Elizabeth Buie - Older adults: Are we really designing for our future selves?
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The document discusses designing digital products and services for older adults. It begins by stating that while "designing for our future selves" is a popular theme, it does not always help as today's older adults differ from our future selves in some key ways. Specifically, older adults today have less experience with modern technologies compared to what will be unfamiliar to us in the future. Additionally, older adults today have lived through different life experiences than younger people. While the slogan of "designing for our future selves" can provide empathy, engagement, and enthusiasm, it overlooks these important differences between current older users and our future older selves. The document argues we must understand the diverse experiences of today's older adults through user
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Elizabeth Buie - Older adults: Are we really designing for our future selves?
- 1. Older Adults: Are we really designing for our future selves? Elizabeth Buie
- 3. “Designing for Our Future Selves” 2022
- 4. 2022 It’s a popular theme!
- 5. But does it help?
- 6. Well, yes and no.
- 7. First, let’s set some expectations.
- 8. What I won’t give youtoday Design guidelines for older people
- 9. What I won’t give youtoday Design guidelines for older people There are plenty of those around. (I will include some links in the resources.)
- 10. What I offer  Some insights into the slogan “designing for our future selves”  Thoughts on how it works (or not)  Ideas about why it works (or not)  An understanding of the issues  Why some may apply to your future self  Why some will continue to require user research  Illustrations from my own perspective and experience
- 11. Why design for older adults? (Some obligatorystats)
- 12. Graph shows UK stats by age group. Source: Office for National Statistics www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/householdcharacteristics/homeinternetandsocialmediausage/bulletins/internetaccesshouse holdsandindividuals/2020 Why design forolderadults: Growing demand  From 2013 to 2020, “recent” Internet use by older adults in the UK grew enormously:  55-64 — up by 34%  65-74 — up by 55%!  75+ — up by 114%!!  And this was before Covid — HOWEVER —  Older adults still use the Internet quite a bit less than younger people do 0 1,000 2,000 3,000 4,000 5,000 6,000 7,000 8,000 9,000 10,000 16-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65-74 75+ People using Internet in previous 3 months (thousands) Number of people (in thousands) in each age group who had used the Internet within the previous three months, 2013 vs 2020 Recent Internet use by age group in UK, 2013 vs 2020 2013 2020
- 13. Graph shows worldwide stats on use by age group, in 2019. (Source: statista.com) Why design for older adults: Unmet needs  In 2019, adults over 55 were only 17% of Internet users world wide  In contrast, 25-to-34-year-olds were almost twice that number, at 32% of users globally  Can we use design to improve how well digital products and services meet older adults’ needs? 55-64 (10%) 65+ (7%) 25-34 (32%)
- 14. Why design forolderadults: Inclusion “In rich countries, older users are the last Internet frontier, as every other age group is already online in vast numbers.” – Jakob Nielsen Some of the accessibility issues that older adults commonly face are often overlooked in design.
- 15. Other factors in tech non-use Design is not the only barrier, of course. Here are some other factors that an Age UK study* found:  Covid reduced access to tech when libraries were closed or had limited hours  People worry about being scammed  Some cannot afford the kit and connection costs  Many people object to what they see as pressure to go online * www.ageuk.org.uk/globalassets/age-uk/documents/reports-and-publications/reports-and-briefings/active-communities/policy- briefing--living-in-a-digital-world-after-covid-19-the-experience-of-older-people-who-dont-live-their-lives-online.pdf (Source: age.uk) This talk does not address these issues.
- 16. So, that slogan — does it help?
- 17. Well, yourfuture selfwill be an olderadult (we hope)…
- 18. Who are older adults?
- 19. Who are “older adults”? Just how old is “older”?
- 20. How old is “older”? How do we define it? 40? 50? 60? 65? 95? …  How old are “older” users?  Are you experiencing any changes yourself?  What sorts of changes can age bring?  When does age start to matter for digital design?
- 21. “Older” encompasses a wide range of ages  Studies of older adults start at 50, 55, 60, even 65 — so the findings can vary quite a lot!  Age-related changes start even earlier…  Bob Bailey analysed a large amount of research and proposed four UX-related age categories for adult users*: Old-old: 75+ Middle-aged: 40-59 Older: 60-74 Young: 20-39 * assets.aarp.org/www.aarp.org_/articles/research/oww/university/Bailey_AgeCategories4.ppt Anyone think that 50-year-olds and 95-year-olds face the same issues?
- 22. Older adults? OAPs? Older people? Elderly? Old people? What term(s) do we use for older users? Aged?
- 23. OMG, am I “older”?
- 24. Am I “older”? Yes At least, I am. I’m just shy of 64 I’m 70.
- 25. What does it mean? By itself, not much
- 26. Why not? We all age differently
- 27. However…
- 28. Your future self will almost certainly experience some age-related impairments. However… (For this reason — YES, the slogan can help a bit.)
- 29. Effects of age-relatedchanges  Senses: vision, hearing, touch (also smell, taste)  Movement: co-ordination, comfort, speed, steadiness  Cognition: memory, speed of learning, information processing, reaction time  Attitude: Confidence with new tech, willingness to learn new technologies and procedures
- 30. Changesare unpredictable  Begin at different ages  Develop at different speeds  Reach different levels of severity  Occur in some or even most people, but not in everyone An impairment can appear sooner, later — or never
- 32. Vision: decreased lower-light vision  Common effects on visual perception:  Need for higher text/background contrast  Need for brighter screen, and brighter light for printed content  Trouble telling dark blues/greens/black apart, especially in low light  Can be caused by the type of cataract that “yellows” the lens  Can come from a loss of “rod” cells and/or light-sensitive pigment  etc etc… I experience all three of these common effects • I had cataract surgery in the summer of 2021 • My cataracts were not yellow, and I still experience those effects • So mine must be due to something else
- 33. I lied. I will give you one design guideline… Make sure you have enough colour contrast!  The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) specify a ratio of 4.5 to 1 for normal text  This one is frequently overlooked — something may look fine to you but still have inadequate contrast  Verify it with a contrast checker, such as the one from WebAIM: webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker
- 34. Vision: focusing/presbyopia  Reduced ability to focus close up  Difficulty changing focus quickly  Caused by a hardening of the lens  Common in people over 40  Almost everyone experiences it eventually I use reading glasses  Most people need reading glasses by age 45  I was 54  I had cataract surgery last summer and now need to use them more often: artificial lenses cannot change focus at all
- 35. Some other age-related eye conditions* Condition Younger % Older % Diff. Diabetic Retinopathy 40-49, 2.3% 75+, 8.1% 3.5 times Glaucoma 40-49, 0.7% 80+, 7.9% 11 times Cataracts 40-49, 2.5% 80+, 68.3% 27 times Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) 50-54, 0.4% 80+, 11.7% 29 times These can begin at varying ages but ARE age associated *From US data for 2010, provided by the National Eye Institute, US National Institutes of Health
- 36. Simulations of two age-related eye conditions Normal vision Simulated conditions Age-related Macular Degeneration * Images by National Eye Institute, US National Institutes of Health Cataract
- 37. Hearing: high-frequency loss All ages, 8kHz ≤60, 10kHz ≤50, 12kHz ≤39, 15kHz ≤24, 17kHz ≤18, 22kHz Try it yourself: www.noiseaddicts.com/2011/06/mosquito-ringtones B C A D E F In a quiet environment, at age 64 I could still hear clearly “50 & younger” (and I still can, but less clearly) Develops gradually, beginning very early At 70 I can hear VERY CLEARLY “60 & younger”, even with some ambient noise Audiology tests show that my hearing is still within normal range, but it is no longer brilliant — and this feels like a loss to me. This is not a hearing test!
- 38. Hearing: voices & listening levels  Increasing trouble understanding conversations  Higher speech volume needed for listening comfort — “Say that again?” I’m definitely noticing this. No idea whether I’m “on time” for it or not.
- 39. Movement, dexterity: arthritis, tremors  Arthritis occurrence and severity increase with age  Tremors from neurological conditions are more common and more severe with age  Both affect hand movement speed and accuracy (typing, mousing, tapping…) I have osteoarthritis and Essential Tremor, both of which affect my wrists and fingers. I may be a bit ahead of “schedule” on the arthritis…
- 40. Cognition: reasoning, processing, learning  Info processing, working memory, and learning may become slower with ageing: fluid intelligence — HOWEVER —  Knowledge from education and experience remains throughout life*: crystallised intelligence I’ve noticed some decline in processing speed  The calendar algorithm in my head still works  5-6 years ago it started slowing down *Except when affected by dementia
- 41. Attitude: confidence, willingness, awareness  Confidence that they can use new technology  Willingness to learn new technologies or processes  Awareness: Many do not feel “disabled” and may not take advantage of assistive technologies (especially hearing aids) I used a crutch for several months before my hip surgery, and I liked it much better than the cane I had used before… The crutch conveyed disability or injury rather than old age!
- 42. These are the benefit the slogan brings. What does the slogan give us? Three “E”s Empathy Engagement Enthusiasm Understand and appreciate older adults’ experiences, goals, feelings, needs — WITHOUT patronising them Listen actively to their stories, perspectives, wishes E E E Take delight in improving their experience of things they use
- 43. How does the slogan NOT help?
- 44. Well, today’s olderadults differfrom yourfuture self
- 45. The slogan overlooks those differences
- 46. Different experience: knowledge of tech  Many modern technologies are unfamiliar to many older adults  This will continue, and will always present design challenges  Your future self will have the same problem, BUT —  Your problems will involve different technologies  This may be due to your age when the tech was introduced Could you unstick the keys on a manual, mechanical typewriter? Most “younger” people in the USA cannot drive a car that has a manual transmission
- 47. Different experience: life experience  Leads to “crystallised intelligence”  “May help explain older people’s relatively high success on ill- defined search tasks” –David Sloan*  Your future self will have this as well — HOWEVER —  Your life experiences will differ in some important ways… *Web Accessibility and Older People - not as straightforward as you think? www.slideshare.net/sloandr/web-accessibility-and-older-people-not-as-straighforward-as-you-think From P. Fairweather’s “How Older and Younger Adults Differ in their Approach to Problem Solving on a Complex Website”
- 48. Different circumstances: economics  UX work is relatively high paid; the “older adult” population runs the gamut  You are still working; most over-60s are retired  Over-60s have more real-estate wealth, on average*  People in their early 60s have “… a median total wealth almost nine times as high” as people in their early 30s.† (emphasis added) Will your future self have similar assets? * As of 2012, according to the UK Office for National Statistics webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20160105160709/http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/dcp171776_313608.pdf † As of March 2020, according to the UK Office for National Statistics www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/personalandhouseholdfinances/incomeandwealth/bulletins/distributionofindividualtotalwealthbycharacteristicingreatbritain/april2018tomarch2020
- 49. Different circumstances: world conditions  The world is changing in many ways  We don’t know how that will affect the outlook and experiences that your future self will bring to the use of technology Stay tuned!
- 50. Can you give examples of how this affects guidelines?
- 51. A few examples taken from research Guideline “for older adults”  Provide larger targets  Provide clear confirmation that a target has been clicked/tapped  Do not require older adults to double-click/double-tap  Use alt text for all images  Avoid scrollbars Basis (my educated guess) Accessibility (general) Usability Older adults – Knowledge, Dexterity Accessibility (general) Older adults – Knowledge Taken and adapted from S. Kurniawan and P. Zaphiris, “Research-Derived Web Design Guidelines for Older People” www.researchgate.net/publication/221652473_Research-derived_web_design_guidelines_for_older_people
- 52. So what do we absolutely need to remember?
- 53. Key take-aways  We all age differently  Many impairments that older adults experience also affect younger people, just less commonly  Some impairments are (almost) uniquely due to ageing bodies/brains  Some guidelines are based on the ageing process; others come from findings obtained because the research participants were older at the time
- 54. If you remember nothing else…  Guidelines based on ageing bodies (including brains) will probably continue to be valid – but keep an eye out for new information!  Guidelines based on what people know and don’t know are very likely to become obsolete  You will always have to consider what tech is familiar to older adults, but the specifics will change
- 55. The eternal question When you see a guideline based on research with older adults, ask yourself this: Is it because they’re older? – or – is it because they’re older NOW? ?
- 56. When a guideline is based on older adults’ knowledge, verify it!
- 57. Validate, validate, validate! Before you use a knowledge-focused guideline, verify that it’s valid and relevant to the older adults in your audience
- 58. Finally, some resources Designing for Older Adults: Usability Considerations for Real Users (Finn & Johnson) www.slideshare.net/KateFinn3/designing-for-older-adults-usability-considerations-for-real-users Web Accessibility and Older People - not as straightforward as you think? (Sloan) www.slideshare.net/sloandr/web-accessibility-and-older-people-not-as-straighforward-as-you-think Designing User Interfaces for Older Adults: Myth Busters (Finn) www.uxmatters.com/mt/archives/2013/10/designing-user-interfaces-for-older-adults-myth-busters.php Age and web access: the next generation (Hanson) dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1535658 Designing inclusive ICT products for older users: taking into account the technology generation effect (Lim) www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09544820903317001 Designing Web Sites for Older Adults: A Review of Recent Research (Redish & Chisnell) assets.aarp.org/www.aarp.org_/articles/research/oww/AARP-LitReview2004.pdf Designing Web Sites for Older Adults: Expert Review of Usability for Older Adults at 50 Web Sites (Chisnell & Redish) assets.aarp.org/www.aarp.org_/articles/research/oww/AARP-50Sites.pdf