We are going to simulate the physical effects of aging to truly step in the shoes of the elderly!!!

Are you going to be at the ACM CHI 2023 and have a general interest towards user experience, interaction design, and ageing? Join our course “Designing the Web for the Aging Population”! We are researchers from the AgeLab at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and travelling to Hamburg, Germany with all our simulation equipment!

It is scheduled to take place in-person in Hamburg, Germany on 25th April 2023 (during the early morning and late morning slots). Sheng-Hung and I are both graduate students at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and student researchers at the MIT AgeLab, this course combines our learnings from the MIT — Integrated Design & Management program and our research at the MIT AgeLab!

Learning Outcomes

• Create unique tools that will act as simulators to help other designers and software engineers. Introduce awareness regarding the abundant career opportunities that exist in the aging space.
• Use web-accessibility guidelines published by the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) to design interfaces that are accessible to the aging population.
• Evaluate existing websites/ applications/ softwares to see if they follow the accessibility guidelines.
• Empathize with the aging population by stepping in their shoes to see how they experience the current versions of the digital interfaces.
• Empathize with the aging population by stepping in their shoes to see how they experience the current versions of the digital interfaces.

Intended Audience

NO prerequisites!

This course is intended for students, researchers, or working professionals who have an interest in the space of user experience, computer science, user research, gerontology, psychology or human factors.

Course Description

C19: Designing the Web for the Aging Population

Do we believe that when we are over the age of 70, we will be able to book a cab and buy groceries online with the same ease as we do today? Do we think older adults are comfortable using technology they are expected to use to perform tasks necessary to function in today’s world? Have you ever wondered why older adults need to click on a touchscreen multiple times in order to successfully complete a task? This course will equip you with the tools you need to empathize with the pain points older adults have while navigating the web as well as brainstorm and apply techniques that can make their experience better.

There is evidence that nearly half of the children born in industrialized economies will live beyond 100 years old. While aging populations are not occurring at the same pace in every nation, nearly all nations are experiencing longer lifespans. There will be one in five people in Africa, Asia, and South America over the age of 60 by 2050. Globally, there may be more adults over 60 than children under 15 by 2047. Among the most marginalized groups, older adults are the fastest growing. Each of us will be a member of this group someday. Participants will be provided with objects that simulate visual impairments and arthritis. These aim to generate empathy to understand how older adults may experience the same websites and interactions differently due to their physical limitations, and will also explore ways in which the current interactions can be made better keeping this population in mind.