The Simulation of Age-Related Sensory Losses: A New Approach to the Study of Environmental Barriers

Through the use of mechanical appliances to simulate the “normal” sensory losses that often accompany advanced age, the research team repeatedly performed a number of tasks in a dwelling unit, a multi-purpose senior center, and a shopping center, in order to discover and evaluate the nature of environmental barriers faced by the elderly individual. The study revealed specific problems that are encountered when the visual, auditory, olfactory, and tactile senses are impaired. Space organized by these senses functions both as a stimulus and in the orientation of the individual. The simulation model was shown to be valuable as both a research and a training tool.