BACKGROUND
As mobile computing technology evolves, such as a smartphone or a tablet computer, it increasingly offers features that may be particularly beneficial to older adults. However, the digital divide exists, and many older adults have been shown to have difficulty using these devices. The COVID-19 pandemic has magnified how much older adults need but are excluded from having access to technologies to meet essential daily needs and overcome physical distancing restrictions.
OBJECTIVE
This study sought to understand how older adults who had never used a tablet computer learn to use it, what they want to use it for, and what barriers they experience as they continue to use it during social isolation by the COVID-19 pandemic.
METHODS
We conducted a series of semi-structured interviews with eight people aged 65 and older for 16 weeks, investigating older novice users’ adoption and use of a tablet computer during the nationwide lockdown due to COVID-19.
RESULTS
The results show that participants were gradually yet successfully accustomed to using a tablet computer to serve various daily needs, including entertainment, social connectedness, and information-seeking. However, it was not through developing sufficient digital skills but by applying the methods already familiar with in its operation, such as taking and referring to instruction notes.
CONCLUSIONS
Our findings imply that older adults without digital literacy can still benefit from a digital device for quality of later life if proper traditional methods they are already familiar with are offered in its use.
CLINICALTRIAL