Technology design to support successful aging with disability

Issue In addition to the growing population of older adults in general, there is an increase in the number of individuals aging with perceptual and motor impairments that may lead to disability, depending on the environmental conditions. These individuals have the added challenge of age-related changes to contend with. Technology has the potential to support the needs of this segment of the population but their unique needs and capabilities must be considered in the design process. Content Interdisciplinary efforts are required to develop successful technology supports. The symposium includes researchers from architecture, psychology, community health, computer science, and industrial design who are part of the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Technologies to Support Successful Aging with Disability (TechSAge; techsage.gatech.edu) as well as a discussant who is a computer scientist with expertise in assistive computing. The symposium will showcase research efforts ranging from developing a framework for technology intervention design, to an in-depth approach to understanding user needs, to use of emerging technologies in a novel way, to developing design guidelines. Structure First, Jon Sanford and his colleagues will present a framework for technology intervention design for the specific needs of individuals aging with a disability. Maurita Harris will then describe research from a team project focused on obtaining an in-depth assessment of user needs in everyday activities, especially healthcare. Maribeth Gandy and her colleagues will present their technology tool that uses augmented and virtual reality to introduce smart home technology to seniors. Claudia Rebola will describe an analysis of the TechSAge Design Competition submissions leading to insights for technology design guidelines. Lastly, Charles Consel will serve as the symposium discussant and provide his insights about the research from his perspective of designing assistive technologies as the lead of the Phoenix Research Group at lnria Bordeaux. Each presentation will be followed by time for questions to engage the audience in the discussion of technology design to support aging with disability. Conclusion Individuals aging with a disability represent an increasing segment of the population, worldwide. The goal of the symposium is to (1) increase awareness of the unique needs of individuals aging with disability, (2) engage researchers in discussion that might lead to future collaborations, and (3) set the research agenda to improve quality of life for older adults who are aging with a disability.