Constructing multidimensional personas of older adults based on behavioral, cognitive, and perceptual abilities

Aihui Yang (), Yutian Jia, Xuechun Wang and Hao Fan
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Aihui Yang: Tiangong University
Yutian Jia: Tiangong University
Xuechun Wang: Tiangong University
Hao Fan: Southeast University

Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 2025, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-16

Abstract: Abstract The increasing aging of the population necessitates the design of products that meet the needs of older individuals. Persona is a user-centered design approach often employed to understand a user’s requirements. The primary contribution of this study lies in the proposal of a persona development methodology for older users that is suitable for large-sample and multivariate analyses. By clustering behavioral, cognitive, and perceptual abilities—and alternating between manual screening and the two-step clustering method—34 distinct older user persona clusters were identified from a dataset of 4213 individuals aged 60–90. Each persona cluster was defined on the basis of a combination of demographic characteristics, health conditions, psychological traits, behavioral performance, cognitive and perceptual capabilities, and social background. This framework provides a clear and practical pathway for persona construction, offering a generalizable methodological reference for future studies aiming to develop user personas from other perspectives or on the basis of different user characteristics. The findings of this study can provide a basis for sample selection in design research for older users and offer a fundamental reference for sample characteristics for design decisions that meet the needs of the target user group.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1057/s41599-025-06117-8

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