Professionals such as gerontologists play an important role in the design, development and implementation of age-friendly services. and products, by using working methods and principles of co-creation. A Dutch undergraduate applied gerontology programme aims to train students in the why, how and what of co-creation. The degree to which students are intrinsically motivated to develop competencies depends on how their psychological needs are met. These needs are autonomy, an awareness of competence and a sense of relatedness, as described in the self-determination theory. To nurture the intrinsic motivation of the applied gerontology students, a realistic, powerful learning environment called the Living Lab Applied Gerontology was designed and implemented. The aim of this paper is to present the design of this powerful learning environment and to discuss its value for nurturing the students' intrinsic motivation for co-creation. Based on a focus group with eight students, we identify directions for further research and development of living labs.
Keywords: Gerontological competencies; cocreation; living lab; older adults; self-determination theory.