Storytelling games for social connection and reminiscing by older people

随着人们寿命的延长，全球老年人的数量正在增加。这提出了一个日益严重的问题：老年人感到孤独的人数。目前，超过四分之一的65岁以上的成年人被社会孤立。仅在英国，就有100多万老年人一个多月不与朋友、家人或邻居说话，140万人长期孤独。孤独症与痴呆症、心脏病、精神健康状况不佳和早逝的风险增加有关。孤独对公共健康构成的风险解释了为什么解决老年人的孤独问题是英国政府和联合国的一个关键优先事项。我们的项目旨在减少老年人的孤独感，特别是那些社会经济地位低的老年人，以确保设计出一个所有人都能获得的解决方案。我们提出了一种新颖，愉快和参与的方式，让低社会经济地位的老年人在他们的社区内轻松地认识新朋友，并建立和加深与彼此，家人，朋友和更广泛的社会的关系。我们的解决方案特别适用于老年人不得不搬家的情况，通常是由于丧亲之痛、裁员或需要额外的支持或护理需求。我们提出了一个增强现实棋盘游戏，便于讲故事，回忆，捕捉和庆祝生活。这创造了高质量的连接，是一种亲自或远程播放的社交体验。最重要的是，这是一种由老年人自己发起和指导的体验。我们正在与社会经济地位较低的老年人共同设计这款游戏，以确保提供一个方便、低成本和包容性的解决方案。

As people live longer, the number of older adults globally is growing. This presents a growing problem: the number of older adults experiencing loneliness. Currently, over a quarter of adults over 65 are socially isolated. In the UK alone, over a million older adults go more than a month without speaking to friends, family or neighbours, and 1.4 million are chronically lonely. Loneliness is associated with increased risk of dementia, heart disease, poor mental health and early death. The risk loneliness poses to public health explains why addressing loneliness for older adults is a key priority for the UK government and the UN.Our project aims to reduce loneliness in older adults, particularly those of low socioeconomic status (SES), to ensure a solution is designed which is accessible to all. We propose a novel, enjoyable and engaging way for older adults of low SES to get to know new people easily within their community, as well as build and deepen relationships with each other, their families, friends and wider society. Our solution is particularly relevant for when older adults have had to move, often due to bereavement, downsizing or requiring additional support or care needs. We are proposing an augmented reality board game that facilitates storytelling, reminiscing, and capturing and celebrating lives. This creates quality connection and is a social experience played in-person or remotely. Most importantly, this is an experience initiated and directed by older adults themselves. We are co-designing this game with older adults of low socioeconomic status, ensuring an accessible, low cost and inclusive solution.