Developing age-friendly spaces through a gerontechnological lens: a systemic framework based on FDM-DANP analysis

TL;DR

This paper introduces a systematic framework for designing age-friendly spaces using Gerontechnology, emphasizing fault-tolerant design and environmental comfort.

Contribution

The study presents a novel two-stage framework combining FDM and DANP to identify and quantify key factors in integrating Gerontechnology into spatial design.

Findings

Fault-tolerant spatial configuration (C10) was the most important factor with a global weight of 26.42%.

Comfortable ambient temperature (C9) had a global weight of 7.18% under 'Living Space'.

Gerontechnology Application showed a primary driving effect in the causal network.

Abstract

With the acceleration of population aging and the spread of smart technologies, integrating Gerontechnology with spatial design has become an urgent challenge. Although previous studies have examined technology acceptance and environmental adaptation, they have lacked a systematic framework to capture multiple dimensions and their interdependencies with empirical evidence. This study proposes a two-stage integrated framework that combines the Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM) and the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory-based Analytic Network Process (DANP) to identify and quantify the key factors and causal structures of integrating Gerontechnology into spatial design. This study utilized FDM to screen out 15 key indicators. The DANP results show that within “Age-Friendly Design,” C10: Fault-tolerant spatial configuration received the highest weight (global weight 26.42%), followed by C9: Comfortable ambient temperature under “Living Space” (7.18%). These findings highlight the central role of fault-tolerant spatial configuration and environmental comfort in the integrated framework. In DANP, the consensus index of experts for all dimensions exceeded 95%, confirming the robustness of the findings. In addition, the DEMATEL results reveal that Gerontechnology Application has a primary driving effect on other dimensions and elements in the causal network, showing its key role in system integration. These findings provide policymakers and practitioners with clear references for prioritization and spatial planning, and also offer actionable decision support for smart spatial strategies and cross-sector collaboration in the context of healthy aging.

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