{"id":155189,"date":"2026-09-24T10:00:53","date_gmt":"2026-09-24T14:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189///news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189//www.ucf.edu/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189//news/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189//?p=155189"},"modified":"2026-09-16T09:55:37","modified_gmt":"2026-09-16T13:55:37","slug":"ucf-researcher-harnesses-ai-to-help-older-adults-thrive-in-a-tech-driven-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189///news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189//www.ucf.edu/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189//news/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189//ucf-researcher-harnesses-ai-to-help-older-adults-thrive-in-a-tech-driven-world/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189//","title":{"rendered":"Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ Researcher Harnesses AI to Help Older Adults Thrive in a Tech-Driven World"},"content":{"rendered":"
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When Xiayu Summer Chen left home in Canton, China, where she grew up /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2014 first for college in Beijing, then for graduate school in New York City /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2014 she faced a problem familiar to students everywhere: How do you stay close to family from thousands of miles away/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

Her challenge came with an added complication. Chen was raised by her grandparents, who had never used social media or FaceTime./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

So she turned to the technology she knew best: painting. She drew step-by-step instructions showing them how to use both. When her grandmother died during the COVID-19 pandemic, Chen began creating video tutorials her grandfather could watch on his phone./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

She didn/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2019t call it research. It was just what you do for the people you love./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u201cI went from seeing my grandparents as very independent people to watching their functional capacity decrease, and I wanted to do something to help,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u201d says Chen, assistant professor of social work in Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2019s College of Health Professions and Sciences./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

That instinct /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2014 helping people remain independent, safe and connected /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2014 now drives Chen/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2019s research at Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½. She/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2019s using generative artificial intelligence to help older adults and their caregivers navigate an increasingly digital world./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

Approximately 60% of adults age 50 and older feel that technology isn/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2019t designed with their age in mind./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

By 2030, one in five Americans will be 65 or older, outnumbering children under the age of 18 for the first time in history, according to U.S. Census Bureau projections. At the same time, more older adults are adopting new technologies. Yet 60% of adults age 50 and older feel that technology isn/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2019t designed with their age in mind, citing a lack of confidence in their digital skills and concerns about technology/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2019s design, according to AARP/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2019s 2026 Tech Trends and Adults 50-Plus report./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u201cWe are living in the digital era,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u201d Chen says. /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u201cAs we use AI more in our daily activities, we have to provide ways for aging populations to learn and adapt just like everybody else./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u201d/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

Improving Digital Literacy for Older Adults/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

After graduating from New York University in 2019, Chen worked as a patient ambassador at Maimonides Cancer Center. A few months later, COVID-19 hit./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u201cAll of a sudden, our services transitioned from face-to-face to being online, but a lot of my patients were older adults and immigrants who had low digital literacy,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u201d she says./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

Beyond navigating diagnoses and treatments, patients had to learn how to log in to a telehealth portal, order prescriptions and pay their bills. Chen/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2019s job shifted with them, and she spent much of her time walking patients through screens, one click at a time./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u201cThat/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u2019s when it occurred to me to explore the digital divide and help equip older adults with digital literacy,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/u201d she says./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n

Over the past two years, Chen has authored nine journal articles and book chapters examining the digital divide among older adults and the use of technology to address dementia, loneliness and mental health./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/155189/n