Can robotics-aided care be person-centred? Talk & Film Screening 'Circuits of Care: Ageing and Japan's Robot Revolution'

Prof Naonori Kodate (University College Dublin) and Prof David Prendergast (Maynooth University)

Summary

By 2036, one in three people in Japan will be over the age of 65. While the nation wrestles with a shrinking labour force, the Robot Revolution Initiative was launched to expand robotics into every corner of Japanese economy and society. The session will be kicked off with a short talk from applied social scientist Naonori Kodate, who will share some of his recent research results and set the scene for the film.

The film ‘Circuits of Care’ follows anthropologist David Prendergast as he meets researchers developing and testing assistive technologies for older adults. From cybernetic walking supports to companion robots and automated sensor networks in nursing homes, older adults and care professionals share their experiences of the practical benefits these technologies bring, the problems they create and the unexpected relationships that can blossom.

Can robotics-aided care be person-centred? Talk & Film Screening 'Circuits of Care: Ageing and Japan's Robot Revolution'

Speaker Biographies

David Prendergast is a social anthropologist and Professor of Science, Technology and Society at Maynooth University in Ireland where he was also previously Head of the Department of Design Innovation. David also worked at Intel for eleven years where he was a Principal Investigator at the ‘Technology Research for Independent Living Centre’ and co-founder of the ‘Intel Institute for Sustainable Connected Cities’. He has served as Visiting Professor of Healthcare Innovation at the School of Nursing and Midwifery at Trinity College Dublin. His latest book ‘Aging and the Digital Life Course’ was named a CHOICE ‘Outstanding Academic Title’ by the American Library Association and was described as one of ‘the two most fascinating books on aging in the 21st Century’ by the Huffington Post.

Naonori Kodate is Associate Professor in Social Policy and Social Robotics at University College Dublin and also the founding Director of the UCD Centre for Japanese Studies. He was previously Research Associate at NIHR King's Patient Safety and Service Quality Research Centre, UK. His research covers comparative public policy, and science, technology and society (STS) studies, particularly in the use of eHealth (e.g. assistive robots), patient safety, risk regulation and gender equality in STEM. He is the Principal Investigator of an international research project "Harmonisation towards the establishment of Person-centred, Robotics-aided Care System (HarP: RoCS)", working with teams in Ireland, Japan, Hong Kong SAR and France.

Organiser: SOAS Japan Research Centre

Contact email: centres@soas.ac.uk