Wageningen University & Research (External organisation)

Van Gorp, P. (Advisor)

Information Systems IE&IS

Activity: Membership types › Membership of jury › Scientific

Description

PhD Committee/Jury Member PhD Defense Lean Kramer

Meet the peer and the cook: Design and evaluation of persuasive Embodied Conversational Agents to support healthy ageing

Abstract: The ageing of the global population is the most important medical and social demographic problem worldwide. Promoting health among older adults, especially regarding nutrition and loneliness, can contribute to an increase in healthy life years and life expectancy. eHealth services can be used as a tool to promote health. However, they are often not tailored and persuasive enough to be effective in changing lifestyle behaviors. Because all individuals have different needs and preferences, it is essential to understand what works for whom and why. Only then can effective eHealth tools be offered that, combined, support the health and the well-being of people in older age. This dissertation focused on a specific tool: the Embodied Conversational Agent (ECA). The aim was to provide insight into how to design and evaluate ECAs that support healthy living. Through a series of studies (co-design sessions with older adults, qualitative experiments, and an evaluation), we identified the different factors that explain ECAs potential success for healthy ageing.

Period	26 Nov 2021
Held at	Wageningen University & Research, Netherlands

Keywords

coaching
mHealth
conversational agents

Documents & Links

The ageing of the global population is the most important medical and social demographic problem worldwide. Promoting health among older adults, especially regarding nutrition and loneliness, can contribute to an increase in healthy life years and life expectancy. eHealth services can be used as a tool to promote health. However, they are often not tailored and persuasive enough to be effective in changing lifestyle behaviors. Because all individuals have different needs and preferences, it is essential to understand what works for whom and why. Only then can effective eHealth tools be offered that, combined, support the health and the well-being of people in older age. This dissertation focused on a specific tool: the Embodied Conversational Agent (ECA). The aim was to provide insight into how to design and evaluate ECAs that support healthy living. Through a series of studies (co-design sessions with older adults, qualitative experiments, and an evaluation), we identified the different factors that explain ECAs potential success for healthy ageing.