Conversational agents to improve medication habits among older adults in Mexico

Maribel Valenzuela Beltrán; Marcela D. Rodriguez; Victoria Meza-Kubo; Gilberto Manuel Galindo-Aldana

doi:10.47756/aihc.y11i1.206

Authors

Maribel Valenzuela Beltrán Universidad Autónoma de Baja California https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7723-218X
Marcela D. Rodriguez Universidad Autónoma de Baja California https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6943-7812
Victoria Meza-Kubo Universidad Autónoma de Baja California https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8592-7045
Gilberto Manuel Galindo-Aldana Universidad Autónoma de Baja California https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4192-9911

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.47756/aihc.y11i1.206

Keywords:

Conversational Agents, voice assistant, older adults, medication adherence, persuasive systems

Abstract

This article presents the design and evaluation of a voice-based Conversational Assistance Agent, developed to improve medication adherence in older adults in Mexico through habit formation. Unlike previous works presenting agents focused on educating patients about the importance of medication consistency, our conversational agent implements a behavioral strategy that helps users associate taking their medication with contextual cues from their daily routines. The agent provides personalized reminders and persuasive messages to reinforce consistency. A 25-week evaluation with five older adults showed positive results, with a significant improvement in medication-taking consistency and a strengthening of the habit that persisted even after the agent's assistance was gradually withdrawn, indicating that it did not create dependency.

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