Speculating with Older Adults in HCI: A Scoping Review

Paper Title

Speculating with Older Adults in HCI: A Scoping Review

Publication Info

• Topic area: Speculative design methods in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) with older adults.
• Keywords: Speculative design, older adults, participatory design, aging, HCI, design futures, methodological tensions, socio-technical imaginaries, inclusivity, critical design.

Background and Problem

• Problem / challenge: Limited understanding of how speculative design methods are applied with older adults in HCI, including facilitation processes and engagement challenges.
• Significance: Older adults bring unique life experiences and perspectives that can enrich socio-technical imaginaries, but their participation in speculative design is complicated by cognitive, social, and emotional factors.
• Motivation and related work: Speculative design has gained traction in HCI for exploring socio-technical futures, but its application with specific demographics, such as older adults, remains underexplored. Prior work has focused on participatory design and aging but lacks systematic analysis of speculative practices tailored to this group.

Solution

• Proposed approach: Conducting a scoping review of 44 studies to analyze speculative design practices involving older adults, focusing on research objectives, facilitation methods, and participant engagement.
• Novelty:
  1. Comprehensive mapping of speculative design practices with older adults in HCI.
  2. Identification of methodological tensions and opportunities for more inclusive practices.
  3. Insights into older adults’ unique contributions to speculative processes.
• Procedure and key techniques:
  • Followed Arksey and O’Malley’s framework for scoping reviews.
  • Formulated research questions to investigate motivations, facilitation methods, and participant engagement.
  • Screened 1,060 records from ACM Digital Library and HCI journals, resulting in 44 selected studies.
  • Conducted thematic analysis to extract insights on speculative strategies, configuration practices, and methodological tensions.

Results

• Concrete findings:
  • 66% of studies focused on understanding older adults’ perceptions of emerging technologies, while others explored socio-economic issues or sociocultural marginalization.
  • Older adults engaged as responders (63%) or (co-)creators (37%) in speculative activities.
  • Speculative methods included design fiction, provotypes, magic machines, future postcards, and questionable concepts.
• Advantage over baselines:
  • Highlighted older adults’ critical judgment, reinterpretation, and agency in speculative processes.
  • Identified gaps in pre-speculation alignment and post-speculation care.
• Experiments / evaluation:
  • Studies primarily conducted in Western contexts (UK, US, Australia), with limited geographical diversity.
  • Facilitated engagement through strategies like concretizing abstract ideas, disrupting norms, scaffolding understanding, and attending to heterogeneity.
• Limitations and future work:
  • Limited representation of older adults initiating or leading speculative design processes.
  • Need for expanded geographical and cultural diversity in future studies.
  • Calls for pre-speculation alignment and post-speculation interventions to address emotional risks.

Summary

This scoping review analyzed 44 studies on speculative design methods involving older adults in HCI, uncovering methodological rationales, facilitation strategies, and participant engagement patterns. Older adults contributed critical perspectives, reinterpretations, and agency, challenging stereotypes of passivity and technological solutionism. Methodological tensions, such as misalignment, self-consciousness, and post-speculation anxiety, highlight the need for careful facilitation and follow-up care. The findings emphasize the potential of speculative design to reshape aging-related technological discourses and advocate for more inclusive, culturally diverse practices.