Co-creation models enhance arts-health practices for older adults

Why It Matters

This research highlights the critical role of user involvement in developing services for aging populations. By shifting from a provider-centric to a co-creative approach, designers can foster more meaningful engagement and better outcomes, respecting the lived experiences and creativity of older adults.

Key Finding

Older adults should be actively involved as creative partners in arts-health programs, as this collaboration leads to better integration of practices and improved care outcomes. The study proposes models to structure this co-creation process.

Key Findings

• Older adults can be active partners in arts-health practices, utilizing their late-life creativity.
• Improved dynamics in collaborative and mutual learning processes enhance the integration of new practices.
• Three central stages of developing arts-health practices were identified.
• Two theoretical models were proposed to support collaborative partnerships.

Research Evidence

Aim: To develop theoretical models that support collaborative partnerships in arts-health practices for older adults, aiming to improve care provisions and community life.

Method: Qualitative research using narrative interviews.

Procedure: Conducted narrative interviews with stakeholders involved in arts-health practices for older adults in Finland and South Korea to gather empirical perspectives on co-producing and co-delivering these practices.

Context: Arts-health practices for older adults in healthcare and community settings.

Design Principle

Embrace co-creation: Involve end-users as active partners in the design and delivery of solutions to ensure relevance and effectiveness.

How to Apply

When designing any service or product for older adults, establish mechanisms for them to contribute creatively and collaboratively from the initial concept through to the final delivery and evaluation.

Limitations

The study's findings are based on a specific cultural context (Finland and South Korea) and may not be universally applicable without adaptation.

Student Guide (IB Design Technology)

Simple Explanation: When you design things for older people, it's best to work *with* them, not just *for* them. Let them help create and deliver the activities, because their ideas and creativity are valuable.

Why This Matters: Understanding how to effectively collaborate with users, especially older adults, is crucial for creating designs that are not only functional but also meaningful and impactful in their lives.

Critical Thinking: How might the proposed co-creation models be adapted for different cultural contexts or for user groups with varying levels of mobility or cognitive ability?

IA-Ready Paragraph: This research supports a user-centered design approach by demonstrating that involving older adults as active co-creators in arts-health practices leads to more effective and holistic outcomes. The study's findings suggest that empowering users to contribute their creativity and lived experiences throughout the design and delivery process is essential for developing relevant and impactful services for aging populations.

Project Tips

• Involve older adults in your design process through workshops, interviews, or co-design sessions.
• Consider how your design can empower older adults to be active participants rather than passive consumers.

How to Use in IA

• Reference this study when justifying the use of participatory design methods or user involvement strategies in your design project.
• Use the identified stages of arts-health practice development as a potential framework for your own project's development process.

Examiner Tips

• Demonstrate a clear understanding of user-centered design principles by showing how user feedback directly influenced design decisions.
• Show evidence of genuine collaboration with target users, not just superficial consultation.

Independent Variable: ["Involvement of older adults as active partners (co-creation)","Collaborative learning processes"]

Dependent Variable: ["Effectiveness of arts-health practices","Holistic care provisions","Integration of new practices","Community life for aging people"]

Controlled Variables: ["Cultural context (Finland, South Korea)","Specific arts-health practices being studied"]

Strengths

• Focuses on empirical perspectives from multiple stakeholders.
• Proposes theoretical models for practical application.
• Addresses a growing area of interest in aging studies.

Critical Questions

• What are the potential challenges in implementing co-creation models with older adults, and how can they be mitigated?
• How can the success of these co-created arts-health practices be objectively measured?

Extended Essay Application

• Investigate the effectiveness of co-design workshops with older adults for developing assistive technologies.
• Explore how to foster collaborative partnerships between designers and elderly users in the creation of accessible digital platforms.

Source

Theoretical Models of Collaborative Partnerships in Arts-Health Care Practices for Older Adults · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · 2023 · 10.3390/ijerph20196888