‘For older folks like me, these things are over us…’: The challenge of embedding tablet computers in everyday life within a geriatric hospital in Uruguay

Abstract

Much research has focused on the introduction of information and communication technology (ICTs) into the lives of older people, but it has generally understood them as external factors who act as a sort of independent variable that impacts the seniors' lives. There remains a dearth of empirical research into how aging and technology are co-constructed, namely, research that focuses on older people's relationship to technology as a socio-technical network. We therefore contribute to this field by analyzing the development and establishment of a network in a geriatric hospital in Montevideo, Uruguay. Uruguay has been developing a one-tablet computer-per low-income-senior policy since 2015. In this research, we deployed a qualitative ethnographic research comprised of semi-structured interviews, jottings, and field notes where we explore the adoption of tablets within the corresponding actornetwork. Our findings suggest that objectively, not only was the establishment of the sociotechnical network rife with complexities, disruptions, and fissures, but subjectively, seniors in the hospital were heavily influenced by their selfperception of the potentialities of ICTs.

Elderly and their barriers to accepting and learning to use technology: A scoping review

“…When they feel as if they are lacking in the skills to use such technologies, they tend to refrain from even trying to learn as they feel as if it is pointless and does not bring any advantages in their lives, which leads to the next barrier for elderly learning and accepting technology, their perceives and perceptions. Castleton et al (2020), Gallistl et al (2021), andLaMonica et al (2021) reported that the elders that participated in their research stated that they will only adapt and learn to use technological devices when the items can benefit their daily life activities. Studies by Baric et al (2019), Calhoun and Lee (2019), Airola et al (2020), De Regge et al (2020, Gallistl et al (2021), and Zaman et al (2022); on the other hand mentioned how one of the factors that hinder the elderly from accepting technology is due to their perceived trust of the devices.…”

“…D'Onofrio et al (2019) reported that digital inclusion has been found to improve the elders' cognitive, physical and also their mental health, besides also allowing the elders to live a more independent life. In order to enhance digital inclusion, training sessions that emphasize individualized and personalized learning should be widely implemented, as an effort to cater to the elders' specific needs in learning (Betts et al 2019, Castleton et al 2020, LaMonica et al 2021, Martinez & Olsson 2022. Learning collaboratively or in a group setting, as suggested by Cunnah et al (2021), and Martinez & Olsson ( 2022) is one of the efficient methods of activities that could encourage the elders to use technology, also increasing their confidence in using said devices as their social surrounding is also learning with them at the same time.…”

“…According to Li & Luximon (2019), elderly people are often faced with numerous challenges when using technologies that are considered new to them; Blažič et al (2018) reported that general reluctance is one of the challenge factors. Many recent studies are also aware of the many barriers and hindrances that the elders would typically face when adopting new technologies, and what could be done to help and assist them to successfully adopt and use said technologies in their lives (Colombo et al 2018, Vulpe & Crăciun 2019, Castleton et al 2020. As important as it is in selecting strategies to be implemented in elderly education, it is equally crucial to recognize the limitations of the elderly especially in learning in an effort to be able to select suitable strategies to be implemented the in the elderly learning process (Martínez-Alcalá et al 2018).…”

“…This scoping review also hopes to contribute to the ever-growing literature resources in seeking to discover the barriers of the elderly to learning and accepting technology use in their daily lives, and the reason behind their reluctance to do so (Haight et al 2014, Quan-Haase et al 2016, Castleton et al 2020. This current review paper also seeks to provide suggestions and ideas that can be used in developing the digital skills among elderly people, thus making them more capable to use modern devices and being able to carry out daily tasks efficiently with little to no reluctance (Blažič et al 2018).…”