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Co-design as learning : the differences of learning when involving older people in digitalization in four countries

Fischer, Björn LU orcid ; Östlund, Britt LU ; Dalmer, Nicole K. LU ; Rosales, Andrea ; Peine, Alexander ; Loos, Eugène ; Neven, Louis and Marshall, Barbara (2021) In Societies 11(2).
Abstract

Involving older people through co-design has become increasingly attractive as an approach to develop technologies for them. However, less attention has been paid to the internal dynamics and localized socio-material arrangements that enact this method in practice. In this paper, we show how the outcomes that can be achieved with user involvement often pertain to learning, but their content can differ significantly based on how the approach is implemented in practice. Combining explorative, qualitative findings from co-design conducted in four countries (Canada, the Netherlands, Spain, and Sweden), we illustrate how different types of learning occurred as design workshops engaged the experiences and skills of older people in different... (More)

Involving older people through co-design has become increasingly attractive as an approach to develop technologies for them. However, less attention has been paid to the internal dynamics and localized socio-material arrangements that enact this method in practice. In this paper, we show how the outcomes that can be achieved with user involvement often pertain to learning, but their content can differ significantly based on how the approach is implemented in practice. Combining explorative, qualitative findings from co-design conducted in four countries (Canada, the Netherlands, Spain, and Sweden), we illustrate how different types of learning occurred as design workshops engaged the experiences and skills of older people in different ways. Our findings make visible how learning can be a core outcome of co-design activities with older adults, while raising awareness of the role of the power relations and socio-material arrangements that structure these design practices in particular ways. To benefit from the full wealth of insights that can be learned by involving older people, deeper knowledge is needed of the implicit features of design, the materials, meanings, and power aspects involved.

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author
; ; ; ; ; ; and
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Ageing, Design practice, Participatory design, Socio-gerontechnology, User involvement
in
Societies
volume
11
issue
2
article number
66
pages
16 pages
publisher
MDPI AG
external identifiers
  • scopus:85109088342
ISSN
2075-4698
DOI
10.3390/soc11020066
language
English
LU publication?
no
additional info
Funding Information: Funding: This research was funded by: Sweden: FORTE (ref. 2017-02301); The Netherlands: ZONMW (Project 9003037411); Spain: MINECO (ref. PCI-2017-080) and Canada: CANADIAN INSTITUTES OF HEALTH RESEARCH (201704MYB-386097).
id
3728610f-b111-4a49-a472-9727a06ecaf6
date added to LUP
2023-12-04 13:32:12
date last changed
2023-12-19 09:38:36
@article{3728610f-b111-4a49-a472-9727a06ecaf6,
  abstract     = {{<p>Involving older people through co-design has become increasingly attractive as an approach to develop technologies for them. However, less attention has been paid to the internal dynamics and localized socio-material arrangements that enact this method in practice. In this paper, we show how the outcomes that can be achieved with user involvement often pertain to learning, but their content can differ significantly based on how the approach is implemented in practice. Combining explorative, qualitative findings from co-design conducted in four countries (Canada, the Netherlands, Spain, and Sweden), we illustrate how different types of learning occurred as design workshops engaged the experiences and skills of older people in different ways. Our findings make visible how learning can be a core outcome of co-design activities with older adults, while raising awareness of the role of the power relations and socio-material arrangements that structure these design practices in particular ways. To benefit from the full wealth of insights that can be learned by involving older people, deeper knowledge is needed of the implicit features of design, the materials, meanings, and power aspects involved.</p>}},
  author       = {{Fischer, Björn and Östlund, Britt and Dalmer, Nicole K. and Rosales, Andrea and Peine, Alexander and Loos, Eugène and Neven, Louis and Marshall, Barbara}},
  issn         = {{2075-4698}},
  keywords     = {{Ageing; Design practice; Participatory design; Socio-gerontechnology; User involvement}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{2}},
  publisher    = {{MDPI AG}},
  series       = {{Societies}},
  title        = {{Co-design as learning : the differences of learning when involving older people in digitalization in four countries}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/soc11020066}},
  doi          = {{10.3390/soc11020066}},
  volume       = {{11}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}