Older adults’ experiences with using wearable devices: qualitative systematic review and meta-synthesis

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dc.contributor.authorMoore, Kevin
dc.contributor.authorO'Shea, Emma
dc.contributor.authorKenny, Lorna
dc.contributor.authorBarton, John
dc.contributor.authorTedesco, Salvatore
dc.contributor.authorSica, Marco
dc.contributor.authorCrowe, Colum
dc.contributor.authorAlamäki, Antti
dc.contributor.authorCondell, Joan
dc.contributor.authorNordström, Anna
dc.contributor.authorTimmons, Suzanne
dc.contributor.funderEuropean Regional Development Funden
dc.contributor.funderInterregen
dc.contributor.funderEuropean Commissionen
dc.contributor.funderEnterprise Irelanden
dc.contributor.funderAbbVieen
dc.date.accessioned2021-06-25T12:08:11Z
dc.date.available2021-06-25T12:08:11Z
dc.date.issued2021-06-03
dc.date.updated2021-06-25T10:29:34Z
dc.description.abstractBackground: Older adults may use wearable devices for various reasons, ranging from monitoring clinically relevant health metrics or detecting falls to monitoring physical activity. Little is known about how this population engages with wearable devices, and no qualitative synthesis exists to describe their shared experiences with long-term use. Objective: This study aims to synthesize qualitative studies of user experience after a multi-day trial with a wearable device to understand user experience and the factors that contribute to the acceptance and use of wearable devices. Methods: We conducted a systematic search in CINAHL, APA PsycINFO, PubMed, and Embase (2015-2020; English) with fixed search terms relating to older adults and wearable devices. A meta-synthesis methodology was used. We extracted themes from primary studies, identified key concepts, and applied reciprocal and refutational translation techniques; findings were synthesized into third-order interpretations, and finally, a “line-of-argument” was developed. Our overall goal was theory development, higher-level abstraction, and generalizability for making this group of qualitative findings more accessible. Results: In total, we reviewed 20 papers; 2 evaluated fall detection devices, 1 tested an ankle-worn step counter, and the remaining 17 tested activity trackers. The duration of wearing ranged from 3 days to 24 months. The views of 349 participants (age: range 51-94 years) were synthesized. Four key concepts were identified and outlined: motivation for device use, user characteristics (openness to engage and functional ability), integration into daily life, and device features. Motivation for device use is intrinsic and extrinsic, encompassing many aspects of the user experience, and appears to be as, if not more, important than the actual device features. To overcome usability barriers, an older adult must be motivated by the useful purpose of the device. A device that serves its intended purpose adds value to the user’s life. The user’s needs and the support structure around the device—aspects that are often overlooked—seem to play a crucial role in long-term adoption. Our “line-of-argument” model describes how motivation, ease of use, and device purpose determine whether a device is perceived to add value to the user’s life, which subsequently predicts whether the device will be integrated into the user’s life. Conclusions: The added value of a wearable device is the resulting balance of motivators (or lack thereof), device features (and their accuracy), ease of use, device purpose, and user experience. The added value contributes to the successful integration of the device into the daily life of the user. Useful device features alone do not lead to continued use. A support structure should be placed around the user to foster motivation, encourage peer engagement, and adapt to the user’s preferences.en
dc.description.sponsorshipEuropean Regional Development Fund (under Ireland’s European Structural and Investment Fund Programme 2014-2020); European Commission (Interreg Northern Periphery and Arctic Programme funded project SENDoc (Smart sENsor Devices fOr rehabilitation and Connected health)); Enterprise Ireland and Abbvie Inc. (grant IP 2017 0625)en
dc.description.statusPeer revieweden
dc.description.versionPublished Versionen
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdfen
dc.identifier.articleide23832en
dc.identifier.citationMoore, K., O'Shea, E., Kenny, L., Barton, J., Tedesco, S., Sica, M., Crowe, C., Alamäki, A., Condell, J., Nordström, A. and Timmons, S. (2021) 'Older Adults’ Experiences With Using Wearable Devices: Qualitative Systematic Review and Meta-synthesis', JMIR Mhealth Uhealth, 9(6), e23832 (19 pp). doi: 10.2196/23832en
dc.identifier.doi10.2196/23832en
dc.identifier.endpage19en
dc.identifier.issn2291-5222
dc.identifier.issued6en
dc.identifier.journaltitleJMIR Mhealth And Uhealthen
dc.identifier.startpage1en
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10468/11492
dc.identifier.volume9en
dc.language.isoenen
dc.publisherJMIR Publicationsen
dc.relation.urihttps://mhealth.jmir.org/2021/6/e23832
dc.rights© Kevin Moore, Emma O'Shea, Lorna Kenny, John Barton, Salvatore Tedesco, Marco Sica, Colum Crowe, Antti Alamäki, Joan Condell, Anna Nordström, Suzanne Timmons. Originally published in JMIR mHealth and uHealth (https://mhealth.jmir.org), 03.06.2021. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in JMIR mHealth and uHealth, is properly cited. The complete bibliographic information, a link to the original publication on https://mhealth.jmir.org/, as well as this copyright and license information must be included.en
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/),en
dc.subjectAcceptanceen
dc.subjectAdherenceen
dc.subjectDigital healthen
dc.subjectMeta-synthesisen
dc.subjectMobile phoneen
dc.subjectOlder adulten
dc.subjectQualitative reviewen
dc.subjectWearable deviceen
dc.titleOlder adults’ experiences with using wearable devices: qualitative systematic review and meta-synthesisen
dc.typeArticle (peer-reviewed)en
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