Ageing and Emerging Digital Technologies

How can we design and evaluate digital technologies to meet the needs,
desires, and aspirations of a growing number of older adults (aged 65+)? This
overarching question guided this multidisciplinary collection. Emerging technologies, particularly new information and communication technologies, can lead to positive outcomes in later life, contributing to quality of life and social connectedness. However, they can also increase social inequalities and exclusion among older adults. Non-use and poor use of technologies can limit access to information, public services, and opportunities for social participation. Thus, understanding different forms of adoption and use, of non-adoption and non-use, as well as its social impact is critical to inform effective development, implementation, and assessment of emerging technologies. Yet, this knowledge is often confined within disciplinary silos. To overcome this problem, this book brings together, for the first time, researchers from social and computer sciences to explore theoretical, methodological, ethical, and empirical approaches to this pressing topic. This novel multidisciplinary approach provides a comprehensive discussion of participatory design, technology adoption models, sociotechnical frameworks, ageing theories, research design, and ethical principles, while investigating technologies such as virtual reality, digital games, robots, software applications, and social networking sites. These original contributions advance our knowledge in this field, ensuring researchers and professionals have a set of enduring examples, guidelines, and practices to design and evaluate emerging technologies that address both the opportunities and challenges of an ageing population.