Abstract
Active Assisted Living (AAL) solutions intend to contribute to an improvement of the quality of life in older age. While numerous national and transnational projects developing different kinds of AAL technology have been carried out, we still only know little about the actual effects of these solutions on quality of life and what causes them. This article therefore presents the qualitative results of a pilot study, in which 44 older adults in North and South Tyrol were equipped with an interoper-able set of AAL safety solutions as well as smart home technologies for six months. We interviewed the test users in their homes prior to installation as well as during and after the test phase using semi-structured interview guidelines. The findings show that the solution bundle mainly affects the users’ subjective safety feeling by providing access to emergency services via active alerting and passive monitoring logics. This leads to a feeling of reassurance and peace of mind for both, the primary technology users as well as their caring relatives. In a sub-sample of the test users, those psychological effects triggered an increase of functional independence by enabling and supporting their daily mobility as well as social participation. The results of the study provide a valuable basis for the elab-oration of a causal quality of life effects model in relation to AAL. More research using quantitative methods and larger sample sizes is needed to investigate the effects of AAL technology on the quality of life of older adults.