Design for people living with dementia: Considerations and Qualities for Technology and Design1

The number of older adults in our society is increasing sharply due to the double “greying” of our western society, meaning that people live longer and that we have a relatively large cohort – the baby-boom generation – that is getting older. With this, the number of people with dementia increases globally too, with around 50 million people worldwide, projected to grow to double that amount in 2050 (Patterson et al., 2018). People with dementia experience progressive challenges related to memory, reasoning, language, orientation, and motor abilities, and need care support. This causes pressure on our care system and increases the pressure on informal and formal caregivers (Etters, Goodall, and Harrison, 2008). Unfortunately, there is no cure for dementia, and one is not expected anytime soon. Therefore, social interventions, non-pharmaceutical interventions, specific services, and technologies are important to provide support and relief in the lives of people living with dementia, their families, and caregivers.