-2
DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1005985
Articles
Kinematic comparison of biomechanical gait of elderly women with different indoors footwear
The increase in life expectancy and, consequently, population aging is a phenomenon observed worldwide. One of the main problems that aging brings is the difficulty in mobility due to the muscle weakening that is natural to aging, resulting in a slower and more unstable biomechanical gait. Footwear plays an important role in gait patterns and risk of falls among older adults. The research´s aim is to investigate how much a senescent woman's kinematic gait can be altered due to the type of footwear used, focusing on the use of footwear worn indoors, since most falls occur in this environment. The study compares gait when using footwear and also in relation to walking barefoot as a basis for comparisons. The aim is to contribute and guide future research related to human factors in footwear, aiming to provide comfort and safety to elderly women while using the shoe. Slow gait speed in elderly people indicates a trustworthy risk of falls, as well as increased step length and variability in swing time, which are the main predictors of falls. Therefore, for the experiment, the main kinematic measures of quantitative gait analysis were determined, describing the kinematics of barefoot gait, using flip-flops, open sandals and knitting shoe upper, comparing the results and listing the similarities and differences between the four gaits obtained. A convenience sample of ten elderly women over 70 years of age were invited to walk on a walkway marked on the floor, barefoot and while wearing the three different models of footwear. The experiment consisted of capturing video of a ten-step walk for each shoe and also barefoot. The gaits were filmed and analyzed in the Tracker 6.2.0 software for Windows, which it was possible to extract numerical data of position and angle of the predetermined points from the videos captured for the kinematic analyses. Spatial gait parameters used in this study were: stride length and heel-to-heel support base. Temporal parameters used were: speed, step time, swing time, double support time and cadence. The results of stride length variability, stride time variability and swing time variability were computed and statistically analyzed by repeated measures analysis of variance based on the barefoot gait pattern. The results, when analyzed according to the main gait factors predictive of falls in the elderly, indicate that walking barefoot or with flip-flops and open heels shoe model indicate a higher risk of falls when compared to walking with high collar shoe model or shoes that at least cover the instep. The research revealed that the gait of elderly women changes according to the footwear used, so footwear may be a factor that increases the risk of falls or contributes to preventing them.
Ana Cláudia Antunes, Alexandre Anibal Campos Bonilla, Milton Cinelli, Raphael Alberto Sachetti Castro
Open Access
Article
Conference Proceedings
Understanding Older Adults’ Perceptions of AI Use in Financial Decisions
Older adults represent a disproportionately large group of financial fraud victims. Financial fraud targeting elders has escalated dramatically in recent years, with losses from government impersonation schemes alone increasing from $65 million in 2021 to $179 million in 2023, and overall losses exceeding $3 billion. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to significantly enhance personal finance decision-making, including detecting and preventing scams. However, for these tools to be effective, older adults must be willing to adopt and trust them. This study investigated older adults’ perceptions of AI use for personal finance decisions, focusing on their trust, comfort, and interest in AI-powered applications. We also examined how prior technology and AI use and experiences with financial scams influence older adults’ attitudes toward AI and their concerns about such technologies.Thirty-nine (39) older adults completed an online survey (M = 63.0 yrs., SD = 10.6 yrs.). The sample was predominantly female (37 participants), and well-educated—59% reported holding a bachelor’s or graduate degree. The survey included both closed- and open-ended questions related to AI use in finance, their comfort and trust in such tools, and their concerns. Most participants (~80%) reported that they have used AI-powered tools such as voice assistants or customer service chatbots. Over half of the respondents (56%) indicated to have been or know a close relative who was a victim of a financial scam, and nearly 90% of respondents said that they are concerned about being a victim of a financial scam. Most participants (64%) expressed trust in AI applications for detecting financial scams, while nearly half (49%) found AI to be useful for managing personal finance tasks. When asked whether AI could help protect people from financial scams, the majority, 56% responded with “maybe,” reflecting a sense of openness and curiosity about its potential. Meanwhile, 26% expressed confidence with a definitive “yes,” and 18% believed that AI could not offer protection from scams. An ordinal logistic regression analysis revealed that older adults with greater concerns about financial scams are more likely to show both a higher interest (p = .007) and greater comfort (p = .031) in using AI for personal financial decisions. Furthermore, individuals who consider AI-based technology important in their daily lives were more likely to report feeling more comfortable asking AI to assist them with their questions about personal finance decisions (p = .032). A thematic analysis was conducted on the comments from the open-ended questions. The findings suggested that the respondents had an overall positive view of AI. Participants emphasized its value for convenience and problem-solving. While some concerns emerged—such as data privacy or lack of knowledge about the technology—they were often balanced by a willingness to engage with AI tools. Overall, respondents expressed a willingness to use AI for financial decision-making, especially when its benefits are clearly explained and their concerns about data security are properly addressed. It important to note that the majority of survey respondents were well-educated, so the findings should be interpreted and generalized with caution.
Sarah Allahvirdi, Maryam Zahabi, Farshid Abdi, Marcia Ory, Ruihong Huang, Minh-Nguyet Hoang, Qiping Fan, Laura Kim, Logan Dubose
Open Access
Article
Conference Proceedings
A kano model-based design for age-friendly shopping carts in large commercial malls
With the growing aging population, improving the shopping experience and safety of elderly users in malls is increasingly important. This study applies the Kano model to design an age-friendly shopping cart based on the needs of 100 older adults. Their demands were categorized into functional, safety, and experiential aspects. The Better–Worse coefficient analysis prioritized key features to guide product development. The findings offer practical strategies to enhance elderly users’ autonomy and satisfaction in shopping environments.
Xinxin Nie
Open Access
Article
Conference Proceedings
Requirements For A Wheelchair Project
The global population of people aged 80 or older has increased over the past few decades. In 2017, the United Nations estimated that 137 million people were in this age group, with projections that this number will triple by 2050. To ensure a safe and accessible life, the wheelchair is among the most in-demand products. Each country has specific bodies that establish design standards and regulate the products offered in the market, though the effectiveness of these bodies may vary. The Brazilian market is among the top five countries globally in demand for this apparatus. The study reviews the standards, laws, and regulations applied abroad, emphasizing the design and its methodology. In the literature review, among several approaches, the “Barrier-free Project” approach was developed to prevent barriers from existing in the design of equipment, buildings, and urban areas. The basis of philosophy, architecture, and universal urbanism is the possibility of adapting products and spaces to serve people with different capabilities and skills without needing specific adaptation. The cost of the product was also considered to meet the technical requirements of the product. This paper presents the standards impacting wheelchair design, focusing on international requirements and regulations while proposing requirements to reduce costs and enhance aesthetic appeal. Some requirements are classified as mandatory, while others are considered essential to make the product more attractive and competitive.
Carla Amodio, Ariel Oyama, Marina Ishida, Joyce Baptista, Ligia Franzoci, Kazuo Hatakeyama
Open Access
Article
Conference Proceedings
Evolving the narrative utilization ecosystem with life story interpretation and generative AI tools
In nursing care, providing high-quality, individualized care requires a deep understanding of each care recipient’s narratives (Guendouzi et al. 2015). These narratives are rarely recorded or organized for practical use, making it challenging for novice care workers to effectively incorporate them into caregiving. To address these issues, we propose a “narrative utilization ecosystem” aimed at improving the quality of nursing care services (Ihara et al. 2025). This paper outlines the proposed ecosystem and presents case studies for collecting and analyzing narrative fragments by revisiting familiar locations from the care recipient’s past. Additionally, we define the requirements for prompt engineering of a generative AI-based care advisory tool that provides advice grounded in person-centered care principles (Kitwood et al. 1992).The proposed narrative utilization ecosystem consists of three core components: collecting narratives, analyzing them, and applying them in caregiving settings. Narrative fragments are often gathered during initial assessments when a care recipient begins using nursing services. Daily conversations are another common method for collecting narratives. For individuals with dementia, opportunities to recall and share old memories are especially valuable. To facilitate this, we conducted case studies in which an individual with dementia walked with an accompanying care worker around familiar locations, such as former homes, schools or playgrounds. During these walks, we recorded their conversations and the scenery they observed. In one-hour walking sessions, the care recipient spoke for approximately 10 minutes. Out of 165 recorded utterances, 84 were brief responses like “Yeah, that’s right,” and 33 were expressions of uncertainty, such as “I don’t know,” referring to directions or places. However, we also gathered meaningful narrative fragments, including 11 statements related to location recognition (e.g., “There was company housing beyond here”) and 9 observations about vacant homes (e.g., “No one lives there anymore”). This approach encouraged storytelling by prompting the care recipient with questions linked to shared visual cues, enabling the construction of richer narratives from the collected fragments. Analysis revealed that asking questions to reaffirm the past, rather than replaying it, was particularly effective in eliciting narratives from individuals with dementia.When designing generative AI tools for handling narratives, it is essential to prioritize the emotional sensitivity of individuals with dementia and minimize burden on care workers. Through discussions with dementia care and AI experts, we identified key design requirements, including the ability to adapt to the recipient’s daily mood and fatigue levels, considering the current rapport between care workers and recipients, and avoiding both labeling care recipients with dementia and blaming failures in care on dementia.Our future work will focus on developing AI tools that meet these requirements and testing them in real-world care settings. We also plan to continue collecting and structuring additional narrative fragments to enhance the ecosystem's effectiveness.Guendouzi, J. et al. (2015). Expanding Expectations for Narrative Styles in the Context of Dementia. Topics in Language Disorders. 35. 237-257. 10.1097/TLD.0000000000000061.Ihara, M. et al. (2025). Narrative Utilization Ecosystem for Person-Centered Care. Proc. of Intelligent Human Systems Integration: Integrating People and Intelligent Systems (IHSI 2025). (to appear)Kitwood, T. et al. (1992). Towards a theory of dementia care: Personhood and well-being, Ageing and Society, 12(3), 269-287.
Masayuki Ihara, Hiroko Tokunaga, Tomomi Nakashima, Hiroki Goto, Yuuki Umezaki, Yoko Egawa, Shinya Hisano, Takashi Minato, Yutaka Nakamura, Shinpei Saruwatari
Open Access
Article
Conference Proceedings
Innovative design of intelligent commuting vehicles for elderly users
Nowadays, the proportion of elderly people in the population structure is gradually increasing, and their travel is a problem that society needs to pay attention to and urgently solve. With the decline of physical functions, it is difficult for elderly people to have a comfortable and stable ride experience that can reassure themselves and their families. This not only affects their quality of life, but also limits their enthusiasm for participating in social activities. Based on the above background, this study is an innovative design research of intelligent commuting vehicles for elderly users. This product is designed for elderly users or patients who are sick, weak, and have limited mobility. Through the research content of the project, it helps the elderly or patients to travel more conveniently in their daily lives, improving their quality of life and convenience. Intelligent commuting vehicles combine advanced medical technology and intelligent vehicle technology, aiming to provide essential medical assistance and comfortable driving experience for the elderly, helping them better manage their health, respond to emergency situations, and maintain contact and social activities with the outside world. This study first adopts the literature research method to thoroughly sort out and summarize the development history, current development status, and future development trends of existing intelligent commuting vehicles, providing comprehensive research background knowledge. Secondly, by collecting questionnaires and other methods, we aim to extensively gather data from the elderly, in order to gain a deeper understanding of their attitudes, needs, and expectations towards smart commuting vehicles, and provide empirical basis for product design. Finally, using case analysis method, by analyzing various excellent cases of commuting vehicles at home and abroad, successful elements and innovative points are extracted, and specific design practice content is formed. Through the analysis of the elderly population and intelligent commuting vehicles using the above methods, it is found that in complex urban transportation environments, some physically weak elderly people lack the ability to ensure their own physical health and handle emergency situations while driving. And the market for elderly vehicle does not have relevant emergency plans due to the limitations of the consumer group. In response to factors such as inconvenient hands and feet, decreased vision and hearing, and diseases among the elderly, this intelligent commuting vehicle is designed with an easy-to-use intelligent operation interface, as well as front style doors and movable seats that are convenient for the elderly to get on and off the vehicle. In terms of medical assistance, corresponding health monitoring equipment has been equipped, including emergency rescue functions, medical monitoring devices, remote medical services, and other equipment and functions. In addition, to ensure the psychological security and trust of family members, a remote control system is set up to allow family members to have real-time access to the travel situation of the elderly. Intelligent commuting vehicles that integrate advanced medical technology and intelligent vehicle technology are expected to provide safer, more convenient, and comfortable travel solutions for the elderly population, thereby having a profound impact on improving their quality of life, promoting social inclusiveness, and harmonious development.
Xin Chen, Xuan Li
Open Access
Article
Conference Proceedings
Integrated Medical and Elderly Care in Shanghai: A Case Analysis of Resource Distribution and the Five-Bed Linkage Model in Jing'an District
China’s rapidly ageing population has made the integration of medical and elderly care resources a pressing challenge. In 2022, Jing’an District in Shanghai introduced the Five-bed Linkage (FBL) model, integrating home-based care beds, institutional care beds, home medical beds, hospital beds, and palliative care beds into an efficient and accessible system. The FBL model is examined by an initial analysis of the spatial distribution and accessibility of medical and care resources using Geographic Information System (GIS). Meanwhile, the way the FBL model integrates facilities and other resources through a flexible system is further explored to identify challenges through three real-life cases. Targeted strategies are proposed to enhance the efficiency and accessibility of the FBL model and offer practical guidance for integrated medical and elderly care services.
Haoyue Lei, Shuxiao Zhong, Duan Wu
Open Access
Article
Conference Proceedings
The Evolution of Research on Robotic Technology for Older adults: A Bibliometric Analysis
As the global aging trend intensifies, the health and well-being of older adults have gradually become a critical area of concern. Robotic technology, an innovative technological approach, exhibits significant potential for enhancing older adults’ quality of life. An analysis and synthesis of research on robotics technology for older adults are essential to provide theoretical insights and practical guidance. In this study, we conducted a bibliometric analysis of 968 papers on robotic technology for older adults. Using VOSviewer and CiteSpace, we identified four clusters of the foundational theoretical framework by establishing a reference co-citation network. Furthermore, we developed a keywords co-occurrence clustering network, which elucidated the three primary research directions in robot technology for older adults: socio-technical robotics, social acceptance and human factors, and emotional companionship. In conclusion, our findings suggest four key directions for future research in this field: 1) Enhancing user experience and acceptance among older adults; 2) Leveraging robotic technology to address older adults’ psychophysical health issues; 3) Examining the ethical challenges of robotic technology faced by older adults, 4) Conducting longitudinal experiments in real-life living environments to evaluate intervention effectiveness of robotics technology.
Jiaan Li, Hailiang Wang
Open Access
Article
Conference Proceedings
Healing Exhibition Design for Highly Sensitive Individuals: A Design Project of Immersive Therapeutic Experiences
In recent years, healing exhibitions have gained significant popularity as individuals seek solace from the increasing pressures of modern life. Among these audiences, highly sensitive individuals (HSIs) stand out for their heightened perception of negative stimuli, making them particularly in need of therapeutic interventions. This study explores a novel approach to exhibition design tailored to the needs of HSIs, employing both qualitative and quantitative methods. The research utilized a “Negative Energy Exchange Box” placed in high-stress environments, such as office buildings and mental health clinics, to collect real-life stress cases from HSIs. These cases informed the development of an exhibition designed with a flowing narrative structure (“introduction, development, climax, and conclusion”). Healing elements included inflatable installations, vibrant colors, and secluded spaces to create an immersive and therapeutic environment.Focus group evaluations conducted before and after visiting the exhibition revealed significant improvements in participants’ emotional states, demonstrating the efficacy of this approach. The findings highlight the importance of targeted research and design interventions to support HSIs through holistic, experiential environments.
Yuying Jiang
Open Access
Article
Conference Proceedings