Feasibility, acceptance, and impact of socially assistive robots in non-drug interventions with people with dementia: A scoping review
Catharina Wasić MSc*, Anna Pendergrass PhD, Hans-Joachim Böhme PhD, Frank Bahrmann Dip, Elmar Graessel PhD
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AbstractBackground: With increasing research on robotics, socially assistive robots may broaden potential forms of non-drug interventions for the increasing numbers of people with cognitive impairments. Existing reviews have concentrated on one robot, one intervention, or one outcome only. With this paper, we attempt to gain an overarching perspective on different types of socially assistive robots in various non-drug interventions, and their feasibility, acceptance, and impact.
Objective: We conducted a scoping review of research on socially assistive robots used in non-drug interventions for people with dementia (PwDs) or people with mild cognitive impairment (PwMCIs) to determine whether the use of robots is feasible, accepted, and yields a positive impact on the attendees.
Methods: We used the online databases PubMed, CINAHL, and IEEE Xplore to identify relevant studies published up to the end of 2018. To be included, studies had to involve PwDs/PwMCIs and deploy a robot in a non-drug intervention. Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) structures were excluded.
Results: This review included a total of 70 records with 21 different robots (12 animaloids, 4 humanoids, 5 mechanoids). The findings indicated that feasibility is a necessity for acceptance, which in turn is a necessity to generate an impact. Robots are feasible as long as they function and as long as non-cognitive symptoms (e.g. agitation) do not get in the way of conducting the intervention. Results for acceptance were mixed, but generally, PwDs and PwMCIs were interested in interacting with the robots. No coherent positive impacts other than increased communication, engagement, and pleasure were found. Neither cognitive nor other non-cognitive symptoms of PwD/PwMCI were significantly positively influenced by controlled studies.
Conclusions: Firstly, more research should focus on feasibility and acceptance. Secondly, studies examining possible impacts need to be better structured and comparable.Keywords: Review [MeSH], dementia [MeSH], cognitive dysfunction [MeSH], robotics [MeSH], non-drug intervention
Catharina Wasić MSc*, Anna Pendergrass PhD, Hans-Joachim Böhme PhD, Frank Bahrmann Dip, Elmar Graessel PhD (2020). Feasibility, acceptance, and impact of socially assistive robots in non-drug interventions with people with dementia: A scoping review. Gerontechnology, 20(1), 1-25
https://doi.org/10.4017/gt.2020.20.1.415.11