What does the next multi-centre Proof of Concept experiment encompass?
The e-VITA project aims to offer an intercultural virtual coach for older adults providing recommendations and personalised interventions adapted to their needs to promote sustainable well-being in a smart home living environment.
The main expected impact of the e-VITA project is to increase the awareness and sustainable use of a new smart living and virtual coaching system for improving the physical, cognitive, mental and social wellbeing of older adults through a better self-management of participation, health, and safety, aiming for improved overall wellbeing while ageing in Europe and Japan.
One year ago, e-VITA study centres in Europe and Japan conducted the first feasibility study with an intervention from 2 to 7 weeks. 22 Older adults tested different technologies developed in the project in their private homes.
During the second semester 2023, e-VITA will launch the so-called second wave of proof-of-concept, continuing this co-designing journey with older people. This time a study is planned for 6 months starting in July, involving a total of 240 volunteers in the already-known pilot sites in France, Italy, Germany and Japan.
The primary objective of this wave 2 is to measure the impact on the Quality of Life of older people. The secondary objective is to measure acceptability, ease of use, user experience, satisfaction of user needs using a virtual coach. ,eVITA would like also to measure the impact of the coaching system (virtual and human coach) on the well-being of the older adults.
Who will be involved?
eVITA is planning to involve people aged 65 and over, who are retired, living independently at home, wishing to participate in the study and meeting some inclusion and exclusion clinical criteria. They will be assessed through questionnaires and an interview.
What will be tested?
The participants will be divided into two groups:
- The control group who will receive a booklet with information and ideas for activities related to ageing well. They will be invited to do whatever they wish with the information booklet and the proposed exercises, as they would do outside the framework of the experiment. In any case, they will not be required to read and do the proposed exercises.
- The experimental group will receive not only the booklet of information and activity ideas related to ageing well, but also one of the four virtual coaches available in the project (randomized, either the NAO robot, Gatebox, Celeste or a Google Nest virtual assistant – learn more about our robots here) and their associated sensors (e.g., smart watch and an android smartphone).
How it will be tested?
The selected participants will be able to interact with the virtual coaching device as well as have access to personalised recommendations via the application developed by the eVITA project. They will be free to perform all the activities they want requiring or not the virtual coach without a minimal usage time obligation. The goal is to continue to live normally and add value by including the virtual coach in their home, not changing their daily routines and not obligate them to interact with the robot.
The experimentation involves three different assessment sessions when researchers will interview the participants in their home.: a first evaluation (T0) before the start of the trial, one intermediate evaluation (T1) after three months of usage and a final evaluation (T2) at the end of the trial. Some questionnaires and one interview will be performed at every stage.
A human coach – a trained volunteer who can be a student or a clinician – will call the participants in the experimental group once every two weeks to inquire about the duration of the interaction, the type of interaction performed, their feelings about the activity and the devices… He or She will encourage the participants to use the technology and provide help in case of any difficulties. The participants will have the phone number of the human coach at their disposal so that they can contact him or her if they need help. It is crucial to guarantee the human experience to increase the acceptance of the robots and the sense of belonging to the experience.
The participants will also be offered the opportunity to meet with other research participants during videoconference sessions (1-2x per months), in order to exchange their experiences with them (these sessions are optional and depend on the availability of the participant).
Regarding the control group, on the first day of the trial and in every evaluation occasion, a researcher will go to these participants’ homes to carry out the evaluations and that will be the only interaction.
The project committed to the maintenance of participants’ anonymity and confidentiality throughout all procedures, including screening, recruitment, testing, evaluation and dissemination procedures. Data collection, usage and storage procedures complied with national laws and the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and APPI including the right of participants to access their own data, right to be informed, right to withdraw, and right to have their data deleted.
What will be offered to participants in the virtual coach?
Through the platform, the virtual coaches provide different recommendations:
- Help with everyday activities: when the older person returns home, the virtual coach will welcome him/her. It will provide support in their daily life by interacting with them through dialogue, singing, situationally appropriate behaviours such as comforting or motivating words generated according to the factors such as sensor data, data from API, readiness level of behaviour change and related factors. The virtual coach will also be able to provide reminders about activities of daily living.
- Health activities: The virtual coach can offer the user physical exercises and cognitive training through mini games, for example. It can also offer nutritional advice and support for physical therapy exercises.
- Social activities: The virtual coach will encourage the participants to engage in social events.
- Feeding curiosity: The user can ask questions to the coach about anything.
What is the expected impact?
We will assess the following variables at different stages during the trial:
- Quality of life (EQ-5D-5L survey)
- Goals and Expectation (ATDPA-5 survey)
- eHealth literacy (eHEALS survey)
- Social connectedness (UCLA survey)
- Personality (Big Five Inventory)
- Nutrition (Short FFQ survey)
- Adherence (collected through the system and interview)
- Leisure activities (Physical and leisure activity checklist)
- Usability (SUS survey)
- User Experience (UEQ, UEQ+, survey)
- Attitude, usability, acceptability and cost-benefit analysis (semi-structured interview)
- Affinity for Technology Interaction (ATI survey)
This current trial will help us orientating technology, processes, research and social innovation to meet this vision.
Learn more about the project and this proof of concept by watching to the coordinators explaining all the details in a webinar moderated by Sofia Smerzi, Business Support Coordinator, EU-Japan Centre here.