A socialization intervention in remote health coaching for older adults in the home

Previous studies have shown that social ties enhance both physical and mental health, and that social isolation has been linked to increased cognitive decline. As part of our cognitive training platform, we created a socialization intervention to address these issues. The intervention is designed to improve social contact time of older adults with remote family members and friends using a variety of technologies, including Web cameras, Skype software, email and phone. We used usability testing, surveys, interviews and system usage monitoring to develop design guidance for socialization protocols that were appropriate for older adults living independently in their homes. Our early results with this intervention show increased number of social contacts, total communication time (we measure email, phone, and Skype usage) and significant participant satisfaction with the intervention.

[1]  Hannu Kautiainen,et al.  Effects of psychosocial group rehabilitation on social functioning, loneliness and well-being of lonely, older people: randomized controlled trial. , 2009, Journal of advanced nursing.

[2]  M. Glymour,et al.  Effects of social integration on preserving memory function in a nationally representative US elderly population. , 2008, American journal of public health.

[3]  Misha Pavel,et al.  Integrating computer-based health coaching into elder home care , 2008 .

[4]  Hannu Kautiainen,et al.  Effects of socially stimulating group intervention on lonely, older people's cognition: a randomized, controlled trial. , 2011, The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry.

[5]  L. Berkman,et al.  Social Disengagement and Incident Cognitive Decline in Community-Dwelling Elderly Persons , 1999, Annals of Internal Medicine.

[6]  C. Cutrona,et al.  Objective determinants of perceived social support. , 1986, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[7]  R. Winningham,et al.  A cognitive intervention to enhance institutionalized older adults’ social support networks and decrease loneliness , 2007, Aging & mental health.

[8]  Diana B Petitti,et al.  Social network, cognitive function, and dementia incidence among elderly women. , 2008, American journal of public health.

[9]  J. House,et al.  Social relationships and health. , 1988, Science.

[10]  S A Stansfeld,et al.  How gender affects patterns of social relations and their impact on health: a comparison of one or multiple sources of support from "close persons". , 2002, Social science & medicine.

[11]  Misha Pavel,et al.  A Framework for Cognitive Monitoring Using Computer Game Interactions , 2007, MedInfo.

[12]  B. Lawlor,et al.  Loneliness and the health of older people , 2008, International journal of geriatric psychiatry.

[13]  Timothy B. Smith,et al.  Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-analytic Review , 2010, PLoS medicine.

[14]  A. Otero,et al.  Social networks, social integration, and social engagement determine cognitive decline in community-dwelling Spanish older adults. , 2003, The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences.

[15]  H. Kautiainen,et al.  Effects of psychosocial group rehabilitation on health, use of health care services, and mortality of older persons suffering from loneliness: a randomized, controlled trial. , 2009, The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences.

[16]  D. Russell,et al.  The revised UCLA Loneliness Scale: concurrent and discriminant validity evidence. , 1980, Journal of personality and social psychology.