A social robot in home care : acceptability and utility among community-dwelling older adults

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Social robots show great potential for delivering home-based aged care and supporting aging-in-place. This study aims to assess the acceptability of social robots in delivering home care to older adults across 7 domains: affective attitude, burden, perceived effectiveness, ethicality, intervention coherence, opportunity costs, and self-efficacy. Research Design and Methods: This is a mixed-methods study. Thirty community-dwelling older adults, aged 51–88, engaged with a social robot, equipped with artificial intelligence and designed to interact with humans in a socially acceptable manner. The robot was operated 24/7 in participants’ homes for 6 weeks. Descriptive analysis, latent growth mixture modeling, and thematic analysis were conducted for data analysis. Results: Home-based robotic care was very well received. The average frequency of the use of different features of the robot was 23.4 times/person/day. Three trajectory groups of engagement in human–robot interactions were identified: those who are living alone or with an older spouse, with fair health and financial status were the most interactive group. Participants perceived the robot as user-friendly, manageable, and seamlessly integrated into their daily routine, such as reminding meal intake. The robot also reduced the stress of caregivers. It served as a companion and “good listener,” ameliorating the feelings of loneliness, calming depressive emotions, and keeping participants informed about the outside world. Interestingly, participants believed that interacting with the robot enabled them to engage with contemporary technologies, acquire new skills, and showcase their fashion sense in front of friends. Discussion and Implications: Home-based robots are acceptable and manageable by older adults. Future studies should examine the effectiveness of home-based robotic care on enhancing the health-related outcomes of older adults.