Evaluating Effectiveness of Robot-Assisted Recreation for Older Adults by Speech Analysis

Group activities in aged care facilities have the potential to reduce loneliness associated with the progression of dementia. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of robot-assisted recreation (RAR) in a scenario-based program which is designed for older adults with dementia to gradually become familiar with robots and to have a fun time from start to finish in the program. Specifically, we focused on the speech data during RAR, as well as the pre-recreational and post-recreational interviews. The analysis was based on the facts such as the speech duration, the number of utterances, fundamental frequency of speeches, and speech contents. The results on the enjoyment of RAR suggest that RAR is an appropriate activity to promote communication and improve QoL.