Building digital replicas of unpaid carers to better meet community needs: : Exploring the use of Personal Digital Twin (PDT) technology

Humans are social by nature, and high-quality social relationships are vital for human's health and wellbeing. The lack of social relationships and infrequent contacts have been the most addressed challenges to overcome loneliness and social isolation, especially among elderly people (National Academies of Sciences, 2020). In turn, loneliness and social isolation can lead to poor physical and mental health. The high levels of loneliness, low frequency of contact with family and friends, and low levels of participation in community groups can lead to the high risk of dementia and cognitive decline in elderly people (Kuiper et al., 2015). This is a critical problem, given that the world's ageing population is steadily growing and by 2050 the segment of people aged 65 years or older is projected to reach 1.6 billion, which will be 17% of the population worldwide (Fulmer et al., 2020). Thus, how to alleviate loneliness and social isolation in elderly people is a significant technological and societal challenge.