Grey Literature

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Browsing Grey Literature by Advisor "Deborah Littlejohn"

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    Promoting Independence for Socially Isolated Seniors
    (05-2022) Stanek Walsh, Casey; Deborah Littlejohn; Helen Armstrong; Jarrett Fuller,
    The number of seniors aged 65 years and older is projected to grow ~150% over the next 40 years to 95 million and comprise nearly 25% of the U.S. population (National Science and Technology Council, 2019). Among the growing senior population, the desire to age-in-place has become more prominent and has gained visibility in healthcare policies and services. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), aging-in-place is the ability to live in one’s own home and community safely, independently, and comfortably, regardless of age, income, or ability level (2009). Gerontechnologists suggest that smart technology is a viable tool for seniors who want to age-in-place, as it can give seniors more confidence in their ability to live alone and at a much lower cost than other alternatives. As society becomes ever more reliant on new technology however, the older population—less likely to know how to manage the technology themselves—is losing access to information and is being excluded from the design of technological advances. Employing human-centered design methods, including personas, storyboarding, rapid visual iteration, and prototyping, this research investigates how the design of a system of assistive interfaces can support independence and address the negative implications of natural aging for aging-in-place individuals experiencing mild cognitive decline and social isolation. It explores scenarios where familiar social engagement strategies (Atchley, 1989), such as prompting shared experiences and observing routine and abnormal behaviors, are integrated into the design of in-home assistive technology. Participatory user workshops will ensure diverse user needs are met and will closely assess and analyze human-interface interactions that facilitate individual well-being and improve user’s confidence level in using assistive devices. The objective is to develop a set of design strategies and guidelines for the development of reciprocal and conversation-based assistive technologies that empower the aging-in-place user.
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    THINKING STATISTICALLY
    (05-2022) Burnham, Lauren; Matthew Peterson; Deborah Littlejohn; Denise Gonzales Crisp
    Statistical literacy, or the ability to understand and interpret data, has become increasingly important to navigating our data-driven society. While many efforts have focused on improving formal learning experiences in statistics, research points towards informal learning outside of the classroom as a crucial component of the general public’s understanding of science and mathematics. This situation presents a rich opportunity to enhance statistical learning for young students through the design of compelling informal learning experiences. Drawing from the framework for statistics and data science education from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, this investigation explores the ways in which a mixed reality museum experience can engage middle school-age learners with the stages of the statistical problem-solving process. The resulting studies consider how the affordances of this environment, such as movement, immersion, and learner-driven experimentation, could encourage statistical question-asking and offer supplements to traditional learning approaches. Experiences which lay a foundation of curiosity towards statistical problem solving hold the potential for enriching the learning process for students beginning to engage with the subject.
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    Virtual Presence: Supporting Collaboration
    (05-2022) Pryor, Eric; Tasheka Arceneaux Sutton; Deborah Littlejohn; Scott Townsend,
    We are in a new age of simple and accessible tools for remote collaboration, but XR applications that enable collaboration are sorely lacking in their implementation of social presence features. Better social representations are needed to make remote collaboration in XR applications feel more natural. This investigation explores visualizations of social presence that break the typical convention of full-body, stylized avatars. The potential of gestural control, and the effects it has on the social aspects of remote collaboration is also explored.