Locked down and left out

Physical isolation is being compounded by digital exclusion for some senior citizens, say Professor Miriam Lips and Dr Elizabeth Eppel.

Lockdown, social isolation and social distancing to restrict the spread of Covid-19 have underlined the need for all New Zealanders to be able to make use of digital devices and the internet. And yet research confirms some groups are more likely to be digitally excluded than others.

One of these groups is people over 65. In a recent study of 158 people aged 65 and older, we tried to better understand their digital inclusion and exclusion.

It would be a mistake to see this group as uniform; we found a large variety of internet users and nonusers. This has implications for how we tackle this problem.

Investment in rural broadband, and the Government providing digital devices to students who don’t have internet at home, may not be enough for digital inclusion for all. Our research makes it clear that having access to a laptop, iPad or a mobile phone and internet in the home doesn’t automatically guarantee these are effectively used in ways that support quality of everyday life through communication and access to online services.

Research participants often had a device, but were not using it, or using it only for a minor function such as playing games. In general, seniors who were not using the internet didn’t think they needed it, and preferred alternatives such as face-to-face communication or having somebody else do things digitally on their behalf. Many

admitted they lacked the skills or confidence to use the internet. For many, having an internet connection was too expensive for their limited budget.

For those who rejected internet devices, their preference was time for other things, such as gardening or reading a book. Also, they valued traditional methods of interaction, such as in-person and cash transactions, or using a landline.

Many seniors over 85 had never used the internet while in the workforce, and declared themselves too old to learn new things. Others had undertaken a course, but often found group courses unsatisfactory: tailored, one-on-one teaching would have worked better for them.

Those who lacked confidence commonly had privacy and security concerns, but also were scared of making mistakes, while doing internet banking for instance. Some devices they declared as just too hard to use for older eyes and arthritic fingers.

Or participants said they had difficulty getting the information they wanted from internet service providers about suitable service plans and devices. They felt these were often tailored to younger users’ needs.

Living in a retirement village is no guarantee of internet availability, as some don’t provide a connection for residents, or a public device as part of their service. So residents must fund their own connections at

considerable cost.

Many non-users asked someone else, often a partner, child or grandchild, to use the internet on their behalf, eg to pay bills, make purchases or set up direct debits. This strategy had failed for some, when these support people were suddenly gone (for instance, through death or moving away). Without a backup plan for their internet use, these seniors were suddenly digitally excluded again.

Pandemic isolation underlines that everyone would benefit from internet use. Evidence of high levels of digital exclusion in some younger groups suggests the problem of digitally isolated seniors will not just die out.

The Government needs to make sure seniors can afford the internet and are assisted to have the skills and confidence to be digitally included. One-on-one training courses at which they can get information about the latest apps, ask questions and build confidence, is one suggestion. An easily accessible help-desk and subsidised home internet services and devices for people with low income would also help.

Professor Miriam Lips is the chair in digital government, and Dr Elizabeth Eppel is a senior research fellow, in the Wellington School of Business and Government at Victoria University. The research report is available at wgtn.ac.nz/sog/researchcentres/ egovt