NCT05178992

Use of Socially Assistive Robots for Long Term Care Older Adults With Cognitive Impairment and Apathy

Impact of a Novel Socially Assistive Robotic Architecture on Engaging Older Adults With Mild Cognitive Impairment, Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementia in Long Term Care Settings

• Status: Completed
• Phase: Phase 1 / Phase 2
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 142 (actual)
• Sponsor: Vanderbilt University · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 65 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

The objective of this study is to demonstrate the impact of a socially assistive robot system on reducing apathy among cognitively impaired older adults residing in long term care facilities. Earlier phases of this project demonstrated the feasibility and acceptability of the robotic system. First, investigators will improve the social robotic interaction architecture through additional software development, enhance its versatility, and make it easy for non-experts to run. Second, 188 participants will be randomized to either usual activity programs at the long term care facility, or the usual activity programs plus the robotic activities. Researchers will examine the effect on apathy and also plan on examining underlying individual and facility factors that influence the impact of the robotic activities.

Conditions

• Alzheimer Disease

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Socially Assistive Robot Activity	Participants will attend two weekly sessions with robot activities. Each session will last 30 minutes. Participants will attend robot sessions for 8 weeks.

Timeline

• Start date: 2021-09-13
• Primary completion: 2025-10-31
• Completion: 2026-01-31
• First posted: 2022-01-05
• Last updated: 2026-02-17

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States