Design Considerations for Adaptive Lighting to Improve Seniors' Mood

The advance of LED technologies allows for new design opportunities in the area of lighting for psychological health. Research has shown that lighting in various colors and intensities can be used to improve people’s moods, e.g. through its effects on melatonin levels. This is especially interesting in the context of ambient assisted living and care environments where people are less mobile and spend long hours indoors. The presented work aims at creating a technical system that can detect an older resident’s mood and consequently adapt the lighting in the room to either calm or activate the person. As part of the system’s design process we conducted interviews with caregivers in different care settings (day care, stationary care and home care) to gather requirements for the system. The study provides insights into moods of seniors and their detection, which is formulated in a preliminary mood model, as well as design considerations for different living- and care-settings.