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The “Silver Surfers” of this Millennium – Senior Citizens become Cyberseniors

By IGI Global on Sep 29, 2010
Is there potential for Senior Citizens to catch up with Generation Y in terms of technology use? The potential is there, but what are the current standings?

Well, according to a survey recently conducted by the Pew research center, 21 percent of American adults say they don't use the internet. This means that one fifth of all Americans for one reason or another, are not online. The most intriguing statistic is that a third (roughly 34 percent) of these non-users live in a household with Internet access and family members that do utilize Internet services regularly. Only 31 percent of people 65 or older are on broadband, compared to 80 percent for those 18-to-29 years old.

The results show that the reason many Senior Citizens are not utilizing the Internet is because:
  1. They just don't think the information on the Internet is relevant to their lives (48 percent)
  2. They are uncomfortable with computers (60 percent)
  3. They are not interested in getting online (90 percent)
(Read more: http://techcrunch.com/2010/08/11/pew-fifth-adults-internet/)

So, the overall question is why?

Unlike the younger generations, these seniors who are 60 years of age or older, didn't use computers in the classroom or in their professional lives. This may have had an impact on their desire to utilize them now in their personal lives. As technology becomes a more commonplace for Senior Citizens, they are becoming much more acclimated with all aspects of computing (including social networking, e-mailing, and online research). Many are utilizing the Internet for access to healthcare information.

According to a recent article on www.nydailynews.com seniors are just as active online as the younger generations. They argue that cyberspace isn't just for teens anymore. According to Kathleen Lucadamo, a Daily News Writer, aging New Yorkers (one of which is a 103 year old) are actively attending a virtual senior center where they play cards, take yoga and gab with friends from the comfort of their own homes. (Read more: www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/queens/2010/03/07/2010-03-07_cyberseniors_use_technology_to_see_their_pals.html)

So perhaps it isn't that seniors are reluctant to use technology, but perhaps the technology simply needs to be more user-friendly? Many software companies are launching programs to meet the demands of their more mature consumers. For instance, Fujitsu, a Japanese company, recently released computer systems referred to as the "easy-easy" computer or in Japanese, "Raku-Raku". The PC is specifically designed for easy use by seniors with little prior computing experience. (Read more: www.physorg.com/news199455775.html)

Chester Creek recently released a special line of keyboards for the elderly. The large size keyboards include large print keys that are easy on the eyes. They also provide a tiny mouse that fits comfortably in hands affected by arthritis. (Read more: www.e-accessibility.com/2010/02/computer-keyboards-for-elderly.html).

HP has a Printing Mailbox with Presto Service. This technology is easy to use and requires no experience or knowledge of computers to operate. It allows a person to receive printed messages that friends and family members send via their normal e-mail service. The Presto Service converts the e-mail and photo attachments into easy-to-read color printouts that are automatically delivered to the HP Printing Mailbox on a daily schedule, just like letters. (Read more: www.hp.com/hpinfo/abouthp/accessibility/seniortechnologies.html)

InTouchLink, designed by a Canadian company, is making it easier for seniors to surf the web. It is a fully web-based system that allows seniors who have never used a computer before to simply and easily begin using any computer (PC, Mac or Linux) for internet, email and other uses. It is a clean, intuitive interface that stores and extensively backs up all emails, photo, calendars and favorites on central servicers, removing the fear of many seniors that their systems may break, become corrupted or simply fail. (Read more: www.sync-blog.com/sync/2010/08/canadian-company-making-web-surfing-easier-for-seniors.html).

With companies taking more inventive approaches to cater to the elder demographic, research into both the end-user and engineering aspects is crucial. IGI Global is releasing a unique publication, Intelligent Technologies for Bridging the Grey Digital Divide, that really delves into this type of subject matter. The book (edited by Jeffrey Soar, University of Southern Queensland, Australia; Rick Swindell, Griffith University, Australia; and Philip Tsang, The Open University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong) offers high-quality research with both industry- and practice-related articles in the broad area of intelligent technologies for seniors. Its main focus is to provide insights into current innovation, issues to be resolved, and approaches for widespread adoption so that seniors, their families, and their caregivers are able to enjoy their promised benefits.

According to the editors, "The context for this book is the global surge in the percentages of older people in the populations of almost all countries and the imperative to find creative ways to manage growing demand for services, to manage costs and better support people – consumers, families and careers. Older age confronts all of us in different ways throughout life from the experience of ageing grandparents, the move of our own parents into later stages of life and ultimately our own transition into society's senior citizens. Few people would not want the ageing experience to be better for themselves and subsequent generations than it might have been for our grandparents and parents.

Many will be aware of the way technology has transformed our lives in almost every field. It may come as a surprise to people drawn into arrangements to support elderly parents to find out how little technology is used by the current generation of seniors and many of the aged care providers. Technology has the potential to assist in maintaining active, productive and independent lives, support the care workforce, provide access to health and medical services, facilitate social connectivity and assist in countless other ways such as those explained in this book. For this to happen, researchers may have to look at ageing and at people from a fresh perspective." They continue by stating that, "exciting innovations in intelligent assistive technologies, smart home environments and information systems to support care in home and community settings have been undertaken internationally. Some of these are presented in this book. Much of these approaches are yet to be mainstreamed, that is to be made available to a broader community beyond projects, pilots or limited roll-outs. To achieve this there is still much to be done in research. Issues that need further development include awareness raising, promotion, improving availability and support, developing systems for responding appropriately to the signals from the technology, funding arrangements and new models for providing care that optimize the potential benefits."

Click here for more information on this publication. To learn more about on the rise of cyber-savvy senior citizens, check out the video below:



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NetworkingSocial Sciences and HumanitiesDigital Divide & Developing CountriesHuman Aspects of TechnologySocial Computing

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