Creating supportive environments and enhancing personal perception to bridge the digital divide among older adults

2021 ◽  
Vol 47 (8) ◽  
pp. 339-352
Author(s):  
Sangyoon Han ◽  
Seok In Nam
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Digital Divide ◽  
Supportive Environments

Bridging the Digital Divide for Older Adults via Intergenerational Mentor-Up

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (7) ◽  
pp. 786-795 ◽  
Author(s):  
Othelia Eun-Kyoung Lee ◽  
Do-Hong Kim
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Digital Divide ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Technology Use ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Training Needs ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Ehealth Literacy ◽  
Intergenerational Interaction ◽  
Parallel Fashion

Objectives: The effectiveness of Intergenerational Mentor-Up (IMU), an innovative intervention that engages college students in tutoring older adults, was examined with regard to eHealthy literacy and social isolation. Method: A total of 55 older adults (mean age = 73.82) participated in the six-session IMU tutorials. In this mixed methods study, quantitative and qualitative data were collected in a parallel fashion. Participants were interviewed after participating in the IMU. Results: Older adults presented significant improvement between pre- and postsurveys in various outcomes such as eHealth literacy, technophobia, self-efficacy, and interest in technology. Intergenerational interaction brought about by IMU helped to decrease social isolation among older adults. Qualitative data revealed that individualized training, modifications, adaptations, and intergenerational interactions can decrease their anxiety and boost their confidence. Discussion: Study findings enable the identification of the training needs to help close the digital divide and allow these older adults to reap the benefits of technology use.

scholarly journals Gaming Technology to Support Leisure Activities Among Older Adults

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 559-559
Author(s):  
Walter Boot
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Digital Divide ◽  
Daily Living ◽  
Leisure Activities ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Gaming Technology ◽  
Research And Education

Abstract There has been a great deal of research on technology to support older adults in their performance of Activities and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living. There has been substantially less research, however, on exploring technology solutions that support hobbies and leisure. This is unfortunate, as quality of life and well-being are determined by more than just one’s ability to manage everyday tasks. An overview will be presented of research the Center for Research and Education on Aging and Technology Enhancement (CREATE) has conducted over two decades with the goals of understanding and supporting older adults’ performance of technology-based leisure activities. Many of these studies have involved videogaming, where there exists a substantial age-related digital divide. CREATE has evaluated older adults’ attitudes and game experiences through survey and research studies and has even recorded longitudinal gameplay. How these findings can be applied to support technology-based leisure activities will be expanded upon. Part of a symposium sponsored by Technology and Aging Interest Group.

scholarly journals Bridging the digital divide in older adults: a study from an initiative to inform older adults about new technologies

2015 ◽  
pp. 193 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ya-Huei Wu ◽  
Caitlin Ware ◽  
Souad Damnée ◽  
Hélène Kerhervé ◽  
Anne-Sophie Rigaud
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Digital Divide ◽  
New Technologies

scholarly journals Bridging the digital divide: Older adults’ engagement with online cinema heritage

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 797-811
Author(s):  
Silvia Dibeltulo ◽  
Sarah Culhane ◽  
Daniela Treveri Gennari
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Digital Divide ◽  
Digital Platforms ◽  
Film Exhibition ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Digital World ◽  
Digital Environments ◽  
Use Of Social Media

Abstract Is there a way to ensure older adults can bridge the digital divide and engage with online cultural heritage? How can cinema-going memories encourage cross-generational engagement? This article proposes to address these issues by using the Italian Cinema Audiences research project as a case study, and specifically cinema-going memories as intangible cultural heritage (Ercole et al., 2016, Cinema heritage in Europe: preserving and sharing culture by engaging with film exhibition and audiences. Editorial. Alphaville: Journal of Film and Screen Media, 11(Summer): 1–12. Web. ISSN: 2009-4078). It aims to tackle the difficulty of engaging the older generation with the digital world, by proposing and testing new ways to resolve it. Through a mixed-methods ethnographic approach, this article investigates different strategies: the use of social media platforms; a cross-generational activity involving Historypin, a digital, user-generated archive of crowdsourced historical material; an online dedicated archive built in collaboration with the older adults involved in the project. These different solutions aim not only at increasing digital engagement among older adults, but also at furthering younger generations’ involvement in shared cultural heritage in an online context. By focusing on the memories of cinema-going in 1950s Italy, the article explores the implications of the advantages and disadvantages of these different approaches. It also tests Anja K. Leist’s research findings (2013, Social media use of older adults: a mini-review. Gerontology, 59(4): 378–84) on the key role of moderators (the younger generation) to help novice users (the older generation) in the ‘continuous engagement’ in digital environments. We conclude that in order to bridge the digital divide two components are necessary simultaneously: the creation of digital platforms in which the older generations are both curators and users, and the support of and interaction with younger generations.

Vulnerable populations and misinformation: A mixed-methods approach to underserved older adults’ online information assessment

2020 ◽  
pp. 146144482092504 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyunjin Seo ◽  
Matthew Blomberg ◽  
Darcey Altschwager ◽  
Hong Tien Vu
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Digital Divide ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Source Credibility ◽  
Online Information ◽  
Message Content ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Significant Factors

This study examines how low-income African-American older adults, one of the groups most vulnerable to misinformation online, assess the credibility of online information. In examining this, we conducted both face-to-face interviews and a survey and then analyzed how their digital media use, demographics, self-efficacy, and involvement with particular topics were associated with their credibility assessments of online information. Our results suggest that education and topic involvement are statistically significant factors associated with assessments of message content and source credibility. Moreover, for our respondents, assessments of content credibility, as opposed to those of source credibility, were far more challenging. This research is one of the few studies examining online information credibility assessments made by low-income minority older adults. Theoretical and practical implications of our results are discussed in the context of misinformation, credibility assessment, and the digital divide.

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