How can technology assist us to age creatively?

Presented by: Dr Jennifer MacRitchie, Senior Research Fellow, The Department of Music

When living with dementia, older adults value non-pharmacological interventions which help them continue doing activities they enjoy, things that hold their interest, as well as tasks that support communication with others and keeping hold of their identity. Participating in music can provide a path to achieving these outcomes, but activities are often limited by traditional tools and devices. Collaborating with researchers across music, psychology and engineering, this research investigates how we can harness emerging technologies to boost opportunities for older adults living with dementia and their carers to interact with music, whether it be listening to music, creating playlists, singing, songwriting, or playing a musical instrument. Jennifer will talk about the advances in design that are revealing new ways to interact with music throughout dementia, and detail plans for current work at Sheffield to co-design new creative technologies.