LiveNature

Abstract

The wellbeing of people with dementia in long-term care facilities is hindered, as they spend most of their time alone with little engagement in meaningful activities and an absence of pleasant sensory stimulation. We designed an interactive system called LiveNature that adopts a novel combined approach involving an ambient display unit and an interactive robotic sheep, to offer long-term access and to engage people with dementia in long-term care facilities in rewarding experiences. LiveNature aims to provide holistic multi-sensory engagement to provoke positive emotions, increase social bonding, and restore attentiveness and communication. The design was implemented within a Dutch nursing home. An evaluation of the user experience and the effectiveness of the design was conducted in a real-life setting with nine participants, five family members, two caregivers and four volunteers, using observational rating scales and semi-structured interviews. The results of the rating scales and the findings from qualitative data showed evidence of enhanced positive engagement.