Older People’s Use of Digital Technology During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“However, these trends may not be equal across different demographic groups, especially older adults who may have additional barriers in using technology (Czaja et al., 2006; Gitlow, 2014).”

“For example, more older adults in 2020 agreed that technology can be used to help combat social isolation, which is known to lead to stress, depression, and poor health outcomes (Coyle & Dugan, 2012).”

“Yet, historically older adults have been less likely to use technology for everyday services and communication than younger cohorts, due to factors such as digital literacy and access to the internet (Anderson et al., 2021; Hunsaker & Hargittai, 2018).”

“Older adults are often reported as being resistant to adopting new technologies unless the feelings of usefulness and usability of the technology are greater than feelings of inadequacy (Heinz et al., 2013).”

“…positively contributes to older adults ’ subjective well-being and healthy aging (Nimrod, 2019; 1 Simon Fraser University, Department of Gerontology 2 Western University, Department of Neuroscience 3 AGE-WELL NCE 4 University of Toronto, AGE-WELL NCE Ollevier et al., 2020; Szabo et al., 2019).”

“…use as the younger cohort under pandemic restrictions, despite being an age group that typically reports slower uptake and less use of technology in general (Anderson & Perrin, 2017; Davidson & Schimmele, 2019; Hülür & Macdonald, 2020; Mariano et al., 2021; Siren & Grønborg Knudsen, 2017).”

“However, these trends may not be equal across different demographic groups, especially older adults who may have additional barriers in using technology (Czaja et al., 2006; Gitlow, 2014).”

“Re fi ning and using co-design principles on existing technologies that older adults are using during the pandemic could lead to higher levels of engagement and uptake of other older adults to support their wellness and independence (Botero and Hyysalo, 2013; Wherton et al., 2015).”

“Re fi ning and using co-design principles on existing technologies that older adults are using during the pandemic could lead to higher levels of engagement and uptake of other older adults to support their wellness and independence (Botero and Hyysalo, 2013; Wherton et al., 2015).”

“…use of various information and communication technologies positively contributes to older adults ’ subjective well-being and healthy aging (Nimrod, 2019; 1 Simon Fraser University, Department of Gerontology 2 Western University, Department of Neuroscience 3 AGE-WELL NCE 4 University of…”

“…use as the younger cohort under pandemic restrictions, despite being an age group that typically reports slower uptake and less use of technology in general (Anderson & Perrin, 2017; Davidson & Schimmele, 2019; Hülür & Macdonald, 2020; Mariano et al., 2021; Siren & Grønborg Knudsen, 2017).”

“Specifically, digital technology has a crucial role in facilitating the delivery of nutritional and exercise interventions that are well accepted among older adults 134,135 .”

“These findings are consistent with several studies, suggesting strongly that the belief that most older adults lack the ability and desire to learn ICTs is simply not accurate (Vaportzis et al., 2017; Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“While there has been increasing reliance on telehealth for health care services during the COVID-19 pandemic [76] and greater acceptance of technology among older adults [77], few studies on telehealth are included here.”

“Indeed, technology use is associated with perceived social capital [20] and may have helped older adults with restricted social mobility to connect more efficiently with their social contacts [21].”

“…tends to view technological monitoring positively, possibly due to their concerns about frailty and potential health decline (Bian et al. 2021; Sixsmith et al. 2022), and participants may have been self-selective due to their interest in these technologies, which might explain their focus…”

“37 Over half of respondents in another survey aged 65 years and over had adopted new technology since the start of the pandemic and had used technology differently to connect with others.”

“The Covid-19 pandemic was an accelerator for the proliferation of AgeTech for accessing health services, with the rise of virtual care, a subset of eHealth, and expanded investments in digital infrastructure across Canada (Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“It has been significantly boosted by the COVID-19 pandemic, mostly in previously excluded segments such as older generations [4], enabling innovative service solutions for industry 5.”

“However, it is worth noting that other research that employed a combination of online and phone-based data collection methods also observed an increase in technology adoption and usage among older adults during the pandemic (83).”

“The pandemic has served as an accelerator in prompting signifcant changes in how older adults adopt technology for daily life and solve issues they have not relied on technology to solve pre-pandemic [76].”

“It may also not reflect the full range of preferred self-management strategies of frail older adults today (for example, a potentially greater use of technology amongst the older adult population [80]).”

“Information about technology use was first collected during the COVID-19 pandemic, a period when face-to-face interactions were limited and technology use among older adults increased [35].”

“The uptake of information and communication technology appeared to increase among older adults in some countries, but particularly in places where there was technology uptake prior to the pandemic (24, 25).”

“Older people have reported an increased usage of and a more positive attitude toward digital technology, including SVA, during the COVID-19 pandemic (37).”

“…pandemic, digital self-service has received much attention because social distance regulation necessitates non-contact services (shi et al., 2023; sixsmith et al., 2022). self-service technology is now equipped with more sophisticated security methods like biometrics. fingerprints, handprints,…”

“Evidence suggests that this tendency has been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic (Drazich et al., 2023; Lee, 2023; Sin et al., 2021; Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“Recent studies have shown that the elderly are increasingly using ICT to meet their daily needs such as shopping, socializing, and entertainment, compared to the pre-pandemic times [8].”

“…health and This study provides a new perspective on the usage of digital devices among healthy adults because it was discovered that there was a large number of older adults who use digital devices for multiple purposes compared to using them for communication only. psychological wellbeing [41].”

“This overall facility with the remote testing might reflect adequate digital literacy in the sample, across demo-graphics, which probably increased during and after the COVID-19 pandemic (Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“Some literature reports an increase in WhatsApp video calls with family, friends, and medical consultations (Nimrod, 2022); as well as feeling positive about the benefits for their health, wellness, and communication needs (Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“Regarding communication, many older adults have, over time, given up their landline home telephone [56] and adopted the use of smart and networked phones [4,5].”

“…for web-based socialization discussed the relevance of financial and knowledge barriers, as well as social factors related to family, social motivation, and appropriate environments [12], and the need to investigate social and economic factors that persist as challenges to technology uptake [14].”

“However, older adults showed higher levels of technology use as compared to pre-pandemic levels for everyday activities such as shopping, socializing, and entertainment (Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“…phones, tablets, smartwatches, and other devices to an unprecedented extent [12]. in this context, older adults are likely to be increasingly pushed towards a digitally connected lifestyle [13]. in recent years, the presence and use of Ai in various areas and age groups [14] have gained strength.”

“Moreover, literature detected the enhanced adoption of technology usage by older people even and more during pandemic (Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“Caregivers of persons with dementia also face signi fi cant challenges with digital literacy, especially as they age and struggle to adapt to evolving technologies (Samari et al., 2024; Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“The ease of learning and interacting with technology, which is often hindered by cognitive load, interface complexity, and accessibility issues (International Organization for Standardization [ISO] 2018; Neves & Amaro, 2012; Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“Tis fgure, adapted from Sixsmith et al.’s [21] study, highlights the noticeable increase in the usage of these technologies by older adults during the pandemic, refecting a global trend in the broader adoption of VCTs in response to COVID-19.”

“COVID-19 became a turning point (Sixsmith et al., 2022), shifting focus to digital banking access as a key priority (Vilhena & Navas, 2023).”

“There has been a significant increase in the number of studies on how digital technologies have helped to mitigate the impact of lockdowns and restrictions on older people (MacLeod et al. 2021; Sixsmith et al. 2022; Todd et al. 2022; Garcia Diaz et al. 2023; Zhang et al. 2023).”

“It may be that attitudes and skills of the target group with respect to technology have changed over time, with some evidence suggesting adaptation to COVID-19 lockdowns has spurred this development (46).”

“The use of these technologies by older adults requires an awareness of associated benefits as well as possible harms, including risks related to terms of service and privacy protocols [21].”

“Further, the study was conducted immediately after the COVID-19 pandemic, during which many older persons learned and became comfortable using technology to stay connected with others, thereby reducing their feeling of social loneliness (Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“Apart from in-person social activities, programs promoting and facilitating the use of technology for social connection, like virtual events or training in online platforms, can provide alternative ways to maintain social connection (Newmark et al., 2023; Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“This may be reflective of current social trends of increased use of technology in everyday life, including by older adults, which has been exacerbated by the pandemic [51].”

“However, Sixsmith et al. (2022) projected that while COVID-19 might have positively impacted the policy digitalization process, especially concerning older persons (above 65) on accessing, utilizing and their attitudes toward technology, many still feel that there are underlying and systematic…”

“Evidence has shown that online social activities can help alleviate loneliness due to the COVID-19 pandemic (Iwuagwu & Kalu, 2021; Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“In contrast, more recent studies, particularly those conducted during or after the COVID-19 pandemic, were shaped by accelerated digital adoption, heightened reliance on remote communication, and growing familiarity with AI-driven devices [40].”

“…COVID-19 context, older adults who may have been less familiar with technology are now more adept at navigating such systems with Six-smith and colleagues’ finding that > 68% of older adults indicated they will continue to use technologies they adopted during lockdowns in a post-pandemic era [45].”

“…a reduction in feelings of loneliness [3, 11, 12], decreased social isolation [4, 6], diminished depressive states [3, 13], enhanced well-being [5, 14], increased independence [6], greater life satisfaction [11, 13], improved social support [11, 15], enhanced self-efficacy [11, 13], as well as an…”

“The use of technology has been proposed as a way to overcome barriers to social interaction for older adults [9] and increased use of technology was reported by older adults during the pandemic [10].”

“This has led to an increase in the amount of time older adults spend using digital communication tools and other online platforms (Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“Among older age drivers, GPS use is rising in alignment with the increased prevalence of smartphones amongst older adult populations [4].”

“One possible explanation for these findings is that since the pandemic, the general population’s familiarity with the use of technology and access to the internet has greatly increased (Bin et al., 2021 ; Branscombe, 2020 ; Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“…definition of mobility is well situated to explain older adults ’ mobility and travel behaviour during the pandemic, given the increased role of digital technologies in older adults ’ ability to meet their essential or non-essential mobility needs in the post-COVID world (Sixsmith et al ., 2022).”

“78 However, older individuals who did not use ICT and experienced signi fi cant levels of loneliness or social isolation were more likely to develop CD, particularly among those aged over 80 years.”

“Older people in the community used ICT more in activities such as shopping, socialising and entertainment (Sixsmith et al., 2022 ).”

“There is no doubt that the pandemic increased the importance and use of ICT in many social domains, such as education, health care, public management, and civic engagement, among older Americans (Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“However, due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), face-to-face services for the elderly have been restricted,(10,11) making non-face-to-face services essential for the elderly to access these services.(12) Accordingly, non-face-to-face elderly care interventions are being developed, including improving social conne…”

“There was overwhelming agreement that they would continue to use Zoom to “stay connected” beyond the pandemic [53,63].”

“As Malaysia undergoes this demographic transformation, older adults must adapt to the digital landscape to maintain their independence and improve their quality of life [8–10].”

“Studies have demonstrated that the pandemic and its contact restriction measures led to an increase in EICT use, especially those for social connections (Balki et al., 2023; Elimelech et al., 2022; Martin et al., 2023; Sixsmith et al., 2022) or for telehealth consultations (N. G. Choi et al., 2022).”

“Sixsmith et al. (2022), on technology utilization among older adults during COVID-19, found that while older adults felt isolated during the COVID-19 pandemic, many saw positives to adopting technology for communication and health needs.”

“Other studies also reported similar increases in technology use among older adults during the pandemic [25,33].”

“A comparative analysis of data from surveys conducted in 2019 and 2020 by Sixsmith et al. (2022) revealed that many older adults have adapted to an increasingly digital world, at least in the short term.”

“Although differing in size and mission, grassroots groups have also provided informal on-the-ground leadership on major ageing agendas, including promoting active ageing and combating loneliness (Manthorpe et al. 2016; Milsom 2018; Sixsmith et al. 2022).”

“The adoption of digital technology among older adults has increased in recent years, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, when many older adults expanded their technology use (Sixsmith et al., 2022).”

“Older unemployed individuals often face challenges in accessing relevant information online due to a lack of digital skills compared to their younger counterparts (Sixsmith et al. 2022).”