NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN SENIOR CITIZENS Pilar - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN SENIOR CITIZENS

Pilar Escuder Joaquín Gil

www.ict50plus.org

09-05-2006

CONTENTS

Introduction Background Objectives Why ICTs and QOL: Justification What we want to do: Methodology What we have already done Conclusions

INTRODUCTION: QOL (I)

Quality of Life (QOL):

“An indvidual’s perception of his/her position of life in both the culture context and the system of values in relation to his/her

• bjectives,

expectations, patterns and concerns” (WHO)

INTRODUCTION: QOL (II)

“Research on QOL is important since the concept is emerging as an organisng principle wich may be applicable to the improvement of a society like ours, a society submitted to social, political, technological and economic transformations” (Schalock 1996:43-61)

INTRODUCTION: ICTs (I)

Information

and Communication Technologies (ICTs): “The term “ICT” refers to forms of technology that are used to transmit, store, create, share or exchange information.”(UNESCO) “The combination of hardware, software and the means of production that enable the exchange, processing and management of information and knowledge.”

INTRODUCTION: ICTs (II)

‘Digital divide’: Describes the fact that the world can be divided into people who do and people who don't have access to - and the capability to use - modern information technology. In our societies, the senior citizens and the disabled are the main affected groups ‘Digital literacy’: Is it a solution for the ‘digital divide’?

BACKGROUND: Studies on QOL (I)

• Progressive population aging / Increase of

life expectancy

• Current life expectancy:

–

Women: 83.8 years

–

Men: 77.2 years

• 7 million people over 65 (5th position in EU

ranking). Forecast for 2050: 12.5 million

BACKGROUND: Studies on QOL (II)

4 outstanding elements related to social well-

being among senior citizens:

• Retirement
• Level of income
• Health problems
• Solitude

BACKGROUND: Studies on ICTs (I)

Television:

– The main means of information and entertainment – The most popular programmes:

Quiz shows Soap operas Movies News

– 84.9% of the senior citizens watch it every day

BACKGROUND: Studies on ICTs (II)

• Computers:

–

Only 10% of seniors citizens have a PC

–

Uses:

• A. Word procesors (63%)
• B. Internet (60%)
• C. Databases (46%)
• D. Viewing/editing

programs (41%)

• E. Spreedsheet(33%)
• F. Games (24%)

Computer uses

63 60 46 41 33 24 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 A B C D E F

BACKGROUND: Studies on ICTs (III)

Internet:

– Growth of users over 50 years: 28% (the fastest) – “The number of users over 55 years is greater and greater.

Web sites owners have increasingly more oppotunities to promote their products and sevices to this public, who in many cases, already uses networks to organise their finances and to prepare their holydays” (Nielsen//NetRatings)

– BUT: Only 0.9% of the total of users is over 65 years, so we

can increase the number of senior users

BACKGROUND: Studies on ICTs (IV)

–

Main uses of the Internet:

A.

Communication/E-mail (63.9%)

B.

Seeking information (61.6%)

C.

Administratio-related matters (44.3%)

• Mobile telephone system:

–

Mobile phone penetration: 32% in senior citizens (the last in EU ranking)

–

Only 27% are frequent users

Internet uses

63,9 61,6 44,3 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 A B C

MAIN OBJECTIVE

To study/analyse the relationship between

ICTs and QOL in senior citizens: DOES THE ICTs INFLUENCE ON QOL? HOW THEY INFLUENCE?

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES

– Approach the social reality of the elderly, in relation to their

QOL.

– Know the use of ICTs by senior. – Approach the seniors’ knowledge about ICT contributions. – Know if a learning of ICTs on the part of seniors exist. – Discover the difficulties that seniors face when learning and

using ICTs

– Provide imformation to educators on how to improve the

motivational and learning processes of seniors in relation to ICTs

JUSTIFICATION (I)

ICTs influence our societies Digital divide

Digital literacy

Social life is founded in the communication

among its members

We belive the ICTs can help the

communication between our senior citizens, BECAUSE (Internet):

JUSTIFICATION (II)

• 1. Facilitates interacion among senior citizens
• 2. Faculitates a better intergerational

relationship

• 3. Activity gives life
• 4. Improves self-esteem
• 5. Allows for major social participation and

creative contribution

JUSTIFICATION (III)

If we wish to emphatically affirm the connection

between ICTs and QOL, and be able to design effective future strategies, we should realistically consider the social reality on elderly people:

– Their own perception of their QOL – Their level of use and access to ICTs – The problems they are faced with

Does the use of ICTs by elderly really and effectively

improves their QOL? In what sense?

METHODOLOGY (I)

A SURVEY AS STATISTICAL WAY TO OBTAIN RELEVANT DATA

• SURVEY. 2 groups of items, both formulated

for each person questionned: QOL Index Use of ICTs (Internet)

METHODOLOGY (II)

1st PHASE: Pilot Survey

– Carry out a check sample constituted by students from the

Senior Citizen’s University:

– Validity/Clarity/Efficacy of the survey?

2ns PHASE: Sample Selection

– Random Sample: 2 parameters

Place of residence: Territorial diversity/Environment incidence Activity: Diversity of activities, occupations, interests,

possibilities and circumstances related to senior citizens

METHODOLOGY (III)

3rd PHASE: Conducting the Survey

– People over 50 years – Take advantage of the contacts made during the previous

phase

– Both items formulated for each person: QOL and ICTs

4th

PHASE: Structure and analysis

• f

the information obtained

– Relationship between the use of ICTs and QOL?

WHAT WE HAVE ALREADY DONE

We have complete the First Phase: Pilot

Survey in Vinaroz, where the Senior Citizen’s University has a senior education programme.

We

have complete the Second Phase: Sample Seletion.

We have some provisional datas to expose.

POVISIONAL CONCLUSIONS (I)

QOL:

– The average QOL self-perception of the

questioned people is 7 (in a scale from 1 to 10), but:

People who uses ICTs (Internet) frequently usually have

a better QOL self-perception.

We can confirm that people who live in rural areas

usually have a worst consideration to ICTs, and most of them belive that ICTs are unnecessary for their daily life.

PROVISIONAL CONCLUSIONS (II)

• ICTs:

–

Reasons why senior citizens don’t use a computer/the Internet:

• A. Lack of knowledge

(45,6%)

• B. Lack of interest (40%)
• C. Lack of access (37.4%)
• D. High cost (14,4 %)
• E. Feeling that there is a

lack of security (8,1%)

Why senior citizens don't use the Internet

45,6 40 37,4 14,4 8,1 10 20 30 40 50 A B C D E %

PROVISIONAL CONCLUSIONS (III)

– Statements that senior citizens questioned are agreed with:

Science and technology development allows life to be more

beneficial and easy (44.2%)

Science and technology development is essential for a society

progress (44.1%)

Too much attention is payed to science, and not enough to

• ther values which are necessary to improve the world (28%)

New technologies are within everybody reach (16,2%) Scientific and technological innovations are imposed without

valuing the effects that they can have on people’s life and the society, in a long time (14%)

The Internet is a safe mean (7%)

PROVISIONAL CONCLUSIONS (IV)

The QOL concept contemplate both personal factors (health,

life satisfaction, independence) and socio-environmental factors (support networks, social services…)

Permanent education (in ICTs) facilitates personal interaction

processes recognised as being beneficial

A significant social participation is especially important to

improve QOL in senior Citizens

• Digital literacy is seemingly to promote the significant social

participation, fortiying the social support networks, the self- steem and making senior citizens participants of the material advantages that ICTs offer.

THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH!