Abstract
Background: Retirement is recognized as a factor influencing the ageing process. Today, virtual health coaching systems can play a pivotal role in supporting older adults’ active and healthy ageing. This study wants to answer two research questions: (1) What are the user requirements of a virtual coach (VC) based on an Embodied Conversational Agent (ECA) for motivating older adults in transition to retirement to adopt a healthy lifestyle? (2) How could a VC address the active and healthy ageing dimensions, even during COVID-19 times? Methods: Two-wave focus-groups with 60 end-users aged 55 and over and 27 follow-up telephone interviews were carried out in Austria, Italy and the Netherlands in 2019–2020. Qualitative data were analysed by way of framework analysis. Results: End-users suggest the VC should motivate older workers and retirees to practice physical activity, maintain social contacts and emotional well-being. The ECA should be reactive, customizable, expressive, sympathetic, not directive nor patronizing, with a pleasant and motivating language. The COVID-19 outbreak increased the users’ need for functions boosting community relationships and promoting emotional well-being. Conclusions: the VC can address the active and healthy ageing paradigm by increasing the chances of doing low-cost healthy activities at any time and in any place.
Highlights
IntroductionBetween 1970 and 2017, the extension of life expectancy increased by 5.5 years in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries [1]
When we look at national specificities, the Austrian participants, especially retired respondents, stressed the intervention of the virtual coach (VC) for motivating retirees to practice more physical activity and for providing cognitive stimuli: “It would remind me to do exercise for example by the pedometer” [A, male, 57]
The first novelty of the study lies in considering people aged between 55 and 70 years, in transition from work to retirement, as users of a VC based on an Embodied Conversational Agent (ECA)
Summary
Between 1970 and 2017, the extension of life expectancy increased by 5.5 years in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries [1]. This lifespan, entailed the onset of long-term care needs due to the increase in multi-morbidity [2,3,4], which significantly accelerates at older ages [5,6]. Virtual health coaching systems can play a pivotal role in supporting older adults’ active and healthy ageing. Results: End-users suggest the VC should motivate older workers and retirees to practice physical activity, maintain social contacts and emotional well-being.
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