We originally planned to recruit 30 people over the course of two years. However, at the time of COVID 19 shutdown in mid March, 2020, nine months into the project, we recruited 24 participants, and completed 20 pretests and 8 post tests. While the future of this project remains uncertain because we are working with older adults, who are the most vulnerable to the current pandemic, we hope to continue this study in the near future.
The average of our participants was 73.11 (62~89yrs.) with varied income levels. They lived in various housing types including single detached houses (9), rental apartments (3), condominiums (4), and Townhomes (1).
We conducted interviews with older adults in their home to explore housing accessibility and its related health issues such as their functional independence, satisfaction with their daily activities, psychological well-being, sedentary behaviors and acute stress responses in conducting daily activities. The measurement was done through 4~5 intensive interview visits per participant, which scheduled between before and after home modifications.
We used multiple data collection methods. The biomarkers and movement data were collected through a wristband. This dataset included heart rate, inter-beat intervals electrodermal activity (EDR), 3-axis accelerometer, and skin temperature. Some of these data was used to arrive at sedentary behavior and acute stress responses of our participants. Their homes were scanned using LiDAR. The LiDAR scanner provided both depth and color, which then were stitched together to create a 3D reconstruction of the entire house. Home accessibility scores were collected by two members of the research team, who are trained in home assessment using two established tools called Housing Enabler (HE) and In-Home Occupational Performance Evaluation (I-HOPE).
