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Digital Media Use and Social Inclusion: A Case Study of East York Older Adults

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Vulnerable People and Digital Inclusion

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Abstract

Digital media is essential for sustaining communication with various types of social ties. However, older adults (aged 65+) are reported to be the least likely to use digital media. While statistics show that older adults are increasingly using more digital media, evidence shows this is predominantly aging long-term users of digital media rather than older adults adopting new digital media. To investigate this “grey divide” and adoption of digital media by older adults, this study qualitatively analyses semi-structured interviews of 41 individuals aged 65 and older from the East York region of Toronto, Canada. Our findings suggest that satisfaction with personal digital skill levels and attitudes toward digital media influence the adoption of new digital technology in older adults. Additionally, we discuss the benefits and challenges older adults face when deciding to adopt new digital technologies. Finally, we discuss key implications of this research and provide insights for training and policy development.

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Acknowledgments

This research benefited from financial support from the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada (Grant Number: SSHRC 435-2015-1444). We are grateful to those who have advised and supported us, especially those who transcribed and coded the interviews. Thanks also go to Christian Beermann, Brent Berry, Isioma Elueze, Maria Kicevski, Lilia Smale, Helen Hua Wang, Barry Wellman, and Renwen Alice Zhang. Most of all, we owe immense gratitude to the residents of East York who welcomed us into their homes.

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  1. Western University, London, ON, Canada

    Anabel Quan-Haase, Molly-Gloria Harper & Alice Hwang

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  1. Anabel Quan-Haase
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  2. Molly-Gloria Harper
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Correspondence to Anabel Quan-Haase .

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  1. Media, Communication and Sociology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK

    Panayiota Tsatsou

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Quan-Haase, A., Harper, MG., Hwang, A. (2022). Digital Media Use and Social Inclusion: A Case Study of East York Older Adults. In: Tsatsou, P. (eds) Vulnerable People and Digital Inclusion. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-94122-2_10

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