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Available Now: Aging, Technology, and Health Book

Our new edited book, Aging, Technology, and Health is now available!  The book is a collection of contributions from researchers on the leading edge of the topic of using technology for maintaining older adults health and well-being.  The topics range from current to future uses and application of technology.  Here is an exerpt:

Technology has always been used by people of all ages to help manage chronic conditions (e.g., diabetes). However, it is increasingly being used by older adults for a wide range of health-related purposes ranging from maintaining fitness to leading a more engaged life (e.g., maintaining communication). This book will take a problem-centered approach to understanding how different knowledge and methods of human factors is used to examine older adults use of technology for health.
Pak, R., & McLaughlin, A. C. (Eds). (2018). Aging, Health, and Technology. Elsevier.

Technology has been used by people of all ages to help manage their health, from the first branch crafted into a toothbrush to a home glucose monitor for people with diabetes. People over 65 now have many technologies to track everything from activity to diet to medication. Most of these include a social dimension for sharing health information, progress, and goals with loved ones or healthcare providers. However, as is often true with a boom in new technology, these health technologies do not always take into account the ease of use for older adults. For example, smartphones are often the gateway and controller to many health technologies. But the smartphone form factor may not be the optimal choice, merely the most conve- nient. Such usability issues become even more apparent when the user has age- related challenges in vision, hearing, cognition, and movement control.