Challenges in Conversational Agents to support Informal Caregivers of People with Dementia

Abstract

People who have dementia (PwD) experience deteriorating executive functions, in particular their working memory, and therefore find it hard to complete multistep tasks or activities of daily living. There is no doubt that during the pandemic, PwD and their caregivers were particularly vulnerable, often isolated which affected their mental and physical health. Their ability to live independently was hampered, fomenting depression in the PwD and burnout on informal caregivers. Information technology can support dementia care improving the quality of life of PwD and easing the burden on caregivers. There is an increasing demand to support informal caregivers and improve their well-being by making dementia challenges less severe. This study uses qualitative techniques to design a model with technological strategies based on semi-structured interviews applied to seven informal caregivers from two different countries. Based on these interviews we developed design insights for implementing solutions to help informal caregivers take care of their PwD at home using conversational agents. We hope that the findings presented in this study will help researchers, and developers design solutions that can support PwD and informal caregivers.