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0 The Elderly and the Information Age

Exploring the use of Internet as a gateway to Information Systems

Dhruv Sharma

ABSTRACT According to the Office of National Statistics, UK, It has been estimated that by 2034, 23 percent of the total population would be aged 65 years and above. Therefore it is very important to understand how elderly perceive and use technology in order to be able to meet their needs as they are going to constitute a major section of the consumer segment in future. In this increasingly online world, the elderly have remained somewhat apprehensive about adopting Internet thereby keeping them unexposed to a variety of useful Information Systems (IS). This paper reviews key literatures relevant to this area and argues that IS research should become more multidisciplinary and look at social capital, more direct engagement with the end-users (through sense making) and replicate their real-life experiences digitally to motivate them.

Introduction When was the last time you walked into a Bank? Did the people in the Bank recognize you? How did you feel? These questions might force an avid Internet user to struggle a bit in finding suitable answers. Similarly if you ask an elderly person about their experience with Internet Banking, he / she might struggle as well but in a totally different way. According to OReilly, the Internet to the elderly is little more than a word of vague meaning (OReilly, 2008). He argues that the Internet has all the features that should make it attractive to the elderly. For instance it negates the challenge of mobility transactions can be carried out from home, which is a relatively safe environment and majority of shopping can be done through a few clicks alone. But a closer look at their uptake of information technology says otherwise. If estimates from UKs Office of National Statistics are to be believed, then the population aged 65 years and over has increased from 15 per cent to 16 percent in the 25 years between 1984 and 2009. This increase represents an additional 1.7 million people. This trend combined with a decline in the percentage of population aged less than 16 years from 21 percent to 19 percent means that there would be an unprecedented number of people aged 65 years and over living in the UK. It has been estimated that by 2034, 23 percent of the total population would be aged 65 years and above. Therefore it is very important to understand how elderly perceive and use technology in order to be able to meet their needs as they are going to constitute a major section of the consumer segment in future. This paper attempts to understand how the elderly perceive and use information technology mainly the Internet. The Internet is like a gateway to Information Systems for the elderly. It is vitally important to understand their perception of the Internet because it serves as a benchmark for other technologies and Information Systems for them. In this paper, it has been done through a comprehensive review of literature in order to understand the theoretical background and to identify gaps that can be researched further. The first section of this report identifies key literature and provides a theoretical setting. Then the report compares and contrasts the literature forming a rich discussion around how different scholars perceive the issue. The final section talks about key findings from the review and conclusions including the key knowledge gaps that can form the basis of future research work. Identifying Literature Ageing Even before we begin to discuss the uptake of technology amongst the elderly people, we first have to understand ageing as a phenomenon. In their work on

participation of elderly users in online user created content services, Ryu et al argued that majority of research on ageing, adoption of technologies etc. uses chronological age as a variable because it is easily measurable (Ryu et al., 2009). This may not be the right approach to understand ageing because chronological age may have little or no importance in the meaning of old-age (Gorman, 1999). Bowen and Atwood have defined ageing as an accumulation of changes in a person over time (Bowen and Atwood, 2004). Therefore the changes are more important than the number that represents a persons age because ageing is a continuous and highly complex process (Mathur and Moschis, 2005, Moschis, 1992). Ageing can be bio-physical (sensory, intellectual depletion etc.) or psychosocial (psychological and social perception) (Moschis, 1992). Age-related changes in vision, hearing and motor changes can directly influence the ability to interact with computers (Van de Watering, 2005). Many researchers have studied the effects of age related minor impairments that can form a major disability as an accumulation in an individual (Dickinson et al., 2003). Zajicek points out that with increasing age, peoples learning capability is generally affected due to deterioration in learning skills. This is the main reason for difficulties in using computers for older people. Also Zajiceks Age Associated Memory Impairment (AAMI) research demonstrates that it mostly affects fluid memory (StuartHamilton and Rabbitt, 1997) defined as the ability to solve problems for which there are no solutions derivable from formal training or cultural practices. Zajicek states that it is the fluid memory as opposed to fixed/crystallized memory (knowledge and skill) that is required for learning the use of computers (Zajicek, 2001). Previous studies In their study of technology adoption amongst the elderly, Ryu et al have categorized the previous studies as (1) the adoption of traditional technologies (such as automatic teller machines, electronic fund transfers, etc.), and (2) the adoption of online-based information systems (ISs) or innovative information and communication technologies (ICTs) (Ryu et al., 2009). In 1985 Gilly and Zeithami argued that even though elderly people are stereotypically seen as being resistant to change, perceived ease of use can encourage them to adopt new technologies especially through direct engagement with them (Gilly and Zeithaml, 1985). Other researchers have delineated several barriers to computer adoption and use amongst the elderly such as (1) the relevance of computer technology to elderly people, (2) experience in computer use, (3) income and education, (4) anxiety and gender differences (Van de Watering, 2005, Dyck and Smither, 1996, Smither and Braun, 1994).

On the other hand, Hirsch et al argue that the social environment of the elderly is somewhat underrated in research and mostly cognitive, physical and sensory aspects dominate existing research of this kind (Hirsch et al., 2000). Blit-Cohen et al have emphasized the ongoing debate on whether this type of communication can enhance the social capital (Blit-Cohen and Litwin, 2004). Similarly, Mathur highlighted the role of socialization agents such as grandchildren who act as key influencers in adoption of technology amongst elderly. According to Mathur, they trigger awareness, interest as well as help in trial and adoption of technology (Mathur, 1999). Theory Here we will look at 2 key theoretical frameworks Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Motivational Theory (MT) to understand two of the most popular (related) theories in Information System (IS) adoption. TAM is one of the most well known theories in IS usage. It looks at system usage being directly affected by behavioral intention which in itself is further influenced by perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness (Davis et al., 1989). Although TAM has been heavily criticized and modified later (Chuttur, 2009, Venkatesh et al., 2003), it has, and still continues to inspire research in areas such as online banking (Pikkarainen et al., 2004), gaming (Hsu and Lu, 2004) and smart parking systems (Kianpisheh et al., 2011). A large number of motivation theorists look at motivation from an intrinsic and extrinsic point of view. The original proponents of TAM, Davis et al adapted motivational perspectives and explained IS acceptance from both extrinsic and intrinsic motivational perspectives, adding perceived enjoyment as a factor (Davis et al., 1992). Perceived enjoyment however, has been seen as a weaker predictor of user acceptance in comparison to perceived use and perceived usefulness (Adams et al., 1992). Literature Review Having set the context, and set the theoretical tone for this review of literature, we can now discuss key takeaways. As discussed earlier, it is interesting to note that the vast majority of work in IS research amongst the elderly relies on chronological age (Gorman, 1999). The psychological aspect seems to be attributed to age-related biological changes (Van de Watering, 2005) and the social aspect seems to be neglected (Blit-Cohen and Litwin, 2004). In addition, TAM has some really strong points, which is why in spite of its weaknesses; it keeps evolving and inspiring further theorization and research

work. For instance even after almost two decades, TAM has inspired the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) (Venkatesh et al., 2003). Even some motivational theorists seem to expand TAM and use it in their research work alongside a motivational theoretical framework (Ryu et al., 2009). Then again, research in IS could seek inspiration from Social Capital theory (Karahasanovi et al., 2009). While human capital symbolizes skills and knowledge acquired by an individual, social capital exists in the relations among persons (Coleman, 1988). The Internet allows collaboration and therefore the elderly could capitalize on their own social and family networks to help them gain confidence in using ICT and at the same time making it enjoyable (Davis et al., 1992) for them. Also, according to Zajicek, to learn the use of computers, one needs the fluid memory (StuartHamilton and Rabbitt, 1997, Zajicek, 2001) more than the fixed/crystallized one. However, Agarwal and Prasad have highlighted the importance of past experiences with similar technologies in encouraging adoption amongst the elderly (Agarwal and Prasad, 1999). Therefore, it can be reasonably argued that such experiences can be engineered into design of modern technologies and/or Information Systems so that they replicate the affordances (Gaver, 1991) of real-life experiences. This form of direct engagement can result in a perceived ease of use as argued by Gilly and Zeithaml (Gilly and Zeithaml, 1985). Therefore, there is a need for a more multidisciplinary approach to research for understanding the use and usage of technology by the elderly in order to meet their needs. Systems development has to be seen as a sense making exercise where the analyst acts as a facilitator between the end users (in this case the elderly) and the management as proposed by Hirschheim and Klein in their Story II (Hirschheim and Klein, 1989). Conclusion, including identified Knowledge gaps Understanding elderly peoples perception of the Internet is important because it opens up opportunities for other Information Systems to be exposed to the elderly (and vice versa) in this increasingly digital age. This paper makes a valuable contribution by understanding their feelings about the Internet and similar technologies so that researchers can lower the barriers to Internet adoption amongst them and expose them to a variety of useful Information Systems in future. This paper emphasizes the need to bring a social / sociological theoretical aspects into IS research for the elderly which predominantly relies on cognitive / psychological theories to understand usage and adoption. While TAM and its expansions might be able to explain (to varying degrees) technology adoption in an organization, their applicability to technology adoption amongst the elderly has not been so successful. Further exploratory research work that aims to identify needs, challenges and coping strategies

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