Adam Felts
Research Associate, MIT AgeLab MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics
- Somerville MA
Adam Felts conducts research on the experiences of family caregivers and the future of financial advice.
MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics
View more experts managed by MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics
Media
Social
Biography
Areas of Expertise
Education
Boston University
MTS
Religion/Religious Studies
2020
Boston University
MFA
Creative Writing
Languages
- English
Media Appearances
Ep.78 – MIT AgeLab’s Research on What’s New With the Caregiving Journey
Seniority Authority online
2024-08-01
In this transformative episode of Seniority Authority, we sit down with Adam Felts, Research Associate at the MIT AgeLab, to dive into the complexities of caregiving in today’s aging society. Adam shares invaluable insights from his groundbreaking research on family caregiving, revealing the challenges and triumphs of those caring for older adults. Together, we explore the implications of our longer life spans on caregiving dynamics and the crucial role of planning and support for caregivers.
Navigating longevity with industry leaders at MIT AgeLab PLAN Forum
MIT News online
2024-05-16
A symposium for financial professionals imagines a new industry around longevity planning.
What does Gen X really want out of work?
Human Resources Director online
2023-09-08
Further, it’s not just expected the midlife experiences of generations past. Gen X faces particular challenges that are unique to only their cohort, according to MIT research associate Adam Felts, co-author of the survey.
Unique MIT suit helps people better understand the aging experience
MIT News online
2023-01-20
Students, researchers, and actors don AGNES for a taste of the friction, frustration, and fatigue that older adults often experience.
Honoring work to support innovation in aging
MIT News online
2022-10-27
MIT AgeLab co-hosts 10th anniversary celebration of Boston Bridge, a longtime collaborator offering development, networking, career growth, and mentorship in the field of aging.
MIT research informs design of new coordination service for family caregivers
MIT News
2022-07-12
Program supports family caregivers with dedicated service coordinators based on learning from MIT's AgeLab.
Research Papers
Middle-Income Americans and Preparing for Longevity
Innovation in AgingLisa D’Ambrosio, Alexa Balmuth, Lauren Cerino, Adam Felts, Niels Wu
2025-12-01
With longer lives, people face greater complexity in financial planning and management. While a range of services and products exist to address the needs of wealthy Americans, there remain significant needs and opportunities to support middle-income Americans in planning for their financial futures. To explore this, an online survey was fielded to a nationwide US sample of adults ages 18+ with household incomes between 50,000 and 200,000. Survey items included people’s financial wellbeing, financial information sources, financial knowledge, and demographic characteristics. Results indicated that people were generally positive about being on the path to meeting their future financial goals, but were less confident about being financially prepared for older age. Most thought that they could be doing a better job of planning for their financial futures.
Factors Impacting Family Caregivers’ Adoption of Digital and AI-Enabled Technologies for Care-Related Tasks
Innovation in AgingNiels Wu, Adam Felts, Alexa Balmuth ,Chaiwoo Lee
2025-12-01
Family caregivers are critical to the delivery of care for older adults, but may experience physical, financial, and emotional strains from the caregiving role. Although existing research has established the capacity for digital technologies to ease these strains, adoption remains limited for some technologies that could support care-related tasks, especially for newer, AI-enabled technologies, indicating a need to explore where caregivers encounter barriers related to usability, cost, availability, or value. In this study, an online questionnaire was fielded to members of the MIT AgeLab’s CareHive Panel, an open membership panel of informal caregivers who either currently provide or formerly provided care to an adult family member. Current caregivers (n = 192) were asked about their reasons for avoidance or cessation of use for four AI-enabled technologies: home monitoring and security systems, digital assistants or smart speakers, medication management platforms or smart dispensers, and health/fitness metric trackers.
Older Adults’ Perspectives on Artificial Intelligence as a Source of Advice
Innovation in AgingLauren Cerino, Adam Felts, Alexa Balmuth, Taylor Brennan
2025-12-01
A large proportion of Americans use generative AI tools to seek information and advice. Prior research suggests that older people are less likely than their younger counterparts to use generative AI (NORC, 2023), but older adults’ attitudes toward AI technologies remain relatively obscure. Drawing on data from a national online survey study of American adults between ages 18 to 96 (N = 1008), this study examines older adults’ experiences with AI and openness to receiving advice from AI-enabled tools. The survey included questions about experiences with AI and using AI-enabled chatbots for general use and advice. Preliminary findings indicate that most older adults had some level of familiarity with AI-enabled technologies, with nearly three-quarters (73.7%) of respondents aged 60 and older at least “a little” familiar. However, fewer (28.3%) in this age group reported having used AI-enabled technology.
