There are ‘two different groups of older Americans’.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: A study, released by the Pew Research Center in Washington, DC, shows that an increasing number of senior citizens in the US are adopting technology like cell phones and the Internet, but at a gradual pace that puts them far behind the average American.
The study, entitled simply “Older Adults and Technology Use,” shows that 59% of Americans 65 years old and over use the Internet on a regular basis, while 41% don’t. The former figure is up 6% from what it was last year, indicating a promising upward trend. Also positive is that 47% of seniors that use the Internet do so via a high-speed connection, meaning 53% of Internet-using seniors don’t.
Those on the lower end of the 65+ scale tend to be connected to the Internet quite frequently, with 74% of the 65-69 year-old age group using the Internet. In terms of income, 90% of senior citizens with an annual household income equal to or greater than $75,000 used the Internet, while 87% of senior citizens with a college degree use the Internet. However, the percentage of seniors using the Internet drops off precipitously when entering the 80+ range – just 37% of such citizens use the Internet routinely.
“Two different groups of older Americans emerge [from this study],” says the report. “The first group (which leans toward younger, more highly educated, or more affluent seniors) has relatively substantial technology assets, and also has a positive view toward the benefits of online platforms. The other (which tends to be older and less affluent, often with significant challenges with health or disability) is largely disconnected from the world of digital tools and services, both physically and psychologically.”
The study says that there are three main reasons why older senior citizens tend to shy away from using modern technology as much as possible: they face physical challenges in using technology, they remain skeptical of the benefits of technology, and they have a difficult time learning how to use new technologies. However, once these seniors adopt the Internet or other related technology, they tend to assimilate it into their daily lives at a rapid pace.
Tablet and e-book readers are among the most popular devices for older citizens, while roughly 46% of citizens 65 and over are now using social media, such as Facebook and Twitter. Over 70% of seniors who go online at all, do so every day, while 11% of the remaining seniors do so at least three-to-five times per week. The study also revealed that 77% of senior citizens now have a cell phone, and actively use them, but that these phones tend to be very basic, and not the smartphones we’ve come to see more of.
The data was compiled by surveying 6,010 adults, of which 1,526 were at or over the age of 65. The study was conducted between July 18 and Sept. 30 of last year, and it carries a plus/minus 2.9% margin of error.
To contact the author, email to deepakchitnis@americanbazaaronline.com