SEN-Z
A holistic service to support the elderly through technological and social support interventions.
THE CHALLENGE
How might we leverage technology and manpower to design a holistic service for the elderly that improves their accessibility and elevates their well-being?
This exploration started as I was talking to my grandparents who live alone about the different challenges they face in completing everyday tasks. It is an ongoing project. Over the period of 2020-2021, through user research, scenario mapping and constant iteration, I have developed a service model that I am continuously working on.
After starting this project, I also interned at an organization designing a content streaming app for the elderly. This further refined my understanding.
RESEARCH
Although the User Research and Market Research conducted on this topic was exhaustive, some excerpts from the research are being posted in bits and pieces throughout the case study.
The entire service model has been based on research- primary and secondary. The executive summary of the research is-
Social inclusion and communication:
technologies that aim to enable older people to communicate and interact with others, like family members and friends, in order to maintain their social life and thus improve their well-being
Psychosocial factors of human-technology interaction and usage:
some socio-economic and psychological aspects are relevant for understanding how different profiles of older people interact with and use technologies
Telemedicine, telehealth, and telecare:
in order to enable continuous monitoring of eventual health problems and long-term conditions, typical of older age, remote services offered by healthcare organizations could widen the possibility for older people to access appropriate care and thus improve their health status and clinical outcomes.
Entertainment and media:
serious games and smart objects at home could facilitate the daily living of older people by enabling alternative commands for home management or being engaged in proper physical or mental training
Sensing and interacting:
sensors installed at home represent a great opportunity for the monitoring of older people’s activities and behaviors, as well as the detection of sudden risks or accidents
Family caregivers or care services for immediate intervention when a problem occurs.
PRIMARY RESEARCH
UNDERSTANDING THE USER
The most integral part of any User Experience Design, according to me, is to be able to understand, empathize and listen.
In order to understand the pains, fears and needs of our user group- a survey was sent out to individuals between ages 50-80. (Over 100 Respondents)
To further delve into the lives of the elderly, 4 prospective users were also interviewed. Many insights were formed through this User Research.
The responses to the survey can be accessed here.
The key takeaways from my research have been summed up in the infographics in the gallery above.
One can also view the User Persona and information (lo-fi) gathered through various interviews.
What does one make of this information?
Gathering information through user interviews and surveys is a step that requires active listening and empathy.
The next stage is where one tries to make sense of the information and evaluate it. Sometimes this newfound information and insights gathered from the users can change the course of the project extensively.
Some of the key insights gathered from my User Research were-
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The elderly want intergenerational interaction. Science backs this need by claiming it's healthier for them.
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Human interaction and need for caregivers and lack thereof is a major reason for concern
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Want platforms and opportunities to stay engaged and feel useful.
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A sense of community is deeply needed.
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Scared of missing out on the changes in the world due to inability to keep up with technology.
DESIGNING THE SOLUTION
This is the converging process that comes right after understanding your user completely. One that involves speculation, ideation, and problem-solving.
After ideating the broad design of the service, came the service blueprint
It put into perspective the interaction between the back-end and front-end of the service.
The marketing iceberg was especially helpful in narrowing down the role "people" played in the service.
The brand environment mapping assisted in defining the core values like - care, empathy, patience, and affordability.
The value proposition canvas led me to borrow from the user interviews and research in order to reflect on how we can relieve user pain points like- loneliness, lack of accessibility, troubleshooting related to technology etc.
FINALLY! SOMETHING BESIDES TEXT AND MAPS
LESSONS LEARNED
This innate ability to understand and empathize with my users has helped me throughout my research process. It's important to have a generalized conversation when interviewing a user group like the elderly.
It's impossible to get the answers you're searching for if you treat the interviews like usual case studies.
One has to truly put themselves in the shoes of the elderly and experience life through their lens to design effective services.
I hope to be able to expand more on my user research with this age group in the coming years.