Understanding the Use of Crisis Informatics Technology among Older Adults Yixuan Zhang, Nurul Suhaimi, Rana Azghandi, Mary Amulya Joseph, Miso Kim, Jacqueline Griffin, Andrea G. Parker Northeastern University (zhang.yixua, suhaimi.n, azghandi.r, joseph.mary, m.kim, ja.griffin, a.parker)@northeastern.edu ABSTRACT or no-notice events. In this paper, we use the following terms Mass emergencies increasingly pose significant threats to hu- interchangeably: emergency (an incident that threatens life, man life, with a disproportionate burden being incurred by property or public health and safety [9]), disaster (a disruption older adults. Research has explored how mobile technology of a normal functioning system (e.g. power, water) that goes can mitigate the effects of mass emergencies. However, less beyond the local capacity to respond [9], and crisis (a situation work has examined how mobile technologies support older in which people are unable to use of normal routine procedures adults during emergencies, considering their unique needs. To and in which stress is created by sudden change [2]). While address this research gap, we interviewed 16 older adults who these terms are defined distinctly, the concepts are clearly had recent experience with an emergency evacuation to under- related—they are undesirable situations that present threats to stand the perceived value of using mobile technology during the community and are often dealt with under uncertainty. emergencies. We found that there was a lack of awareness To mitigate the effects of disasters, prior work has examined and engagement with existing crisis apps. Our findings charac- the design of disaster assistance programs to specifically help terize the ways in which our participants did and did not feel older adults, including through establishing strong connec- crisis informatics tools address human values, including basic tions between older adults and available resources (e.g., gov- needs and esteem needs. We contribute an understanding of ernmental agencies, friends and family) [48] and enhancing how older adults used mobile technology during emergencies personal preparedness [1]. HCI researchers have also turned and their perspectives on how well such tools address human their attention to studying disasters and emergencies, with a values. focus on understanding the role of ICTs in times of crisis—a body of work known as crisis informatics. Crisis informat- Author Keywords ics is an interdisciplinary research area that investigates “the Crisis informatics; older adults; emergencies; human values. interconnectedness of people, organizations, information and technology during crises” [28]. CCS Concepts •Human-centered computing ! Human computer inter- Prior work has argued for the great potential of using action (HCI); Empirical studies in HCI; Empirical studies in ICTs [51]—and in particular social media—to facilitate emer- collaborative and social computing; gency response activities such as information dissemination (e.g., emergency warnings and alerts) [35, 42]. However, while INTRODUCTION researchers have studied the role of crisis informatics tools We are increasingly experiencing disasters and crises, includ- in the general population, there has been less work examin- ing floods, hurricanes, and gas explosions that can have dev- ing how specific populations, such as older adults, use these astating effects on human life [19]. This is particularly true technologies and the particular needs that may arise in these for vulnerable populations such as older adults who are more groups. And yet, technology adoption is growing amongst likely to suffer from mobility, sensory, and cognitive limi- older adults. A 2017 study found that approximately 67% of tations that may impede decision making and taking action older adults in the United States use the Internet and 42% own during crises [29]. Our work examines how Information and smartphones [12]. These trends, together with older adults’ in- Communication Technologies (ICTs) can support older adults creased vulnerability during disasters, necessitate research that during natural-critical events that may threaten people’s lives, explicitly examines the needs and values of older populations across varying scales—for example, large and small, and short during emergency situations. One critical perspective to under- stand is older adults’ feelings about the services provided by emergency preparedness and response resources. For example, Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed coercive measures taken during evacuations can threaten a for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation person’s sense of control and dignity [48], necessitating work on the first page. Copyrights for components of this work owned by others than ACM must be honored. Abstracting with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise, or republish, that examines how to address these fundamental human rights, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific permission and/or a especially in populations where these values are particularly fee. Request permissions from [email protected]. threatened, such as older adults. Despite the particular needs CHI’20, April 25–30, 2020, Honolulu, HI, USA and strengths of ageing populations, little work has examined © 2020 ACM. ISBN 978-1-4503-6708-0/20/04. $15.00 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1145/3313831.3376862 how emergency-focused technologies should be designed to and non-governmental organizations (e.g., Red Cross, etc.) to address salient human values within this demographic (e.g., make better decisions in disaster scenarios and to mitigate the sense of control and dignity). impact of disasters on communities [7, 25, 26]. To address this research gap, our work aims to understand Government authorities at the federal, state, and local lev- perceptions towards crisis apps among older adults. Here we els have used dedicated apps and social media accounts to define crisis apps as mobile apps that provide specific features disseminate information during emergencies (e.g., alert mes- and functions needed during crises, emergencies, or disas- sages, updated crisis status, and evacuation orders) [54]. This ters [55], and older adults as persons aged 65 and over [58]. top-down information flow plays a critical role in crisis infor- Our work seeks to avoid the assumption that crisis apps for matics given that governmental agencies may convey a sense the general public will have the same efficacy amongst older of authority and trust amongst individuals [63]. Of course, adults. Such assumptions can be harmful for vulnerable popu- trust in governmental entities does not exist in all societies or lations by generating systems that disproportionately benefit even across subpopulations and, as such, there is a need for more advantaged groups [72]. This paper reports on our inves- research examining the factors that impact individuals’ trust in tigation of the role technology can play in addressing critical crisis informatics systems. For example, in times of crisis, the human needs, including basic needs (e.g., safety) and esteem inability to verify information sources can serve as a barrier needs (e.g., dignity), for older adults during emergency situa- to acceptance of this information [62, 63, 67]. Beyond issues tions. We conducted a qualitative study with 16 older adults of trust, another challenge with top-down information chan- who had recent experience with an emergency evacuation. Our nels is the unreliability that can occur due to potential system work is guided by the following overarching research ques- failures during disasters and the communication latency of tions: RQ1: How have older adults used crisis apps, which official information [77]. Additionally, the usefulness of some seek to provide help during emergencies, and what are their messages sent by governmental authorities has been ques- perspectives on using such tools in the future? RQ2: To tioned [63]. Our work seeks to expand knowledge regarding what extent do existing crisis apps address older adults’ values the challenges that arise when ICTs are used to disseminate during emergency situations? crisis information in a top-down manner, by investigating older adults’ perspectives on such messaging channels (e.g., those Our findings help characterize older adults’ experiences with enabled by disaster alerting systems). and perspectives on crisis apps that connect individuals with entities providing informational and instrumental resources While top-down information dissemination is a more tradi- during emergency situations. We found that there was a lack of tional approach during disasters, the rise of social media plat- awareness of and engagement with these crisis apps amongst forms such as Facebook and Twitter have enabled rapid in- the participants in our study, though most of them acknowl- formation propagation and collaboration amongst individu- edged the usefulness of crisis informatics technology. Our als in a bottom-up fashion [50, 76]. For example, Vieweg findings also highlight the role of community organizations in and colleagues examined the use of Facebook during and af- providing exposure to crisis informatics technology amongst ter the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting [73] and examined how older adults. Moreover, our findings characterize how well distributed, decentralized problem-solving