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Communication Technologies and Older Adults

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Encyclopedia of Gerontology and Population Aging

Synonyms

Digital divide and older adults; Digital exclusion at old age; Digital technology and aging

Definition

Information and communication technology (ICT) is the general term used to describe all media utilized in the communication of information (Chandler and Munday 2016). Older adults may conceptualize ICT as both the tools and the tasks completed while using them (Hill et al. 2015). These tasks can be categorized as transportation and mobility technology (e.g., ride-share services), health and wellness technology (e.g., pedometer and other exercise tracking devices and applications, online medical portals, medical alert buttons), socialization technology (e.g., social networking, email and messaging programs, online dating services), educational and informational technology (e.g., massive open online courses, search engines), and instrumental or functional technology (e.g., online banking or shopping).

Overview

Recent estimates suggest a rapid increase in ICT use among the older...

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Correspondence to Annalise M. Rahman-Filipiak .

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Rahman-Filipiak, A.M., Hampstead, B.M. (2019). Communication Technologies and Older Adults. In: Gu, D., Dupre, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Gerontology and Population Aging. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69892-2_694-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69892-2_694-1

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