HMW support Chinese seniors in building a stronger and more connected support system so that they can live happier and healthier lives?

This case study combines work from two first-year masters courses at DSI—Disruptive Design and Mapping Design. Working with Chinese seniors in New York City, we used design research methodologies to understand and address social isolation within the community. Through stakeholder interviews, design probes, and participatory research, we developed insights and recommendations for strengthening support systems among Chinese elderly citizens.

Project Duration:
September 2022 – December 2022

People

Maggie Wong – DSI, Partner

Mari Nakano – DSI, Faculty & Project Advisor

Context:

Asian Pacific Islanders (API) represent the fastest-growing population in NYC, with Chinese immigrants comprising the largest ethnic group at 50% of the API immigrant population. While this community continues to grow, Chinese seniors face unique challenges. With 76% having limited English proficiency and a 30% poverty rate among API immigrant seniors, many struggle with social isolation and inadequate support systems. These challenges have been further amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic and rise in anti-Asian hate crimes.

The Challenge: To understand and map the current landscape of social support among NYC's Chinese senior citizens using design research methodologies.

The need for this research is critical: social isolation among Chinese seniors in NYC is creating a growing health crisis, compounded by language barriers, cultural stigma, and limited access to culturally competent services. While 31% of elderly citizens in NYC live alone, Chinese seniors face additional barriers in accessing support due to linguistic and cultural factors, leading to increased risk of physical and mental health decline.

Project Goals:

Phase 1: Discovery

Our initial research focused on understanding the current landscape of support systems for Chinese seniors in NYC, mapping key stakeholders, and identifying opportunities for deeper investigation.

We mapped out the stakeholders in East Asian seniors’ support system.

Support systems exist in concentric circles, with direct contact decreasing as circles expand outward. We considered:

1. Nuclear family, despite being in an inner circle, isn't always the strongest support due to geographic distance and strained relationships.

2. Community-based connections (volunteers, other seniors, social workers) can provide more consistent daily support than family.

3. Multiple touchpoints exist through institutional staff (church, NGO, library), suggesting opportunity for coordinated support.

4. Student/volunteer connections represent an untapped potential for intergenerational support programs.

Phase 2: Community Engagement

Through carefully designed research tools and methodologies, we sought to understand seniors' perspectives on their community support and well-being. Our approach emphasized cultural sensitivity and language accessibility throughout.

Research Design

We developed two distinct interview protocols - one for service providers and one for seniors. Questions were crafted to encourage storytelling and personal reflection, with Cantonese translations to ensure fluid conversation.

In-Person and Online Interviews

Quote Mapping Process: Using Airtable, we noted down the main quotes from each interview, considering whether they were bright spots or pain points, and why. We also associated each quote with themes that would later assist us in clustering and comparing our findings at the end. To better understand our results, we mapped out our takeaways (right).

Taking into account our interviewees’ backgrounds, this visualization helped us identify clear patterns:

• Business owners reported higher satisfaction and independence

• Retired/unemployed seniors expressed lower satisfaction and independence

• Concerns around lack of English proficiency were present, however the desire to learn was not a priority for the seniors who are able to live fulfilling lives speaking only Chinese

• Strong correlation between family connections and overall well-being

DESIGN PROBE 1:
Community Building Blocks

Purpose: To understand what constitutes a healthy sense of community from seniors' perspectives

Methodology:

• Created a reusable, velcro-based interactive board

• Developed illustrated topic cards in four categories:

  • Relationships

  • Health

  • Physical Spaces

  • Lifestyle/Culture

• Designs must be large enough for seniors to engage with to accommodate for different levels of dexterity

• Seniors ranked topics as: Essential, Important, or Preferred but not necessary

Key Findings

• Relationships emerged as the most frequently cited "necessary" component

• Health-related factors followed closely

• Physical Spaces & Services and Lifestyle & Culture were seen as supplementary

• Clear prioritization pattern emerged in what seniors consider essential for community strength

DESIGN PROBE 2:
Emotional Mapping

Purpose: To understand emotional connections to different aspects of community life

Methodology:

• Selected 12 key topics from Probe 1

• Created color-coded emotion stickers

  • happy

  • excited

  • interested

  • sad

  • nervous

  • angry

  • scared

• Seniors placed stickers to indicate their feelings about each topic

Key Findings

• Highest emotional tension appeared in family and friend relationships

• General satisfaction with NYC community life, despite challenges

• Clear divide between positive experiences with public services versus personal relationships

• Complex emotional responses to family relationships, suggesting area for intervention

Phase 3: Synthesis

Our comprehensive analysis of interviews, design probes, and stakeholder conversations led us to focus on relationships as a key leverage point for supporting Chinese seniors' well-being.

Relationship Analysis

Informed by our insights on seniors’ complex responses to relationships, we built more secondary research that reinforced the vital role of relationships in aging.

Additionally, we went back to our interviews and highlighted all of the responses associated with their relationship states (whether with family or friends).

We identified:

• Seniors maintain aspirations and desire to achieve new goals

• Friendship-building as more actionable intervention point than family relationships

• Giving support to others was associated with the seniors’ well-being, for it demonstrates independence and usefulness to others

• Receiving support also led to greater well-being, except for when received from children, for norms are violated and seniors feel more like a burden.

Program Framework
Based on these insights, we developed a giving-receiving framework for
future programming (right):

Implementation Strategy
We expanded our stakeholder map to identify their specific roles and areas of impact (right).

Moving Forward

Further Research Needs:

• Add blank space on Probe #1 for seniors to suggest additional topics

• Investigate specific meaningful activities

• Research ways to strengthen vital relationships

• Study existing NYCHA senior programs

• Partner with community members who have direct connections to seniors

Service Development:

• Explore DOROT GENuine Connections™ program adaptation for Chinese-speaking seniors

• Pilot connection initiatives at partner organizations

• Develop programs that balance giving and receiving opportunities

Goals:

1. Elevate community awareness of seniors' needs

2. Build deeper roots within East Asian senior community

3. Support senior agency, connection, and care