Work of the home and social relationships as a guide to domestic care for the elderly

Abstract

New technologies might only partially solve the problem of elderly loneliness and social isolation. Ongoing studies analysed by means of a shared perspective promoted by London’s Home Renaissance Foundation (HRF) and Rome’s Bio-Techno-Practice (BTP) offer a theoretical perspective on this issue that could generate effective guidelines for technology design in this area. The stated goal of the present Italian Forum for Ambient Assisted Living (ForItAAL 2016) refers to “an innovative and integrated approach to address the socio-economic challenges of an aging population, and thus ensure the best fruition of products and services”. The vision of HRF is to promote interdisciplinary studies on the home and domestic work, in an effort to create healthy and congenial home environments. Several of these studies address the problem of loneliness and social isolation among aging populations. This research offers a better understanding of the loneliness problem itself as well as more awareness of what thriving homes can offer by way of long-term technological and social solutions for a growing demographic phenomenon. Bio-Techno-Practice (BTP) is a research empowering hub, relying on a renewed philosophy of science recognizing that many constitutive dimensions of the human understanding are simultaneously involved in scientific practice and, conversely, that human practice shapes the direction of scientific investigation (www.biotechnopractice.org/wordpress).