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Cited by 128Technology Use by Older AdultsDementia and Cognitive Impairment ResearchAssistive Technology in Communication and Mobility

Studies Involving People With Dementia and Touchscreen Technology: A Literature Review

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Joddrell, Phil, Astell, Arlene J·2016·JMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies
DOI 10.2196/rehab.5788PMC PMC5454556
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Devices using touchscreen interfaces such as tablets and smartphones have been highlighted as potentially suitable for people with dementia due to their intuitive and simple control method. This population experience a lack of meaningful, engaging activities, yet the potential use of the touchscreen format to address this issue has not been fully realized. OBJECTIVE: To identify and synthesize the existing body of literature involving the use of touchscreen technology and people with dementia in order to guide future research in this area. METHODS: A systematized review of studies in the English language was conducted, where a touchscreen interface was used with human participants with dementia. RESULTS: A total of 45 articles met the inclusion criteria. Four questions were addressed concerning (1) the context of use, (2) reasons behind the selection of the technology, (3) details of the hardware and software, and (4) whether independent use by people with dementia was evidenced. CONCLUSIONS: This review presents an emerging body of evidence demonstrating that people with dementia are able to independently use touchscreen technology. The intuitive control method and adaptability of modern devices has driven the selection of this technology in studies. However, its primary use to date has been as a method to deliver assessments and screening tests or to provide an assistive function or cognitive rehabilitation. Building on the finding that people with dementia are able to use touchscreen technology and which design features facilitate this, more use could be made to deliver independent activities for meaningful occupation, entertainment, and fun.

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  • The quality of automatic speech recognition and synthesis is still a technical issue and has room for improvement, whereas touch screen modality is almost stable and positively used by people living with dementia.

    “Unfortunately, our study confirms that the quality of automatic speech recognition and synthesis is still a technical issue and has room for improvement [7-11], whereas touch screen modality is almost stable and positively used by people living with dementia [3,25,26].”

    From Usability and Acceptance of the Embodied Conversational Agent Anne by People with Dementia and their Caregivers: an exploratory study in home environment settings (Preprint) (2020) · cites this paper as [25]

    The Discussion > Conclusions states that people with dementia can independently use touchscreen technology, supporting the claim of positive use. The Results > Independent Use also notes potential performance and stability issues, so the review does not establish that the touchscreen modality is “almost stable.” The speech-recognition and synthesis clause has separate citations and is not attributed to this source. (LLM, conf=0.85)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • The closeness scale analysis showed that Anne was perceived as a companion able to support memory and enjoyment needs.

    “Despite this issue, the closeness scale [22] analysis showed that Anne was perceived as a companion able to support memory and enjoyment needs.”

    From Usability and Acceptance of the Embodied Conversational Agent Anne by People with Dementia and their Caregivers: an exploratory study in home environment settings (Preprint) (2020) · cites this paper as [22]

    The citation is attached to “closeness scale,” but the review’s Results sections do not describe that scale or an analysis of Anne. The Results discuss enjoyment associated with touchscreen use and reminiscence tools; searches for “closeness scale” and “Anne” found no passage supporting the specific claim. (LLM, conf=0.75)

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Authors
Joddrell, P., & Astell, A. J.
Affiliations
University of Sheffield (GB)
Corresponding author
Joddrell, Phil
ORCID
Venue
JMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies
Publisher
JMIR Publications Inc.
Published
2016-11-04
Volume
3
Issue
2
Pages
e10
ISSN
2369-2529 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.2196/rehab.5788
PMC
PMC5454556
OpenAlex
W2548919583
Cited by
128
References
54
Citations by year
2026: 8 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 14 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 10 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 28 · 2019: 26 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 6
FWCI
3.26
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • JMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • White Rose Research Online (University of Leeds, The University of Sheffield, University of York) (acceptedVersion)
  • CentAUR (University of Reading) (acceptedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Demography › Technology Use by Older Adults
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › Occupational Therapy › Assistive Technology in Communication and Mobility
Keywords
dementia, touch screen technology, tablets, smartphones, assistive technology, cognitive rehabilitation, dementia screening, meaningful occupations, older adults

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