The Pennsylvania State University The Graduate School Department of Information Sciences and Technology SCENARIO-BASED DESIGN OF A DIGITAL REMINISCING SYSTEM FOR OLDER ADULTS A Dissertation in Information Sciences and Technology by Elizabeth Ann Thiry © 2013 Elizabeth Ann Thiry Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy May 2013 The dissertation of Elizabeth Ann Thiry was reviewed and approved* by the following: Mary Beth Rosson Professor of Information Sciences & Technology Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies Dissertation Advisor Chair of Committee John M. Carroll Edward M. Frymoyer Professor of Information Sciences & Technology Erika Poole Assistant Professor of Information Sciences & Technology Matt Kaplan Professor of Agricultural and Extension Education Siân Lindley Researcher – Microsoft Research Cambridge Special Member Madhu Reddy Associate Professor of Information Sciences and Technology Head of the Department of Information Sciences and Technology *Signatures are on file in the Graduate School iii ABSTRACT Reminiscing – “the act or process of recalling the past (Butler, 1963, p. 66)” – is a core activity for any society. Research shows that the desire and tradition for reminiscing can be traced back to early civilizations where the elders of the community were responsible to know and share the history of their community (Butler, 1995; Cruikshank, 1990). However times have changed and the oral tradition of reminiscing has faded into an occasional telling of stories that are heard on special occasions. This points to a clear need for more opportunities to reminisce, and concepts from the field of Computer Mediated Communication (CMC) may help to re-enliven the customs of reminiscing about one’s personal or shared histories. For example many sites allow individuals to share photos (Flickr, Facebook, Photobucket), movies (YouTube), and small details of their daily lives (Facebook, Twitter). However, none of these systems were developed specifically for the support of reminiscence activities, nor do any of them cater to this type of sharing. Previous research has explored systems that allow children and elders to develop oral histories (J. B. Ellis & Bruckman, 2001); that enable community members to construct an online community history (Carroll, Convertino, Farooq, & Rosson, 2011; Carroll, et al., 2009); and that support creation of biographies on DVDs to assist elders with declining memories (K. L. Smith, Crete-Nishihata, Damianakis, Baecker, & Marziali, 2009). However there is still relatively little known about whether and how older adults might want to reminisce in a digital environment, particularly in an era when Web 2.0 has greatly expanded options for content generation and authoring. It is in this context that this study looks at means for digital reminiscing. This research is motivated by two complementary research elements: an interest in the human-computer interaction (HCI) needs and preferences for old adult individuals, and a design research interest in digital tools for reminiscing. To address the unique needs and preferences of this population, I followed a scenario-based design approach to analyze design requirements, iv develop design themes and corresponding prototypes; throughout I used claims analysis to evaluate the hypothetical impacts of key themes in the scenarios (Carroll, 2000, 2002). v TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................. viii LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................... x ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..................................................................................................... xii Chapter 1 Introduction and Motivation .................................................................................... 1 Purpose of Research ......................................................................................................... 1 Thesis Statement and Research Questions ....................................................................... 2 Research Contributions ............................................................................................ 4 Dissertation Overview ...................................................................................................... 4 Chapter 2 Related Work ........................................................................................................... 5 Reminiscing ...................................................................................................................... 5 Psychosocial Development Theory .......................................................................... 9 Self-Presentation Theory .......................................................................................... 10 Continuity Theory .................................................................................................... 11 Limitations of Existing Research on Reminiscence ................................................. 12 Heuristic Model of Reminiscing .............................................................................. 13 HCI Research on Reminiscing ................................................................................. 16 Older Adults ..................................................................................................................... 20 HCI Research on Supporting Older Adults .............................................................. 23 Software Systems for Older Adults .......................................................................... 24 Usability Engineering ....................................................................................................... 26 Requirements Analysis ............................................................................................. 26 Design ....................................................................................................................... 27 Evaluation ................................................................................................................. 27 Chapter 3 Research Approach ................................................................................................. 29 Phase 1: How Are Older Adults Currently Reminiscing? What Technologies Are Older Adults Currently Using? ................................................................................ 31 Phase 2: What Themes for a Digital Reminiscing Tool Can Replicate, Expand Upon, and Enhance the Creation of Personal Legacy Artifacts by Older Adults? ............. 32 Phase 3: What Are the Benefits and Drawbacks of the Design Themes Proposed for the Creation of Digital Personal Legacy Artifacts? ................................................. 33 Chapter 4 Investigating Reminiscing and Technology Used by Older Adults ........................ 34 Interview Study Methods ................................................................................................. 34 General Characteristics of Reminiscing ........................................................................... 42 Reminiscence Events ................................................................................................ 42 Forms of Reminiscing .............................................................................................. 46 vi Audience for Reminiscing ........................................................................................ 49 Reluctances of Reminiscing ..................................................................................... 50 Relating Current Customs to the Heuristic Model of Reminiscing Framework .............. 51 Triggers .................................................................................................................... 51 Mode ......................................................................................................................... 54 Context ..................................................................................................................... 55 Moderators ............................................................................................................... 56 Functions .................................................................................................................. 57 Outcomes .................................................................................................................. 57 Reminiscing Artifacts ....................................................................................................... 58 Artifact Creation ....................................................................................................... 58 Artifact Motivations ................................................................................................. 59 Artifact Organization ................................................................................................ 61 Artifact Audience ..................................................................................................... 62 Inheritance of Artifacts ............................................................................................. 62 Technology Used by Older Adults ................................................................................... 63 Technology is Passing Them By .............................................................................. 64 Simplicity is Key .....................................................................................................