The "acceptance" of ambient assisted living: Developing an alternate methodology to this limited research lens

Abstract

Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) systems integrate stand-alone assistive technologies with smart homes and telehealth. This paper reports on a study that focused on the envisioned impact of AAL systems on the lives of end-users using an alternate research approach. A qualitative design was used and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 older adults in Southwestern British Columbia, Canada. While a high degree of acceptance regarding AAL was found in the present study, the research also discovered that such technologies have the potential to profoundly affect, both positively and negatively, participants meaning and experience of the home environment. These findings suggest that research and development paradigms need to be expanded if our intention is to produce a product that will be accepted and helpful to the end-user. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.