Understanding the Thoughts and Preferences of Older Adults for Technologies Designed to Detect Feelings of Loneliness: A Qualitative Study (Preprint)

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Journal of Medical Internet Research - International Scientific Journal for Medical Research, Information and Communication on the Internet #Preprint #PeerReviewMe: Warning: This is a unreviewed preprint. Readers are warned that the document has not been peer-reviewed by expert/patient reviewers or an academic editor, may contain misleading claims, and is likely to undergo changes before final publication, if accepted, or may have been rejected/withdrawn. Readers with interest and expertise are encouraged to sign up as peer-reviewer, if the paper is within an open peer-review period. Please cite this preprint only for review purposes or for grant applications and CVs (if you are the author). Background: Loneliness is a negative emotional state which is common in later life. The accumulative effects of loneliness have significant impact on physical and mental health of older adults. Automatic methods for detection and prediction are an emerging field to support early identification of loneliness. Objectives: We aim to qualitatively explore the thoughts and preferences of people aged 65 and over regarding technologies to detect feelings of loneliness in later life. Methods: We conducted 60 semi-structured interviews with people aged 65 and over between September 2022 and August 2023. Data were analysed using a reflective thematic approach on NVIVO software. Results: Three themes were identified representing what older adults considered important in a system able to detect loneliness. 1) Interest and Control of Data, which was a priority for older adults; 2) Perceived Usefulness to Address Loneliness, which related to the importance of providing recommendations to reduce feelings of loneliness after detection; and 3) Personalisation as a Priority, which included the level of loneliness for which an alert was sent and selection of relevant individuals who would be sent a loneliness alert. Conclusion: Findings from this in-depth qualitative study provide important perspectives from people with lived-experience of loneliness on the context in which a sensor-based loneliness detection system would be most useful and acceptable to older adults. Future research will include such perspectives in the design of innovative technologies enabling the early detection of loneliness and access to timely interventions to tackle loneliness in later life.

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