Natalija Rebrica Miholič successfully defended her doctoral dissertation

Natalija Rebrica Miholič, who, as a young researcher, completed her training at the Centre for Social Informatics at the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana, between 2019 and 2024, successfully defended her doctoral dissertation titled “The awareness factors of smart technologies for independent living at home among individuals in an aging society” on Friday, September 4, 2026.

In her dissertation, Dr. Rebrica Miholič addresses the gap between the rapid technological development of smart technologies for independent living at home (STILH) and the slow adoption of these technologies among older adults. She notes that the source of this gap can also be found in the low level of awareness regarding the existence of such technologies; therefore, the goal of the dissertation is to identify which factors determine STILH awareness among older adults. To this end, Dr. Rebrica Miholič develops an integrative conceptual model, in which she identifies the factors shaping the awareness of various types of STILH. The empirical validation of the model, presented in her dissertation, confirms the theoretical assumptions. Therefore, the results of her research can serve as a strong foothold for future studies in this research field and offer valuable insights for improving STILH awareness and mainstreaming their adoption among older adults.

The dissertation was written as part of the interdisciplinary doctoral programme in Humanities and Social Sciences in the field of Social Informatics, carried out by the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana. The dissertation was financed by the "Young Researchers" programme. The work was done under the mentorship of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Andraž Petrovčič and Doc. Dr. Urška Tuškej Lovšin. The doctoral student's supervisory committee consisted of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vesna Dolničar, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mateja Kos Koklič, and Prof. Dr. Walter R. Boot.