High Tech, High Touch: Integrating Digital and Human AAL
Advisory Services for Older Adults
Diotima Bertel
1
, Soraia Teles
2,3
, Flora Strohmeier
1
, Pedro Vieira-Marques
3
, Paul Schmitter
4
,
Stefan H. Ruscher
1
, Constança Paúl
2,3
and Andrea Ch. Kofler
4
1
SYNYO GmbH, Otto-Bauer-Gasse 5/14, 1060, Vienna, Austria
2
Institute of Biomedical Sciences Abel Salazar (ICBAS), Department of Behavioral Sciences, University of Porto,
Rua de Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal
3
Center for Health Technology and Services Research (CINTESIS), University of Porto,
Rua Dr. Plácido da Costa, 4200-450, Porto, Portugal
4
Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Reidbach 8820 Waedenswil, Zurich, Switzerland
{paul.schmitter, andrea.kofler}@zhaw.ch, paul@icbas.up.pt
Keywords: Engagement Platforms & Engagement Ecosystem, Digital and Human Advisors, Ambient Assisted Living
(AAL).
Abstract: While Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) solutions have conquered some market niches of service provisions
to the ageing society, those services are often still provided in isolation and in a technocentric way. In this
position paper, we build on the concepts of engagement ecosystems and engagement platforms to argue that
an integration of physical and virtual worlds is necessary for service provisions in the AAL field in general
and in advisory services in particular. We discuss the challenge on how to integrate virtual and physical
dimensions in a solution for stakeholders’ engagement. With a focus on the ‘human touch’, we conceptualize
Active Advisors, embedded in the scope of the EU-funded project ActiveAdvice. We state that the concept
of a human advisor is of utmost relevance in this field due to the digital divide still affecting older age groups.
Active Advisors help to overcome the shortage of most service and product platforms, i.e. lack of
personalization and interaction, and at the same time offer a face-to-face (f2f) experience in the consumer-
organization interactions.
1 INTRODUCTION
The fast advances in the field of Information and
Communication Technologies (ICT) have been
impelling changes in the interactions among
individuals and their environments. From a
consumer-company/organization interaction point of
view, the various touch points have evolved over time
and new technologies have been acting as great
enablers of service innovation (Breidbach and
Maglio, 2015). ICT allows consumers to expect and
receive more service, information and support than
ever before. The experience of new platform
technologies is significantly increasing consumers’
expectations and, at the same time, promoting
consumers empowerment. We are living in a new age
of consumer engagement, which can be defined as the
individual psychological state resulting from the
interactions between a focal engagement subject – the
consumer and an object the organization (Brodie
et al., 2011). Consumers also have demonstrated
willingness to become more active and engaged in the
value creation themselves. Consequently, there is a
demand for a transformation of this value creation in
the society in general, and in the organizations
providing product and/or services in particular. An
important market of service provision for the
contemporary ageing society has been opened for
Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) solutions, targeting
active and healthy ageing in the older adults’
preferred environment. It was previously noticed,
however, that services within this market have been
provided in isolation and often in a technocentric way
(Baldissera and Camarinha-Matos, 2016). Among
others, these factors are likely to contribute to the
current gap between technology development and its
uptake by end users.
Bertel, D., Teles, S., Strohmeier, F., Vieira-Marques, P., Schmitter, P., Ruscher, S., Paúl, C. and Kofler, A.
High Tech, High Touch: Integrating Digital and Human AAL Advisory Services for Older Adults.
DOI: 10.5220/0006799002410249
In Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies for Ageing Well and e-Health (ICT4AWE 2018), pages 241-249
ISBN: 978-989-758-299-8
Copyright
c
2019 by SCITEPRESS – Science and Technology Publications, Lda. All rights reserved
241
In this landscape, we start by pointing out that
organizations providing services in the AAL field
must predominantly act as enablers of engagement
platforms. Only in such capacities can they leverage
individuals’ and groups’ drive to create value for, but
mostly with them. For the implementation of these
engagement platforms, the technological
developments in the last 20 years have been
instrumental by allowing interactions among
stakeholders in virtual environments (Breidbach, et
al., 2014). However, nowadays we have rather
complex service logics to consider, as in most service
sectors the consumer journey is growing in
complexity (Peters et al., 2015). Currently, there are
also trends showing a certain shifting back’ to the
physical, face-to-face (f2f) interaction, which oppose
the very dominant perception of existence of purely
virtual service landscapes, even with emerging good
examples (e.g. Google, Microsoft business cases)
(Breidbach et al., 2014). However, a real, seamless
merger of both physical and virtual worlds in the
service user journey may still be some way off.
Nevertheless, we build on Breidbach et al. (2014)
definition of engagement ecosystems, which
considers both physical and virtual focal actor touch
points, to argue that an integration of real/physical
and virtual worlds is necessary for service provision
in the AAL field. The challenge here, too, is how to
integrate both virtual and physical dimensions in an
optimal solution for stakeholders’ engagement.
Although of relevance for all kind of consumers
throughout a variety of different services, the
mentioned integration seems to assume particular
relevance when older adults are the target audience.
The digital divide still affects this population group
and a preference for f2f contact, usually perceived as
more trustworthy, continues to be shown by this age-
group (Teles et al., 2017). Still, even though often
treated as a homogeneous group, older adults are
heterogeneous with diverse needs and life contexts
raising the need for services that can be personalised.
In observing the ongoing present debates, two key
points of concern emerge: trust, and personalization
in service provision. We argue that the integration of
the two interaction interfaces (physical and virtual),
and of the mechanisms that allow the collaboration
between multiple stakeholders facilitate the trust
building and the degree as well as format of
personalization in service provision in the AAL field.
This paper discusses the challenges of integrating
the different interaction interfaces with respect to the
advisory in the AAL field and takes into
consideration a multi-stakeholder perspective. This is
done by building on the experience and reflexions
emerged in the scope of the EU-funded ActiveAdvice
project, which intends to set up a pan-European
advisory and decision-support platform that brings
together the broad range of available AAL products,
services and stakeholders. We take into consideration
a shift from a purely online interaction to an
integrated logic, in the scope of advisory services
targeted at stakeholders in the AAL ecosystem,
towards the promotion of services and products which
are, at best, context and situation-aware, pro-active,
and adaptive. In line with this, we will discuss the
concept of human advisors, so-called ‘Active
Advisors’, an idea born within the ActiveAdvice
project and reinforced by the insights from user-
centred requirement interviews conducted with
multiple stakeholders (ibid.). These advisors facilitate
the integration of the previously stressed different
interaction interfaces. We argue that, both, human
and digital advisory for older adults on AAL solutions
need to be integrated, as a mean to jointly improve the
user experience (e.g. in terms of trust and
personalization) and promote user empowerment.
Additionally, we reflect on what different kinds of
advice older adults need regarding AAL products and
services. By doing so, we seek to evaluate how advice
is going to be best provided, keeping in mind that we
discuss a field that is highly sensible to external
interference and is by definition individualized, as we
all consider ourselves being and living in unique
situations with very specific needs. We keep in mind
what has been said for other fields. So, e.g. for the
finance and investment domain, Roy (2016) posted:
“I believe digital tools can enhance the advisor-
investor relationship, not end it”. The author
summarizes that technology is not going to replace
the human advice, it will complement it. The next
chapters will discuss the concept as well as the
framework of engagement ecosystems and
engagement platforms. We attempt to answer the
questions of how an engagement ecosystem for AAL
can integrate digital and human advice, what features
need to be guaranteed when providing a service with
both digital and human advice to older adults, as well
as to formal/informal caregivers, governmental
bodies, local authorities and other relevant
stakeholders of the AAL ecosystem.
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2 ENGAGEMENT PLATFORMS
INTEGRATING VIRTUAL AND
REAL ENVIRONMENTS
Ramaswamy and Gouillart (2010) framed
engagement platforms in the virtual sphere as
purpose-built ICT-enabled environments. Breidbach
et al. (2014) proposed an expansion of Ramaswamy’s
definition for engagement platforms by describing:
“physical or virtual focal actor touch points, which
are designed to provide structural support for resource
integration, and that intend to ensure co-creation in
relation to a focal actor or object, in order to enhance
an actors’ [sic] ability to experience engagement with
such focal object” (p. 7). As exemplified by Blasco-
Arcas (2015), engagement platforms can have a
social focus namely in online brand communities
such as Harley-Davidson; or a socially driven
approach to transactions as illustrated by Amazon’s
and Nike’s social commerce platforms. The logical
question to ask, then, is: What features must a
platform have to be qualified as an engagement
platform? Ramaswamy and Gouillart (2010)
characterize engagement platforms through
transparency (visible interactions for a wider
audience), access (user opportunity to integrate
resources), dialogue (exchange of information) and
reflexivity (platform’s adaptability to changes). Other
definitions tend to share this view. Yet, there is
another question to be raised: If at all, to what extent
are the current service platforms in the AAL field
acting as engagement platforms? To kick-start the
discussion on this question, we carried out a search
for and analysis of websites/ portals/platforms that
promote assistive technologies and services for older
adults. In total, we analysed 42 articles along the
topics of (i) studies on AAL user information; (ii)
platforms (discussed & evaluated in
research/studies); (iii) user feedback and social
features; (iv) digital support algorithms; and (v)
authorization process (Kofler et al., 2016). In
addition, a sample of 12 service platforms
1
were
selected to be analysed in detail regarding stakeholder
involvement, interaction and feedback features. We
also looked into whether advice was provided to
customers and if so, how it was conducted (e.g.
personalization). We present key points on interaction
and personalization for compelling engagement
experiences.
1
Of the twelve service platforms under review, three were from
the USA, two from the UK, three from France (one including
The articles analysed illustrated that the
establishment of platforms in the context of
technology promotion for older adults is not a
priority. Less than one third dealt explicitly with the
development and establishment of platforms and
online information portals. None explicitly discussed
a meta-AAL platform, which would be integrating
services, products, and different stakeholders, nor is
there anything like an EU-wide AAL marketing
platform. These are, indeed, some of the gaps the
ActiveAdvice project aims to bridge. However,
among those platforms under review, the promotion
of ICT and/or home care products and services and
the sharing of information could be observed. The key
observation clearly is that most of the platforms target
older adults and their relatives, and thereby attempt to
simple link manufacturers with potential consumer. A
multi-stakeholder perspective is generally missing.
This is especially relevant in the context of AAL, as
such an approach, leading to more collaboration and
coordination among stakeholders, could help
addressing the current challenges on solutions uptake
by its primary end users (Teles et al., 2017).
Secondly, among the twelve platforms, only eight
guarantee immediate or direct feedback. They offer
neither personalised feedback and/or advice nor
interaction in the manner of e.g. a user forum. Thus,
it seems that the main features characterizing
engagement platforms are missing in many service
platforms targeting ICT and ageing well. With respect
to the building up of an engagement platform, we
argue that interactivity and stakeholder involvement
are the key elements to focus on. Guaranteeing
interactivity has, however, been proven to be
challenging, especially when developing a platform
that supports sharing of information, knowhow and
products, as well as building up networks of different
stakeholders. Yet, as previously demonstrated, more
and more people prefer to actively contribute rather
than to only consume information from others in the
online environment (Blasco-Arcas et al., 2016). This
was, indeed, one of the insights emerging from the
requirement interviews carried out within the
ActiveAdvice project, where consumers expressed
interest in becoming more active users as well as
commenters in online environments. The conclusions
presented here are based on 38 interviews carried out
across European Union member states with 12
consumers, 14 businesses and 12 government
representatives (Teles et al., 2017). The more
interactive platforms are, the more likely their users
Belgium), one from Australia, one from Canada and two had a
European scope.
High Tech, High Touch: Integrating Digital and Human AAL Advisory Services for Older Adults
243
become providers of content “in the form of
evaluations, recommendations, opinions,
instructions, facts and experiences“ (Sheng and
Zolfagharian, 2014, p. 467). This kind of engagement
has also been proven to foster empowerment, as
consumers become aware of their roles and influences
(Blasco-Arcas et al., 2016). Thus, the psychological
attachment to an online community can be, indeed, a
strong driving force. Within a community, it is easier
to ask for information, seek advice or obtain feedback
(Kofler et al., 2016). From the consumer perspective,
these interactions are particularly relevant for
empowering them through learning from other
consumers’ experiences and choices. Consumer-to-
consumer (C2C) interaction facilitates the decision-
making process, as it can help diminishing the
overload of information and the effort needed to filter
it, therefore reducing uncertainty and complexity
(Miceli et al., 2007). It seems that advice in form of
contributions and reports by peers is a mean to
generally increase trust in online advice. Hence, in
this landscape, older adults and informal caregivers
themselves have the opportunity to become ‘advisors’
on AAL solutions through experience sharing, thus
upgrading their participation as content consumers to
content generators.
From the user studies conducted
for the ActiveAdvice project, we concluded that a
common expectation from consumers is obtaining
feedback about AAL solutions, preferably by other
end users, offering personal experiences with
products, services and the platform presenting the
solutions. Information on the person giving feedback
is also an important aspect, for evaluating reliability,
usefulness or trustworthiness (Teles et al., 2017).
In our view, within the scope of an ICT-enabled
environment, a platform must also provide multi-
stakeholders’ interaction, including mechanisms for
consumer-to-organization (C2O) and C2C
interaction. These provide stakeholders with the
opportunity to participate, to create content and to
connect, minimizing the drawbacks from lack of
physical engagement and generating more
“compelling engagement experiences” (Ramaswamy,
2009, p. 11; Montgomery and Smith, 2009).
Interaction among stakeholders, thus, is key to reduce
the risk perceived in decision making and, in general
terms, to foster trust in an online environment.
In summary, the platform analysis has shown that
personalised feedback and advice is not yet common.
We previously concluded that personalization is a key
requirement (Teles et al., 2017), and we can conclude
that it’s central for building up an engagement
platform. It enables, first, the consumer recognition
of her particular needs (Füller and Matzler, 2007);
and, if the online platform manages to provide
personalization mechanisms, it both facilitates the
decision-making process and allows consumers to
tailor-make the offer to their needs. We therefore also
need to emphasize ‘democratization’ in the value
creation as a key principle. Finally, multi-stakeholder
platforms facilitate the interaction, the transfer and
the empowering of actors.
3 USERS IN NEED FOR
SUPPORT: CHALLENGES OF
VIRTUAL AND REAL-LIFE
INTERACTION
As online platforms annul the typical f2f interaction,
the user’s acceptance has to be a priority concern of
developers and promoters. Second, what is possible
from a technological point of view and what is
assumed from the developer side must not necessarily
meet the individual user’s needs. Third, “(F)for a
service to be successful it must be provided under
consideration of these criteria: the right good (product
or service), in the right quantity and quality, at the
right time, and the right place for the right customer
at the right price” (Kriegel et al., 2013, p. 78). Overall,
online platforms only at a first glance ease the
interactions. Insights from the ActiveAdvice project
also put in evidence that, in spite of the fact that care
consultancy is more often sought to be found in the
virtual reality, the use of the internet is often reduced
to a first consultancy rather than an ongoing advice.
Indeed, customer engagement with a platform, on a
regular basis, is context dependent, which is of
importance to understand his/her first experiences
and expectations with a platform. Concerning older
adults, research has shown that a fear of losing social
interaction, thus aggravating loneliness, can be
connected to a minor adhesion to online platforms
(Damodaran and Olphert, 2010; Novitzky et al.,
2015; Olphert et al., 2009; Siegel et al., 2014; Teles
et al, 2017). It has been reported that if technologies
are seen as facilitators of new social interactions
rather than replacing mechanisms of human
interactions, this fear of losing social contact can be
at least minimized (Lewin et al., 2010).
Based on a comprehensive, user-centred view of
the constraints and facilitators for interactions in the
virtual worlds, we argue that older adults can benefit
from the integration of digital and human advice on
AAL solutions, as a system that can capitalize the
benefits of both advice formats. Concerning digital
advice, studies have supported, for example, the
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strong impact of virtual agents in the context of
online-shopping, in addressing age related
navigational needs (Rickel and Johnson, 2000).
Moreover, within the context of the ActiveAdvice
project, business representatives stressed the ‘neutral’
nature of digital advice mechanisms when it comes to
guiding a consumer towards the solution fitting
his/her needs. From a digital-human advisory
integration point of view, a first and already stressed
pragmatic argument relies on the fact that the digital
divide still is a well-known challenge affecting older
age groups, albeit in an unbalanced way across
European countries. Contributing factors are poor
ICT skills, fear of both the technology itself and the
learning process, and a lack of financial resources to
purchase devices and internet access (Doyle et al.,
2013; Finn and Wright, 2011; Lewin et al., 2010;
Marschollek et al., 2007; Sanders et al., 2012).
However, it is also accepted that, to a certain extent,
barriers associated with ICT skills will tend to
decrease in future generations (Reginatto, 2012). In
investigating two age cohorts, the digital natives (the
Millennials), and the digital immigrants (the Baby
Boomers), Bart et al. (2005, in Obal and Kunz, 2013,
p. 47) concluded that age is a critical dimension when
it comes to trust on online interactions. Millennials
value time saving, e.g. navigation enabling a quick
search of information, easy findings and shorter
response times. Baby Boomers prefer security of their
personal data. While Millennials appreciate
information about the product and the seller right on
the site, Baby Boomers don’t trust the sellers’
promotional materials and are more likely to look for
consumer feedback (ibid.). It can be expected that, in
a long run, platforms will become increasingly
important. Millennials in particular are used to
participate in virtual communities and in seeking
consultancy with virtual experts. Yet, as the focus of
AAL is on very specific needs, an AAL platform
always will have to assure the bridge between virtual
and real life. However, even if it is demonstrated that
e-services for older adults need to take the potential
impact of generational differences on online trust into
consideration, we want to argue that the ICT uptake
actually depends on the intersection of multiple
factors. These are related with both technology
features and userscharacteristics (e.g. age, gender,
physical or cognitive skills, expectations,
biographical experience) (Nedopil et al., 2013).
Again, we can find very different profiles and
preferences when it comes to service provision to
older adults in the virtual and physical words.
Here is a second argument: besides idiosyncrasies
regarding older adults’ preferences towards both
digital and physical worlds, growing old and being in
need of support is usually a rather local or regional
experience, even if projects generally are carried out
in an international atmosphere. Thus, an interactive,
highly flexible, approved and continuously updated
platform needs to take that into consideration. This is
to be able to support people with very specific needs
in their regional contexts, as well as to give them
access to an international community and knowledge
base. Such complex logic in an optimal service
provision to older adults is probably only achievable
by using the ‘human touch’. In fact, requirement
interviews for the ActiveAdvice project have shown
that in spite of stakeholders’ recognition of high value
of an online advisory platform, both consumers and
business representatives stated that getting advice
online still competes with the f2f experience. For
customers, it is perceived as more trustworthy, while
for companies it is seen as bedrock for consumers to
engage and build a relation with the company (Teles
et al., 2017).
A third argument summarizes what was stated
earlier: An integration of real and virtual
environments in engagement ecosystems enable C2C
interactions. The co-creation of value is thus
facilitated (Breidbach et al., 2014). This, so our fourth
argument, enhances user trust on the services
provided, both advice services or any others. Trust is,
indeed, one of the most critical user/consumer issues
(Cummins et al., 2014), and one of motives for
supporting investments in digital-physical integration
for service provision. In the digital sphere, consumers
need to trust the website, the communication and,
finally, if products are promoted on the website, in the
products themselves. In AAL, trust was shown as a
key attitudinal factor for solutions’ uptake (Olphert et
al., 2009). From the requirement interviews carried
out within the ActiveAdvice project, we drew similar
conclusions and found that trust is, according to the
stakeholders’ point of view, influenced by: the
communication strategy and web-layout; the
perception of neutrality regarding the information
provided and the individuals providing that
information; the perceived quality of that
information; the access to real users’ feedback; and
the perception that feedbacks are ‘fair’, i.e. not
exclusively guided by negative incentives (Teles et
al., 2017). Indeed, the presence of e.g. provider
advice, privacy cues and community features have a
high influence on trust in online platforms (Obal and
Kunz, 2013, p. 48). Overall, we need to take into
consideration that one obstacle for getting health
information online by older adults is the perception
that information available online has low quality, can
High Tech, High Touch: Integrating Digital and Human AAL Advisory Services for Older Adults
245
be biased or misleading, is frequently not run
professionally, doesn’t include peer-reviewed
materials by independent actors, and the selection of
the most reliable and suitable information is
constrained by information overload on health issues
Marschollek et al. (2007). Moreover, data security
and data privacy, ethical and cultural issues as well as
market development and legal regulations are crucial
aspects that need to be considered to foment trust.
In summary, users are confronted with high
complexity, which they hardly know how to manage.
Therefore, knowing how to build-up trust and
identifying the drivers of online trust are key
responsibilities in service provision.
4 INTEGRATION OF HUMAN &
DIGITAL ADVICE – THE
ACTIVEADVICE APPROACH
The arguments exposed above strongly indicate that
a platform for AAL products and services cannot be
a stand-alone solution. Rather, it has to be part of an
integrated and systematic service logic, incorporating
both virtual and physical service logics and
promoting the integration of different actors with
different interests and contributions. As previously
outlined: “People – whether consumers or service
providers are complex agents, with highly diverse
cognitive frameworks, values and attitudes, physical
and emotional needs (...) Service systems are thus
complex to model and manage – but they may also be
resilient and innovative. People can be empowered to
act in non-mechanical ways, responding to
unexpected circumstances and collaborating to solve
problems. They can be linked together in new ways
through new information technology” (Cardoso et al.,
2014, p. 417). In the scope of advisory services on
AAL solutions, we argue for the integration of digital
with human advice. In fact, within the ActiveAdvice
project we conceptualized the human advisor as an
assistant for users helping in informed decision-
making – a human addition to the ICT platform.
Active Advisors are then foreseen to assist
individuals in finding the right solution for their
problem or needs. They are trained and follow a five-
step procedure: (i) They listen to the need and
translate it into a search strategy that complements the
digital advisory component; (ii) they identify
solutions and suppliers and assess their pertinence;
(iii) they assist the individual in making the decision;
(iv) they follow-up on satisfaction and stimulate users
to provide a feedback on the platform; and (v) they
feed the platform with professional feedback or
testimonies.
This human advisor workflow was conceived as
being based on the following dimensions: (i)
Assessment of products and services: the product and
service database include a digital advice component
fed by user and expert feedback; (ii) Training:
offering basic as well as advanced training, covering
the use of the platform and the TAALXONOMY
(Leitner et al., 2015), up to the detailed level, for the
different target groups according to their needs.
Finally, the training should cover the decision-
making process and how to enhance the quality of
decisions, as well as how to create a human network
around the digital community of the platform; (iii)
Code of conduct: using a co-designed code of conduct
as a mean to control and manage the quality of the
interaction between offer and demand, i.e. neutrality,
the compliance with minimum ethical standards,
knowledge of the ActiveAdvice platform (achieved
by following a training), acceptance to follow the
code of conduct including the recording and handling
of complaints, knowledge of the local situation (for
the advisors who include this dimension in their
service); (iv) Quality control, which will ideally be
based on two systems: a user feedback on the
platform, including scoring, and the possibility to
leave comments.
The code of conduct and training are the two
central elements of the accreditation of advisors.
Even when the Active Advisors’ role and workflows
are globally well defined, we consider to be crucial to
discuss who actually should provide advice to
consumers. Here again, trust, as well as the
integration of a multi-stakeholder perspective, are
considered main challenges. Interviews with multiple
stakeholders, when doing the requirements analysis,
brought some interesting inputs. First, the need of
neutrality of the Active Advisor is a shared concern
by older adults and their caregivers, business and
government representatives alike. However, for
business actors, a paradoxical position emerged:
while advice is perceived as being best given by those
who sell a product, it can lead to disruptions in the
neutrality condition though. Therefore, the solution
could be the establishment of older adult panels to test
products and services as well as the platform itself.
Similarly, volunteers could act as advisors on the
platform. Still, because of the complexity and the
many open questions related to human advice and its
importance for older adults, and due to the fact that
different advisor profiles are probable to emerge in
different local realities, the project is being used to
test various profiles. These could include among
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246
others e.g. care professionals involved in the process
of assisting older adults and interested in applying
AAL technologies and services; architects with an
interest in adapting houses for special needs;
individuals from all age groups who act as volunteers
to assist their peers in living longer at home; public
administration services in charge of assisting citizens
in adapting their house or promoting active lifestyles;
and, lastly, suppliers of solutions, including retailers
(e.g. alarm systems, hearing aid) who might become
Active Advisors as an advanced service for their
customers.
5 CONCLUSIONS
In the AAL field, engagement platforms not only
would promote AAL products and services but also
empower stakeholders and facilitate the co-creation
of value. Current service platforms promoting AAL
technologies and supply for older adult health care
services lack in most parts to provide either
personalization and/or interaction opportunities
among stakeholders including C2O and C2C
interaction –, which we consider a strong requirement
for engagement platforms. Moreover, by considering
the complexity characterizing service logics
nowadays, we argue that an engagement ecosystem
for AAL, particularly focusing on advice for AAL
solutions, must integrate both digital and human
advice and physical and virtual engagement
platforms.
Furthermore, we see the shift from a purely online
to an integrated logic as a path to enhance
stakeholders’ trust in advisory services, as well as to
offer those AAL products and services which are at
best suited to the individual context and situation.
With a focus on the ‘human touch’, we
conceptualized the Active Advisors as human agents
providing assistance to users of the ActiveAdvice
platform, in getting familiar with AAL products and
services as well as in becoming part of a respective
AAL online community. Those actors are of utmost
importance due to a lack of personalized information,
noticed when dealing with AAL products and/or
services, and are fundamental for the creation of an
engagement ecosystem. They answer to stakeholders’
preferences for f2f contact, substantiated by the
human interaction role in establishing trusty
consumer-organization relationships. In this
equation, trained and independent human advisors are
required to safeguard trust in advisory services.
Another important issue to take into consideration
is: Are human advisors also capable to reduce the
technology aversion and rejection? The latter is often
linked to the lower experience older adults might
have with technology but also with the idea of
technology substituting human interaction. In linking
technology promoted via an online platform with
human advisory, we in a way oppose the frequently
associated isolation and loneliness fear of older
adults. Human advisors can help to overcome these
fears, can encourage older adults to participate in
digital communities, also with the intent of
minimizing the digital divide, which is still affecting
this age-group. In order to be an adequate
complement to digital advice, those human advisors
will always have to consider the heterogeneous
profiles of older adults. Hence, different requirements
have to be covered in the conceptual approach by
defining tasks, which are adopted by the Active
Advisors, such as the translation of needs into a
search strategy, identification of solutions, decision
support and follow up as well as feedback after the
purchase. Active Advisors must be able to promote
stakeholder involvement, interactivity and trust. In
addition, it definitely is required to define Active
Advisors profiles. For each profile, e.g. for an
architect giving advice or volunteers offering their
help, an understanding of roles, responsibilities and
communication logics need to be further established.
Overall, when it comes to the development of an
integrated system for advice on AAL, we recommend
the promotion of engagement ecosystems where
multiple stakeholders’ profiles evolve together.
Moreover, we favour a symbiotic approach
combining human and digital advisory allowing for
personalised guidance and reduced complexity in
search operations. Feedback and evaluation
mechanisms are a must-have in order to create social
awareness and a sense of community regarding C2O
and C2C interactions. The potentials of human advice
for online engagement platforms on AAL products
and services are, indeed, to be explored and we take
into account different national, if not to say, regional
specifics.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors would like to acknowledge the co-
financing by the European Commission AAL Joint
Programme and the related national agencies in
Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal,
Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
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247
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