All memes aside, why is it so darn hard for older generations to use current-day tech? Some stats have been crunched in hopes of answering this question.
According to Eurostat, 87% of folks over the age of 75 (that’s back in 2018) have never really been online. That’s nearly 9 of 10 seniors, mind you.
One of the reasons suggested ties in with their age and health—reduced reactivity. Age simply makes it harder to keep up with how fast technology progresses and changes.
9% of folks over 75 have serious eye problems and 18% have severe hearing limitations. Considering that phones these days use these two senses primarily, smartphones don’t seem like the best option for this segment.
There’s also the issue of reaching seniority with leathery fingers, reduced muscular function and cognitive decline, making it harder for them to use touch-screen based tech. It is estimated that there are 5.6 million people who might be affected by this.
Health issues aside, handling new tech is a challenge in and of itself. It is reported that around 77% of seniors would ask for assistance when trying to learn how to use a smartphone or tablet.
Besides that, 56% of those who do use the internet say that they would need help to connect with friends or family by means of social networking platforms.
Generally speaking, the elderly have more trouble mastering new tech compared to younger generations because of their lesser frame of reference that would enable them to take in new information.
This is made even worse when health issues kick in forcing social isolation. Because if you can’t go out and see the world, you might just not really get what things happening outside are.
It’s not really the elderly people’s fault, though. Nobody chooses to get debilitating illnesses in the first place, but it is also important to note that technology isn’t tailored for seniors to begin with.
Just think about it: touch screens, passwords, usernames, menus, user interfaces… all of this is new, physically and (or) mentally hard to overcome without feeling overwhelmed by it.
