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Google Form I: Demographics, Lifestyle and Status Quo
We created this initial form on May 2nd and sent it out on May 5th. The sampled demographic consists of 17 individuals all above the age 65. All questions revolve around the themes of lifestyle and exercising in order to define the status quo our team was facing.
General Information
70.5% of our respondents are in the 65 to 80 age range and approximately ⅔ of them are male, this aligns with the preset target user (see Fig. 15-16).
Fig. 15. Age Breakdown
Fig. 16. Gender Breakdown
Health, Fitness, and Lifestyle
94% of respondents have or are currently attending therapy sessions. From the latter, they receive exercises to complete at home biweekly, yet ⅔ of patients have difficulty fulfilling the routines.
Responses record that 93.8% of users spend over 6 hours daily at home (excluding a fixed sleeping schedule of 8 hours). ½ of those respondents spend over 10 hours indoors. Amongst these, a huge majority adopts a sitting posture for an average of 4.5 hours.
76.5% of users are reluctant to move to a care home in the short-run (1 to 3 years). This reinforces our assumption that seniors seek freedom and independence, they manifest this willingness by resisting a relocation to a care facility.
Thus, we aim to leverage our users’ willingness to stay at home as a motivation to exercise. As well, our proposed exercises will involve standing up periodically to combat the sitting habits.
For more details on these statistics, see Fig. 17-22.
Fig. 17. Breakdown of People Who Have Been Given Exercises
Fig. 18. Breakdown of How Often People Complete Their Exercises
Fig. 19. Breakdown of People Who Have Trouble Completing Exercises
Fig. 20. Breakdown of Hours at Home Each Day
Fig. 21. Breakdown of Hours Sitting Each Day
Fig. 22. Breakdown of People Thinking about Moving Into a Care Facility
Relationship with Technology
100% of respondents have a smartphone, still 30% of them do not keep the device on them at all times. Amongst the responses, the vast majority (< 90%) has downloaded an app whilst all of them have either used the camera on their phone or facetimed a relative at some point.
Opposing our initial assumptions, our target demographic uses technology with ease, suggesting that an app is a viable solution proposition.
For more details on these statistics, see Fig. 23-27.
Fig. 23. Breakdown of People Who Own a Smartphone
Fig. 24. Breakdown of People Who Keep Smartphone Near Them
Fig. 25. Breakdown of People Who Have Downloaded an App
Fig. 26. Breakdown of People Who Have Used the Phone Camera
Fig. 27. Breakdown of People Who Have Used Video Chat
Intrinsic Motivation Factors
Recall that 94.1% of respondents attended therapy sessions. However, only 41.2% listed ‘Doctor/therapy recommendation’ as a reason for exercising while ¾ of them chose ‘General Health’ followed by ‘Aesthetic and feeling fit’ (35% of users) as their main reasons. This data discrepancy highlights that seniors stop completing the routines assigned by experts. Amongst the most popular reasons for doing so are that exercises become boring (41.7%), repetitive or ‘Would rather do something else’ (66.7%).
When working out, our respondents prefer to focus on stability, cardio, strength and flexibility in this order. This corroborates our assumption that seniors prioritize mitigating falls and their heart health above gaining muscle mass and pliability.
Finally, the answers exemplify that our respondents are content with their current living situation. This implies that seniors exercise to stay fit and in control of their decisions to avoid looking elsewhere for care. Plus, elderly individuals exercise when motivation arises from their inner selves rather than when instructed to do so by professionals.
For more details on these statistics, see Fig. 28-31.
Fig. 28. Breakdown of Why People Do Not Exercise
Fig. 29. Breakdown of What Aspects of Physical Health People Focus Most On
Fig. 30. Breakdown of What Drives People to Pursue Fitness Activities
Fig. 31. Breakdown of How Satisfied People Are With Their Living Situation
Google Form II: Ideation and Concept Specific Questions
After leveraging our answers from Google Form I to gain insight into the target demographic, we assembled and sent out a new survey to evaluate the acceptance, feasibility and weaknesses of our initial design solutions.
Fitness Band
This solution is similar to the FitBit. The idea is a band that straps onto the user’s wrist and reminds them to stand up hourly through a vibration or beeping noise.
Answers revealed that fewer than 30% of respondents do not wear a watch. Amongst the watch users, over ¼ was already using a fitness watch such as the Apple watch and FitBit. Although, as expected, the analog option remained the most popular within the elderly demographic.
To our surprise, 88.3% of seniors answered they would be willing to stand up to a buzz reminder. This struck us as it opposes the previously revealed conclusion that seniors dislike obeying rules. Indeed, this was shown to be the case as patients often stop carrying out therapist recommendations.
For more details on these statistics, see Fig. 32-34.
Fig. 32. Breakdown of Watches People Wear
Fig. 32. Breakdown of People Who Would Wear a Wristband
Fig. 33. Breakdown of People Who Would Stand Up Each Hour if Reminded
Fig. 34. Breakdown of People Who Would Respond to the Wristband
Exercise Together
This proposal consists of an app that connects you with friends, family or even strangers to exercise whilst video calling. The rationale behind this solution was to trigger our user’s competitive nature while making exercise fun and enjoyable with other people.
By examining the answers we noted two points, first, seniors are reluctant to meet new people - regardless of their age. This corroborates the insight made earlier that elderly people are happy with their current lifestyle, thus becoming change-resistant. Additionally, although 76.5% felt comfortable exercising with friends & family, close to 100% of them disinclined video calling with strangers.
Overall, ⅔ of respondents showed little interest in the idea, thus we decided to overlook it in the final design.
For more details on these statistics, see Fig. 35-38.
Fig. 35. Breakdown of People Who Would Feel Motivated to Exercise with Someone Else
Fig. 36. Breakdown of People Who Enjoy Meeting New People
Fig. 37. Breakdown of People Who Would Feel Comfortable Working Out With a Stranger Online
Fig. 38. Breakdown of People Who Would Workout More Using This App
Home Scan
Through Home Scan, we envision a digital plug-in that connects the app to the phone’s camera, enabling the user to garner item-centered exercises by scanning house furniture and miscellaneous objects (staircase, kitchen counter and chair, sofa, bathtub, etc)
In accordance with the earlier discussed response - seniors spend ¾ of their day at home - 82.3% of respondents prefer exercising indoors. As well, close to 90% of users demonstrated curiosity in learning new exercises. Recall that seniors cease completing the therapeutically endorsed exercises over time as these become repetitive and boring. Therefore, Home Scan offers an appealing alternative to be aware of exercises to do within the walls of your house.
For more details on these statistics, see Fig. 39-41.
Fig. 39. Breakdown of Exercises People Know
Fig. 40. Breakdown of People Who Want to Know More At-Home Exercises
Fig. 41. Breakdown of People Who Would Use This App to Exercise Indoors
TV Turn-Off Device
This is the only physical concept that we proposed as determined by the Alternatives Matrix. The device features a mechanical arm that turns off the TV periodically, thus forcing the onlooker to stand up and turn it back on. The idea assimilates the Fitness Band, yet it incorporates an additional incentive for the user.
The reasoning behind a TV related item naturally flows from the survey responses. Indeed, all respondents watch TV for a minimum of 1 hour per day while the average time spent rises up to the 5 hour threshold. Amongst viewers, ⅔ bench watches for 2 consecutive hours between sittings.
Nonetheless, most users were unenthusiastic about the concept. Amidst the short answers, 25% of respondents noted that the device seemed like a pedagogic item for children, thus making them feel embarrassed to set up at home for visitors to see.
For more details on these statistics, see Fig. 42-45.
Fig. 42. Breakdown of Hours People Spend Watching TV Each Day
Fig. 43. Breakdown of Hours People Spend Watching TV In One Sitting
Fig. 44. Breakdown of People Who Would Stand Up When Alerted by the TV
Fig. 45. Breakdown of People Who Would Stand Up Using This Device
Humanoid Figure
The following display features an interface containing a human body with segregated muscle groups. The figure also turns 360º to access the back and shoulder muscles. The idea is for the user to tap any body part where they are experiencing pain or that they want to strengthen. The app will then display an array of exercises associated with the pre tapped muscle.
This solution was well embraced by the respondents, as roughly 90% of them were excited to use it.
For more details on the breakdown, see Fig. 46.
Fig. 46. Breakdown of People Would Who Find This App Useful
Discussion of Results
Last question in Google form II asked respondents to rank the solution proposals.
Both the Workout Buddy and the TV switch were distinctly overlooked. Indeed, seniors seem to reject physical concepts, items that made them exercise through mandates rather than genuine motivation as well as designs incorporating interaction with strangers.
¾ of the sampled pool chose Home Scan as their preferred solution as it provides a fresh alternative that combats the cyclicality attached to routines. The runner-ups were the Stand Up Band and the Humanoid Figure, the latter are simple to use and make up a good liaison between the digital app and the real world through the analog watch.
Overall, our team decided to implement an app that comprises the three best ranked proposals.
For more details on the breakdown, see Fig. 47.
Fig. 47. Breakdown of Solutions People Find Most Useful
Alternatives Matrix
Along with user feedback, we created an Alternatives Matrix to evaluate our designs (see Table 1).
Table 1: Alternatives Matrix
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