Using Ambient Communication and Social Networking Technologies to Reduce Loneliness of Elders

Online social networks have become part of our everyday lives. However, many elders do not use these networks even though social connections are important for their health and quality of life. To help elders feel more connected to their safety network we have developed an assistive solution based on the elders' requirements that aims at improving their communication and sense of presence. The prototype, consisting of a touch screen device and web services was evaluated in two field trials lasting for 28 weeks in total in Finland and in Austria. In addition to interviews, we used the logged usage data to analyze the user's experience with the system.