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BackgroundInformation and communication technology solutions have the potential to support active and healthy aging and improve monitoring and treatment outcomes. To make such solutions acceptable, all stakeholders must be involved in the requirements elicitation process. Due to the COVID-19 situation, alternative approaches to commonly used face-to-face methods must often be used. One aim of the current article is to share a unique experience from the Pharaon project where due to the COVID-19 outbreak alternative elicitation methods were used. In addition, an overview of common functional, quality, and emotional goals identified by six pilot sites is presented to complement the knowledge about the needs of older adults.MethodsOriginally planned face-to-face co-creation seminars were impossible to carry out, and all pilot sites chose alternative requirements elicitation methods that were most suitable in their situation. The elicited requirements were presented in the form of goal models. In one summary goal model, we provide an overview of common functional, quality, and emotional goals.ResultsDifferent elicitation methods were combined based on the digital literacy of the target group and their access to digital tools. Methods applied without digital technologies were phone interviews, reviews of literature and previous projects, while by means of digital technologies online interviews, online questionnaires, and (semi-)virtual co-creation seminars were conducted. The combination of the methods allowed to involve all planned stakeholders. Virtual and semi-virtual co-creation seminars created collaborative environment comparable to face-to-face situations, while online participation helped to save the time of the participants. The most prevalent functional goals elicited were “Monitor health,” “Receive advice,” “Receive information.” “Easy to use/comfortable,” “personalized/tailored,” “automatic/smart” were identified as most prevalent quality goals. Most frequently occurring emotional goals were “involved,” “empowered,” and “informed.”ConclusionThere are alternative methods to face-to-face co-creation seminars, which effectively involve older adults and other stakeholders in the requirements elicitation process. Despite the used elicitation method, the requirements can be easily transformed into goal models to present the results in a uniform way. The common requirements across different pilots provided a strong foundation for representing detailed requirements and input for further software development processes.

Embodied conversational agents (ECAs) have the potential to facilitate empathic relationships between older adults and eHealth coaches, but little research has been conducted on how to effectively include appearance and personality in the design of ECAs such that older adults can empathize with the agent. In this study, we aimed first to develop design requirements for ECAs that induce empathy in older adults. Second, we developed and reflected upon a remote (online), iterative co-design methodology which can be used as an alternative when traditional physical methods cannot take place (e.g. during COVID-19). Over the course of three months, five older adults (mean age 68 years) 1) received a paper booklet, 2) were invited to an Q&A session, 3) after which they were asked develop their own ECAs at home using the booklet, 4) and came back to discuss their designs online in a group setting to determine design requirements, 5) which were used to develop an interactive ECA, 6) that was individually evaluated in an online meeting. The final ECA, called Robin, was positively perceived in terms of appearance, but the participants expected the conversation with Robin to be more flexible and deeper. Overall, the current study demonstrated the feasibility of remote co-design activities for this population and presents recommendations for researchers and practitioners interested in or in need for a remote approach. Moreover, the current findings are translated in lessons learnt to inform design and development of future ECAs for older adults.