Interaction techniques for older adults using touchscreen devices: a literature review from 2000 to 2013

Abstract

International audience Some remarkable advances in mobile technologies have been made on the past fifteen years, especially the adoption of direct input on the screen. Since aging is now a worldwide demographic phenomenon, several studies have been carried on to investigate and improve the interaction between older-aged adults and these new technologies. These studies are important because mobile devices are often equipped with touchscreen and they can help to improve quality of life for older adults (health care, social life, serious games). Understanding interaction of this group of users with touchscreen can facilitate the adoption of interactive technologies and their future use by older populations. This literature review analyses thirty six studies that evaluated interaction techniques for older users using touchscreen devices. This review intends to 1) analyze the situation of thirty six studies (population, apparatus, tasks and interaction techniques) and 2) identify situations of use of touchscreen devices and interaction techniques that need to be further studied. As results, a descriptive analysis of the populations included, the chosen apparatus, executed tasks and interaction techniques are presented, so as a summary of relevant parameters to consider for studies of tactile interaction techniques. On each topic, we discuss about the results, the authors' recommendations and we provide cues for future work. Des progrès considérables des technologies mobiles ont été constatés sur les quinze dernières années, notamment avec le développement des écrans tactiles. Depuis que le vieillissement est un phénomène démographique mondial, plusieurs études ont été menées pour étudier et améliorer l'interaction des personnes âgées avec ces nouvelles technologies. Ces études sont importantes car les dispositifs mobiles, souvent équipés d'un écran tactile,peuvent aider à améliorer la qualité de vie des personnes âgées (soins de santé, maintien du lien social, jeux sérieux). Comprendre l'interaction de ce groupe d'utilisateurs avec des écrans tactiles peut ainsi faciliter l'adoption des technologies interactives et leur future utilisation. Cette revue de la littérature analyse trente-six études qui ont évalué des techniques d'interaction pour des sujets âgés utilisant des dispositifs avec écran tactile. Cette revue vise 1) à analyser la situation de ces trente-six études (population, équipements, tâches et techniques d'interaction) et 2) à identifier les situations d'utilisation des écrans tactiles et des techniques d'interaction qui doivent encore être étudiées. Les résultats sont l'analyse descriptive des populations incluses, des dispositifs choisis, des tâches effectuées et des techniques d'interaction, ainsi qu'une synthèse des paramètres pertinents à prendre en compte pour des études sur les techniques d'interaction tactile. Sur chaque point, nous présentons une discussion sur les résultats, les recommandations des auteurs et des repères pour des travaux futurs.

Design Guidelines of Mobile Apps for Older Adults: Systematic Review and Thematic Analysis

“…We systemically extracted design recommendations stemming from this experimental evidence, where usability tests were conducted with actual older users. Through a thematic analysis, we organized these findings into a set of 27 Design guidelines do not ensure usability or a good UX on their own, but we hope that these design guidelines will support the design of better mobile apps through a user-centered design approach, catering to the needs and characteristics of older users and helping bridge the age-related digital divide.…”

“…Numerous mobile app design guidelines for older people have been developed through end-user evaluations (such as those included in this review) and heuristic evaluations [5,6,23]. Others have reviewed some of the literature (not systematically) on the design of mobile apps to propose a few guidelines [24][25][26][27]. In addition, Iancu and Iancu [28] provided a theoretical overview of the subject.…”

Supporting the Creation and Evaluation of Interactive Touch Kiosks Designed for the Elderly

“…Moreover, digital literacy of the elderly needs to be taken into account for graphic and textual options, since the elderly population may not master technical language and features, along with conceptual models [46 , 36]. Several authors already described the usage of interactive touch kiosks as an easy and motivating way to use electronic services [47], since direct manipulation with the fngers provides greater control over the interaction, an advantage to meet the needs of elderly users [18], making it more accessible to a larger number of users. Furthermore, providing features similar to real world physics, such as gravity and inertia, in conjunction with interactive graphical elements, make it possible to create a better user experience [48].…”

“…Furthermore, providing features similar to real world physics, such as gravity and inertia, in conjunction with interactive graphical elements, make it possible to create a better user experience [48]. Electronic services and systems must be able to respond to diferent confgurations and support user behavior [18], and might be relevant to frame their diferent features considering the user capabilities model developed by Nurgalieva et al [27]: i) Perceptual abilities; ii) Cognitive abilities; iii) Psychomotor abilities; iv) Motor abilities. It is essential to keep up with the rapid changes that occur in society in the most diverse dimensions, and support the design process and usability assessment through standards and guidelines, ultimately, aiming to allow universal access [49,50], and a pleasant and fun use [51].…”

Multimodal Observation Method of Digital Accessibility for Elderly People

“…Similarly, [7] suggests that the disciplines of Human Computer Interaction and Usability Engineering collaborate to make technology more accessible, useful and nice for older people. The work of [8] has shown that it is difficult to take into account the heterogeneity of older people as well as new situations in the use of mobile devices and touch screens.…”