Vicki is an extreme example of seniors who are technologically challenged. She has a checking account but no debit card and no online banking; she pays bills by mailing checks; and she keeps piling up cash literally under her mattress until she can get a ride to the bank. She has an old flip phone which she uses to make and receive phone calls, but relies on her landline more.
Her kids eventually got involved. And it’s been a long and arduous (and ongoing) process to get her even into the basics of technology. Slowly, though, she is emerging.
While Vicki is the extreme case, we can’t discount some challenges that all seniors face with a technology that is evolving more rapidly than even most of us “youngsters” can keep pace with.
Let’s take a look at some of those challenges.
Most Common Tech Challenges Senior Face
The Technology Gap
Seniors today were in their 20s and 30s when computers and mobile phones were first introduced. Computers were large objects – a keyboard, a separate monitor, and a big box on the floor. Internet access was by dial-up and took forever. Cell phones were large hand-held devices with antennas. Landlines were still the norm.
If you wanted to watch a movie, you went to the theater.
All of this has now been replaced with a couple of smart devices – a laptop or tablet and a smartphone. The problem is seniors have a tough time catching up.
They Don’t Know What They are Missing
Seniors tend to believe that the way they currently live is fine – sort of like Vicki. They have their TV for entertainment and their social life at the local senior center. And so they lack the motivation to engage with the new “stuff.”
The solution is to show them how technology can enhance their lives. Youngers need to take their tech to them and show them the wide world of knowledge, communication, a digital social life, shopping, and more.
All of this may take patience and time. And that patience means not getting frustrated.
Fear
Fear of what? Well, seniors have the same fears that we all have of the unknown, of something we’ve never done before.
But the additional fear that seniors seem to have is of complexity. Learning to use a smartphone can be overwhelming – all those icons, those buttons, etc. Often that fear leads to a fear that they will do something wrong and “break” the device.
And there is the fear of safety. Some of this is legitimate. After all, if they are encouraged to shop online, they have to give up their personal and financial information. They will need help with this, especially avoiding scams and identity theft activities. They need to know how to create strong passwords, how to avoid posting personal information on social media, and how to check the authenticity of websites they may access. Fortunately, there are plenty of protections in place via Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, subscription protection services, etc.
The Aging Brain
It’s real. As people age, there are physical and biological changes in the brain. These affect all kinds of cognitive functions – memory, focus, and the ability to learn new things.
All of these changes mean that seniors do have challenges learning and adapting to new technology and that anyone helping them will not only need patience but also need to re-teach things several times. And using some of the newer technology such as voice-to-text will help too. This can also help seniors with vision issues.
Terminology Issues
This is a biggie. With technology comes a whole new vocabulary, and seniors will not understand any of it – browser, browse, cursor, app, download, homepage, username, and file, as just a few examples. With memory issues, these will have to be re-learned , possibly several times.
Lack of Support
It’s not just family members who can support seniors in getting into new tech. There are friends and other resources that can serve as support systems. Taking a class with other seniors, for example, may be a perfect means of getting comfortable with adapting to new technology.
Having said all of this, it’s important to understand the benefits that new tech provides to seniors.
What Do Seniors Get Out of All This?
If you are a senior reading this, in short, you get fun, entertainment, social connections, convenience, and more. Your quality of life will improve during that period in your life when you may be less mobile and stay at home more because it’s “comfortable.”
You can manage your banking and pay your bills; you can set up social media accounts and messaging and make new friends from all over; you can shop. You can even find your partner by joining online dating websites.
So, it’s time to get out of that comfort zone, take some risks, work that wonderful brain of yours, and open up a whole new world for yourself.
