Bridging the age-based digital divide

International Journal of Digital Literacy and Digital Competence, 6(3), 1-15, July-September 2015 1

Copyright © 2015, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

Keywords: DigitalCompetence,DigitalDivide,DigitalLiteracy,Life-LongLearning

ABSTRACTAnincreasingrelianceondigitaltechnologyinone’severydaylifenecessitatesthedevelopmentofdigitalliteracyskillstoenableone’scontinuedparticipationintheInternetinformation-age.Asexistingservices,suchasbankingandshopping,moveincreasinglyonline,thelikelihoodofexcludingcertaindemographicgroups,suchastheelderlyandthoselivinginruralareas,increasesexponentially.Thefollowingarticleoutlinestheresultsofapilotstudythatexploredtheperceiveddigitalliteracyskillsofagroupofadultsinaruralcommunity.Itwillbeshownthatdespiterelativelylowconfidencelevelsreportedbytheparticipants,theywereneverthelesskeentolearnhowtousedigitaltechnologies.Basedonparticipantfeedback,thestudyconcludesthatthereisaneedtodeveloppedagogicalstrategiestoteachdigitalliteracyskillstoolderadults,particularlythoselivinginruralandremoteareas.

Bridging the Age-based Digital Divide

AmyAntonio,UniversityofSouthernQueensland,Toowoomba,Australia

DavidTuffley,GriffithUniversity,Brisbane,Australia

INTRODUCTION

IT has been labelled as the indispensible grammar of modern life for all adults (Willis, 1999), giving rise to ongoing political efforts to ensure that every citizen has access to Information Com-munication Technologies (ICTs) and to reduce disparities between those segments of society that have access to ICT and those that do not (Selwyn, 2004). There are three broad trends currently affecting societies around the world: the ageing of our populations, the continued urbanisation of human societies and the increasing reliance on ICTs. Demographic changes leading to the ageing of our populations are occurring alongside rapid technological change (Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing, 2012). According to the Australian Government (2007), more than 36% of people aged 65 years or older live in rural and remote communities where social isolation and lack of access to services is more likely to be a problem than it is for urban dwellers who take such amenities for granted. Add to this the growing evidence (Czaja & Schulz, 2006) that older people are less digitally literate, and therefore unable to access on-line services, quite clearly we have a problem in need of a solution.

As the accessibility of broadband increases in rural and remote areas of Australia, older people in these communities will potentially have increased opportunities to integrate digital

DOI: 10.4018/IJDLDC.2015070101


2 International Journal of Digital Literacy and Digital Competence, 6(3), 1-15, July-September 2015

technology into their daily lives and reap a range of benefits. As part of a government funded initiative, digital hubs were developed in various rural locations in Australia to enable local residents to increase their online engagement and better understand the opportunities created by the National Broadband Network (NBN). This article reports on one such effort to develop the digital literacy skills of residents living in Oakey—one of the first rural communities in Australia to benefit from the NBN. A local library was established as a digital hub that provided a series of freely available digital training programs to community members. This paper reports on the perceived digital literacy skills of 20 adults who participated in these programs. It will be shown that, despite rating their confidence with digital technologies as relatively low, the participants welcomed the opportunity to learn and develop their digital literacy skills. This paper thus con-cludes with a recommendation for the development of similar training programs, particularly in rural areas where prior exposure to digital technology may be limited.

AN AGE-RELATED DIGITAL DIVIDE

There has been much said in the press and academia about the so-called ‘digital divide’; the divide between those who have access to technology, computers and the Internet and those who do not. A digital divide exists between industrialised and developing nations but there is also a dichotomy within individual societies, with older demographics invariably being disadvan-taged by the digital divide (Jimmoyiannis & Gravani, 2010). The situation is likely to worsen as the proportion of elderly in a society becomes larger. It is estimated that by 2020, 20% of the population in the US will be 65 years and over while 24% of people in Hong Kong will be over 65 by 2025 (Bartlett & Phillips, 1995). Social commentators have been quick to point out that the information society is also an ageing society (Bernard & Phillips, 2000). According to Selwyn, Gonrad, Furlong and Madden (2003, p. 562), the ageing of technology users has led to the “discursive portrayal of ‘silver surfers’, a popular but nebulous description of the burgeoning group of confident and competent older ICT users.” Given that computer and Internet usage are negatively correlated with age, the utopian vision of ‘silver surfers’ may be an over-statement.

Research shows that, although older adults are the fastest growing demographic group in developed countries, the uptake of ICT by older adults lags behind other groups (Neves et al, 2013). It is becoming increasingly evident that, while it is true that some older people know how to use computers and the Internet, an age-based digital divide nonetheless exists. In 2005, only 26% of people aged 65 and over were Internet users, compared to 67% and 80% in the 50-64 and 30-49 year age groups respectively (Czaja & Schulz, 2006).

In discussing the use of digital technology by elders, it is therefore necessary to distinguish between the characteristics of current and future generations of online elders. As Willis (2006) observes, the next generation of elders (56% of those currently aged 50-64 years—the early baby boomers) have used computers and the Internet at work and will, reportedly, miss the Internet if it is not available to them. This suggests that occupation and the workplace are key determinants of Internet use. According to Willis (2006, p. 45) “Being in the workforce is a major factor in acquiring and maintaining computer skills and in having access to the Internet and a supportive environment in which to learn these skills.” It is assumed that, because the current generation of baby boomers have had the opportunity to become competent at using ICTs, the next generation of elderly will not face the same exclusion to the “information superhighway” (Russel et al, 2008, p. 78). It is, however, impossible to predict whether or not the baby boomers now approaching retirement will continue to use ICTs when they are no longer employed. Given the rapid rate at which technology is changing, it is highly probable that, unless adults currently participating



in the workforce continue to update their skills, their existing knowledge of ICTs will become redundant in the short to medium term.

Older adults, according to Russel, Campbell and Hughes (2008), face a particular set of barriers to using and/or adopting ICTs later in life, including “anxiety about technology (techno-fear), lack of interest, health or disability barriers, lack of opportunity and training and cost” (p. 78). And these barriers may not be mitigated simply because the future generations of elders currently use ICTs in the workplace. Unlike most everyday circumstances, where age is usually associated with experience, in the digital era the opposite tends to be true, with the younger users being more computer-savvy than the older ones (Eshet-Alkalai & Chajut, 2010). As such, it is imperative that opportunities be made available for current and future generations of elderly to use ICTs so that the latter, who are already digitally competent, are not confronted with the issues of exclusion and marginalisation that accompany the increasing importance of ICT-mediated activities in modern social life (Jimoyiannis, 2011, p. 217).

WHY DO OLDER ADULTS NEED ICT?

Digital literacy is recognised as an essential skill in twenty first century society. According to Selwyn (2004, p. 369), “The ability to use ICT is now assumed by most commentators to be a prerequisite to living in the information age” (Selwyn, 2004, p. 369). If we put aside for a moment the social affordances of the Internet, such as the ability to communicate and interact with others across a growing number of platforms, many of which are now cost-free, and the continuing migration of many private and public services to on-line delivery, it is becoming apparent that a lack of access to the Internet will put some demographic groups, including the elderly, at a disadvantage. According to Neves, Amaro and Fonsecs (2013), as governments migrate public-sector services exclusively to the online domain, not having access to or lacking the digital literacy skills to use electronic services will in all likelihood precipitate an age-related inequality. Avoidance of the Internet, or an inability to engage with it, excludes older people from accessing services such as up-to-date transport information, health alerts and other health information, a variety of government services, not to mention online banking, shopping, news and current affairs (Chesters et al, 2013). Rosenthal (2008) observes that non-users will have less consumer power, fewer economic opportunities and their prospects for high-quality healthcare will be likewise diminished.

Although ICT proficiency is necessary to function on a personal level, being an actively engaged citizen of the information age can, according to Jimmoyiannis and Gravani (2010), contribute significantly to both social and economic success. Rosenthal (2008) also contends that equitable access to the Internet is rapidly becoming critical for economic and educational success. In an increasingly digital society, career and job changes are commonplace and adults need to constantly upgrade and acquire new skills in order to maintain their employability. This presents a challenge, particularly for older adults who have not previously been exposed to technology (Jimmoyiannis & Gravani, 2010). A study conducted by Willis (2006) determined that three-quarters of baby boomers were employed, 49% of those aged 60-64 were still work-ing, while only 13.7% of those over 65 years of age reported still being in employment. The proportion of older people in the workforce is expected to rise over time. The demands of the modern workplace requires employees to be able to use technology and this will heighten the need for older workers to update their technical skills.



OBSTACLES TO THE USE OF ICT BY OLDER ADULTS

Limited Access to the Internet

The age-related digital divide is often attributed to issues of access. An older person may not have a computer to use, even if they could afford to buy one and knew how to use it. They might not have an Internet connection because they live in a remote location. These factors, and potentially others, contribute to their exclusion from digital society. Recent research suggests that ICT usage levels are significantly lower for older people in rural than in metropolitan areas. Moreover, people in cities are more likely to access the Internet (83.7% compared to 75%) and more likely to have access to broadband than Australians in rural areas (Warburton et al, 2012). However, given the ongoing rollout of the National Broadband Network (NBN) in Australia, it is timely to address the issues of access that are contributing to the cycle of exclusion faced by older people in rural and regional areas.

Simply having the computer and a connection to the Internet does not guarantee that older people will go online. Older people often have lower incomes and cannot afford to have an up-to-date Internet-connected computer at home, which is a desirable pre-condition for Internet use. Chesters, Ryan and Sinning (2013) examined levels of access to computers and found that more people had access to a computer than had access to the Internet. This was true across various age groups. For those between 50 and 54 years, 74% of men and 78% of women had access to a computer at home compared to 67% and 69% respectively that had access to the Internet. For those aged 65 and over, 47% of men and 40% of women had access to a computer, compared to 38% and 31% who had access to the Internet at home. It is thus imperative that ICT and Internet-enabled facilities be made available at the local community level in order to mitigate the divide between those who have access to ICTs at home and those who do not.

Digital Literacy Skills

The Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) define digitalliteracyskills as the competen-cies needed to live, learn and work in a digital society. This includes knowing how to use digital devices, applications and services. In the context of the NBN rollout, it is important to remember that having access to ICTs and the Internet is without practical value unless people have the skills to utilise technology effectively. For older people who may not have had the same exposure to new technologies as younger people, their digital literacy skills may indeed be minimal. According to Sayago, Forbes and Blat (2013), older adults had fewer opportunities to use computers when they were younger, which contributes to their reluctance to adopt digital technologies later in life. Chesters, Ryan and Sinning (2013) similarly concluded that the incidence and intensity of computer and Internet use is positively associated with employment status and current participa-tion in education and training. Furthermore, older adults may not have had the same exposure to technology as they tend not to live with children and/or they ceased employment at a time when computer use was less prevalent.

Selwyn, Gonrad, Furlong and Madden (2003) observe, however, that being digitally liter-ate at work does not guarantee that one will remain so following retirement, particularly if one desists with technology use post-retirement. It appears that one’s IT skills degrade unless they are kept current through frequent use. Beckenhauser and Armstrong (2009) likewise argue that, given the rapid pace of technological change, the current cohort of baby boomers will find their skills quickly out of date when they leave the workforce. This sentiment is echoed by Selwyn (2004), who found that “… coerced use of technology at work (as employees do not own the



computers they use and their use is often forced, shaped and structured by their employment) was often not translated into later use in old age” (p. 380). This highlights the importance of freely available training programs that enable older adults to continually develop and update their digital skills in their post-retirement years.

In addition to the accessibility of training programs, consideration needs to be given to the delivery of digital literacy programs to older adults specifically. That is, due to the cognitive and sensory changes associated with aging, a model of teaching older adults that is based on the work of Knowles’ Adult Learning Theory (Hayes, 2005) is required, which is designed to compensate for the cognitive, sensory and physical effects of aging. Older adults are slower to learn new information and rushing them to learn new skills can lead to anxiety, frustration and unwillingness to learn due to fear of failure. As such, digital literacy programs need to be de-livered in small, manageable chunks of information and facilitators need to allow for adequate time after each point for practice and rehearsal.

Confidence

Lack of confidence and perhaps the fear of embarrassing oneself is a frequently reported obstacle to ICT and Internet use among older adults (Jung et al, 2010; Rosenthal, 2008). According to Rosenthal (2008), 48% of people surveyed in her study reported feeling anxious or stressed when learning to use a computer, 36% of participants reported low self-confidence, while 26% said a lack of personal support was the primary barrier to ICT use. Woodward et al (2013) similarly found that “The absence of perceived benefit, the perception that technology is dangerous, too expensive, complicated and confusing, and that it is too difficult to learn, can have a negative impact on ICT use by older adults” (p. 1317). It is not difficult to see how the cumulative effects of these factors can lead to low-levels of technology use by older people.

It has oft been suggested that as baby boomers move into later life they will bring with them greater familiarity and experience with ICTs. This will tend to “raise the levels of self-efficacy and everyday use of new technologies by older people in the coming years” (Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing, 2012, p. 12). It has been claimed (Rosenthal, 2008) that one of the reasons that older people are reluctant to adopt new technologies is anxiety about using it and about its safety. It remains to be seen whether the current generation of baby boomers will have the same trepidation about adopting new technologies as a result of their previous experi-ence with them. On the other hand, the speed with which technology is changing, in conjunction with age-related cognitive and physical decline, it is likely that the ICT work-related experience of the next generation of older people may count for very little in their retirement. This is an important point, particularly in light of earlier claims (Sayago et al, 2013; Chesters et al, 2013) that the non-use of ICT was a generational effect that would disappear as cohorts of computer-using workers become older adults themselves. It seems that there are deeper issues at play that influence adults’ use of ICTs, beyond their prior skills and experience of computers.

The evidence suggests that the current generation of ‘old old’ (a term the Australian Govern-ment Department of Health and Ageing use to describe persons 80 years of age and over) and future generations of elderly will need age-appropriate digital literacy training to give them op-portunities for continued skills development. In terms of training and support, Rosenthal (2008) found that three-quarters of older women in their study sought computer help from family and friends and through enrolling in a computer class. However, a lack of computer training has been identified as a barrier to older adults’ use of computers and the Internet, which is critical as evi-dence suggests that age-related effects can be partly offset through training (Xie and Bugg, 2009).



A STUDY OF ADULT ICT EDUCATION IN A RURAL LOCATION

The combination of relatively low levels of digital literacy among the elderly and the fact that more than a third of them live in isolated areas indicates a strong need for digital literacy pro-grams to address this shortfall. As noted by Sayago, Forbes and Blat (2013, p. 527) “A growing ageing population and an increasing reliance on ICT to conduct activities associated with daily living means that addressing how older people learn to use ICT is timely and important.” The authors of this paper thus sought to ascertain adults’ perceived level of confidence with digital technologies, with a view to highlighting the continued importance of training programs to bridge the age-related digital divide.

CONTEXT

20 individuals who attended a community-level digital training program in a rural area consti-tuted the participants in this study. The participants took part in one of four training programs at the Community Digital Hub: Computer classes (including word processing, excel plus photo organising and editing); Internet classes (including email, Facebook, eBay and online services such as banking); iPad classes or other classes (including skype, eBooks, blogging, Google Docs and Apps).

DATA COLLECTION METHODS

Local residents who completed at least one of the Community Digital Hub training programs were invited to take part in a survey. The voluntary and anonymous survey was designed with an online survey-building tool (Qualtrics); however, given that the training programs involved educating participants in the use of various digital technologies, it was thought that an online survey would be inappropriate and unlikely to attract many respondents. In view of this, the survey was distributed in hard copy form.

The purpose of the survey was to assess the participants’ self-perceptions of their digital literacy skills, rather than to evaluate the training programs. The questionnaire was modelled on the validated National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) instrument. Modifications were made to assess the participants’ experience with the specific educational programs available through the Community Digital Hub, rather than general levels of academic engagement. The multiple choice items were designed to ascertain participants’ use of, and their familiarity and confidence/comfort level with a range of digital technologies. The open-ended questions allowed participants to provide further information about their digital literacy skills and/or perceptions of the training program(s) they attended.

RESULTS

After giving their informed consent, the participants were asked to indicate their gender and the year they were born. Of the 20 survey respondents, 13 were female and 7 male. The age of the survey participants ranged from 41 to 84 years (Figure 1). The youngest respondent (at 41 years) was 1 of 2 participants in their 40s. A further 4 participants were in their 50s, 5 in their 60s, 6 in their 70s and 3 were 80 years or over. Participants indicated which of the available programs they had completed. Figure 2 indicates the number of participants who took part in each of the available classes: computer class, Internet class, iPad class or other digital hub class.



Participants were then asked to rate their level of confidence using digital technology to locate/use information and their level of confidence using traditional library skills to locate/use information. Responses were presented on a standard five-point Likert-scale ranging from very low to very high. 11 participants indicated that their confidence was low or very low for using digital technology to locate information, whereas 7 participants said their confidence was low or very low for using traditional library skills to locate information.

The participants were asked: Pleaseindicatehowoftenyouusethefollowingitems (see Table 1).

13 of the 20 participants indicated that they had never used online library databases. 5 had never used search engines, 17 had never used blogs, 9 email, 12 wikis, 15 file sharing, 17 photo/image sharing, 18 digital curation tools and 16 had never used social networks. The participants were then asked to: Pleaseindicatehowconfidentyouareusingthefollowingitems. Participant responses are presented in Table 2.

The participants were asked to indicate the extent to which they agree or disagree with a series of statements relating to their level of confidence using digital technologies. Participant responses are presented in Table 3.

The participants were asked to imagine a scenario in which they had been asked to learn to use a new digital technology and to indicate how confident they would be with various support options. The participants’ responses are presented in Table 4.

The participants were asked: Inlearningtouseanewdigitaltechnology,Iammorelikelyto… They were presented with a series of behavioural responses and were asked to indicate the extent to which these responses reflected their own experience of using digital technology. The participants’ responses are presented in Table 5.

The final question asked participants to indicate their overall level of confidence in the use of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs). 1 participant was confident, 11 said that they were neither confident nor unconfident, 3 were unconfident and 4 extremely unconfident.

Figure1.Percentageofparticipantsineachagegroup



Figure2.Numberofparticipantswhoattendedeachclass

Table1.Participants’useofdigitaltechnologies

Have never used

Have used at least

once

Prefer not to use

Would like to use more

Less than once a month

Weekly

Online library databases

13 1 1 2 2

Internet search engines

5 4 3 1 7

Blogs 17 2

Email 9 2 3 6

Wikis 12 3 3 2

File sharing 15 1 2 2

Photo/video sharing

17 1 1 1

Digital curation tools

18 1

Social networks 16 1 1 1 1



Table2.Participants’levelofconfidencewithusingspecificdigitaltechnologies

Extremely confident

Confident Neither Unconfident Extremely unconfident

Have never used

Online library databases

2 3 3 4 7

Internet search engines

1 3 3 5 4 3

Blogs 3 6 10

Email 2 2 5 3 2 5

Wikis 2 2 3 4 8

File sharing 1 3 6 9

Photo/video sharing

1 2 7 9

Digital curation tools

2 7 10

Social networks

2 3 6 8

Table3.Participants’responsestothequestion:Towhatextentdoyouagree/disagreewiththefollowingstatements?

Statements Strongly agree

Agree Neither Disagree Strongly disagree

I am confident about my ability to use digital technologies

3 8 5 2

I feel at ease learning how to use digital technologies

9 7 2 1

I am not worried about making mistakes

1 4 7 7 1

I feel anxious about using digital technologies

1 11 1 5 1

The thought of using unfamiliar digital technology is uncomfortable

1 10 5 2 2

Overall, I believe digital technologies enhance my professional skills

4 12 3

I think learning how to use digital technology is easy

3 4 4 8

I enjoy trying different technologies and online tools

3 4 10 2



Table4.Participants’levelofconfidenceusingdigitaltechnologiesinvarioussituations

Extremely confident

Confident Neither Unconfident Extremely unconfident

If there was no one to tell you what to do

3 10 7

If you only had the instruction manual

2 8 8 2

If you could call for help if stuck

1 7 8 3 1

If someone else helped you get started

10 6 2 1

If you had a lot of time to learn task

8 8 1 2

If someone gave you step by step instructions

4 13 1 2

Table5.Participants’responsestothequestion:Inlearningtouseanewdigitaltechnology,Iammorelikelyto…

Extremely like me

Like me Neither Unlike me Extremely unlike me

Expect that I will experience problems

4 9 4 2

Doubt my ability to solve problems

3 8 5 3

Need to ask others for help

4 13 1 2

Try and persist on my own until it works correctly

3 6 7 2 1

Give up quickly if it doesn’t work

1 4 5 5 4

Put a lot of effort into getting it right

3 10 4 2

Ask someone immediately if it doesn’t work right away

6 8 3 3

Get someone else to do it for me/fix it

9 8 2

Spend extra time trying to understand

2 11 3 3

Get frustrated at lack of progress

4 8 4 1 2



The open-ended questions asked participants to provide further comment on their perceived digital literacy skills and/or general comments about the Digital Community Hub. In terms of the need for support, one participant said “Iamself-taughtandstrugglewhenIdon’tknowtherationalesofwhythingsworkornot.” Another indicated, “Iamconfidentusingmycomputerbuttherearesomeareas,suchastheInternet,thatIamnotconfidentwith.” Similarly, one participant acknowledged that “[I] requiremoreknowledgetokeepupwithtechnology.Itisacontinuallearningprocessformatureusersofdigitaltechnologies.” In terms of the perceived value of Digital Community Hubs, one participant said “Thesedigitalhubsareagreatopportunitytofortheoldergenerationtoupdate.Pleasecontinuewiththeseprogramsandthankyou” and another noted, “Thisprogramhasbeenveryhelpful.”

DISCUSSION

The results of this pilot study suggest that the adults’ perceived confidence with various digital technologies is relatively low. Nearly 50% of participants (9/20) were from the so-called baby-boomer generation and 3 participants could be characterised as old old. Despite a sample of participants that ranged from 41 to 84 years, more than 50% rated their level of confidence as low or very low for using digital technologies to locate/use information. It is perhaps noteworthy that only 3 participants (aged 61, 76 and 80) rated their confidence as high/very high for using traditional libraries to locate/use information, which suggests it was the task itself they were not comfortable with, irrespective of whether they were locating/using information in a digital or paper-based environment.

The participants were asked to indicate how often they had used various digital technologies and, in a subsequent question, how confident they were using these same digital technologies. In terms of frequency, 7/20 and 6/20 participants indicated that they used search engines and email respectively. On the other hand, more than 75% of participants had never used blogs, file-sharing applications such as dropbox, photo/video sharing platforms, digital curation tools or social networking sites. These figures suggest that the participants in this study had had minimum exposure to technology. Perhaps it is not surprising then that nearly 50% of participants were unconfident or extremely unconfident using search engines, blogs, file-sharing, photo/video sharing, digital curation tools and social networks.

However, participants’ level of confidence with using specific digital technologies must be viewed with caution as they were given the option of selecting “have never used” as a possible response. It is therefore quite possible that participants indicated that they were “extremely un-confident” using a technology that they may not have used and vice versa. Participants may have selected “have never used” rather than “extremely unconfident”. When considered in conjunction the results suggest that more than 75% of participants were either extremely unconfident or had never used blogs, file-sharing, photo/video sharing, or digital curation tools, which mirrors the responses to the frequency of use.

The participants were asked: Towhatextentdoyouagreeordisagreewiththefollowingstatements. Of particular interest, more than 50% of participants agree that they feel anxious about using digital technologies; nearly 50% are worried about making mistakes and more than 50% agree that the thought of using unfamiliar digital technologies is uncomfortable. The results support previous research in this area in which a correlation has been found between perceived confidence and willingness to use new technologies (Rosenthal, 2008; Woodward et al, 2013). Furthermore, only 2 participants said that they do not enjoy trying different technologies and online tools and more than 75% agreed that digital technologies enhance their professional skills.



As such, and given appropriate support mechanisms, this implies that adults of various age groups are looking for opportunities to further develop their digital skills, although the thought of doing so unassisted provokes anxiety.

This supposition was born out by the results of the next question, which asked participants to indicate their level of confidence using digital technologies in various scenarios. Not surpris-ingly, nearly 80% of participants said that they would be unconfident or extremely unconfident using digital technology if there was no one to tell them what to do. In contrast, more than 75% (17/20) of participants indicated that they would be confident or extremely confident using digital technology if someone gave them step-by-step instructions. These results corroborate Rosenthal’s (2008) finding that, in terms of ICT support, 75% of women ask for help from family or friends or enrol in a class. Participants in this study, it can be supposed, have a desire to learn and use technology, perhaps having recognised that their skills are no longer current or simply because they want to be active citizens in the digital information age.

In terms of learning to use a new digital technology, more than 75% of participants said that it was “like me” or “extremely like me” to need to ask others for help, while more than 50% expect to experience problems, doubt their ability to solve problems and get frustrated by their lack of progress. Despite these potential obstacles, more than 50% of participants admitted to putting a lot of effort into getting it right or spending extra time trying to understand a particular technology and only 5 participants said that they give up quickly if the technology does not work immediately. Overall, 7 participants were unconfident or extremely unconfident using ICTs, whereas just 1 participant said they were confident.

The open-ended responses related to either participants’ perceptions of their digital literacy skills or to the value of community training programs. The comments reiterate the findings of the survey responses, which suggest, first and foremost, that the participants’ perceptions of their digital literacy skills is low and that these programs are necessary to provide community members with opportunities to develop their digital literacy skills. Even though a number of participants reported that they were comfortable using a computer, they acknowledged that using ICTs “isacontinuallearningprocessformatureusersofdigitaltechnologies.” Such responses support earlier propositions (Selwyn et al, 2003; Selwyn, 2004; Beckenhauser & Armstrong, 2009) that experience with technology in the workplace, for example, does not guarantee the continued use of ICTs post-retirement. These digital hubs, which “areagreatopportunityfortheoldergenerationtoupdate”, provide opportunities for adults, particularly those in retirement, to continually develop their digital literacy skills.

CONCLUSION

There are clear benefits, both at a personal and social level, to teaching the elderly how to use the Internet and ICTs generally. Doing so will address a widening digital literacy gap for the benefit of all concerned. Many local governments in Australia offer digital training programs at Council-run libraries (such as the one in this study) that have achieved varying degrees of success. Although this pilot study did not actually evaluate the success of the Digital Community Hub, the results of the survey indicate that the participants were not confident using digital technolo-gies, although they were more than willing to learn when appropriate support was available. Moreover, this pilot study examined a small sample of participants at one rural training hub. In future research it would be beneficial to explore the perceived confidence of a larger popula-tion group at various ages. The participants in the current study, for example, ranged from 41 to 84 years and it would be expected that their perceived confidence with digital technologies



would be vastly different due to a number of factors, such as current employment. It would be interesting to compare and contrast perceived digital literacy skills across a number of different age groups to ascertain whether or not being employed and previous exposure to technology, for example, influenced participant responses. Moreover, this pilot study was conducted in a rural setting; would these results be replicated in an urban environment? And are people who have access to technology in their homes more confident with ICTs? Each of these questions could be the focus of future research directions.

There are obvious advantages across the board in equipping older people with digital literacy skills. For example, there are great savings to be made on health-care costs by allowing people to access on-line health management information. It can also work to keep people in their own homes and out of hospital. Once the elderly know how to access on-line resources, they can proactively manage various aspects of their lives, from on-line banking and shopping, making travel arrangements and proactively managing their health. Digital literacy in the elderly can also keep the social bonds of family and friends strong, helping them to maintain a sense of social connection. Not an easy thing to do in today’s world with friends and family dispersed far and wide. But technologies such as Skype, email and social media can go a long way to making people feel connected with those they love. In a larger sense, digital literacy can help to improve both the quantity and quality of life enjoyed by the elderly.

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AmyAntonioisaresearchfellowwiththeAustralianDigitalFuturesInstituteattheUniversityofSouthernQueensland.Amy’sresearch interests include information literacy,appliedethics,digitalcurationandliteracy,socialmediainhighereducation,studentengagementandretention.AmycompletedherPhDinRenaissanceliteratureatDeakinUniversity;herHumanitiesbackgroundisastrengththatinformshercurrentresearchintooptimisingthewaypeopleusetechnology.

DavidTuffleyisaLecturerinAppliedEthicsandSocioTechnicalStudiesatGriffithUniversity’sSchoolofICT.Aregularcontributortomainstreammediaonthesocialimpactoftechnology,Davidisarecognizedexpertinhisfield.BeforeacademiaDavidworkedasanITConsultantinAustraliaandtheUnitedKing-dom,arolehecontinuestoperformwhennoteducatingthenextgenerationofITprofessionals.Davidisanengagingsciencecommunicatorofmanyyears.

Documents

Bridging the age-based digital divide