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Designing mobile technology for elderly. A theoretical overview

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  • Iancu, Ioana
  • Iancu, Bogdan

Abstract

Aging of the population, an increased life expectancy, and the need for an independent living are already widely recognized social changes that put a massive pressure on the healthcare system. In this context, the inclusion and involvement of elders in the IT society is mandatory. Assistive technology (technology designed to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of older adults,), due to its impressive evolution, is believed to be capable of solving the gap between the wishes of the elders and their needs. Although a wide range of technology is present in the daily lives of seniors, directly dealing with it can be frustrating and stigmatizing especially due to the lack of ease of use. It is erroneously considered that technology design is already user-friendly. Considering the deterioration of physical and cognitive abilities, the present paper is a theoretical overview on the most important design principles and device features needed to fulfill the elders’ needs. This review can serve as a starting point for researchers and practitioners in their endeavor to design more suitable technology for older people.

Suggested Citation

  • Iancu, Ioana & Iancu, Bogdan, 2020. "Designing mobile technology for elderly. A theoretical overview," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 155(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:tefoso:v:155:y:2020:i:c:s0040162519302069
    DOI: 10.1016/j.techfore.2020.119977
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Loredana Ivan & Mireia Fernández-Ardèvol, 2017. "Older People, Mobile Communication and Risks," Societies, MDPI, vol. 7(2), pages 1-16, April.
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    Cited by:

    1. Erik Piculell & Lisa Skär & Johan Sanmartin Berglund & Peter Anderberg & Doris Bohman, 2021. "Using a Mobile Application for Health Communication to Facilitate a Sense of Coherence: Experiences of Older Persons with Cognitive Impairment," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-16, October.
    2. Manoela Vieira Gomes da Costa & Renata Puppin Zandonadi & Verônica Cortez Ginani & Silvana Schwerz Funghetto & Luciano Ramos de Lima & Tania Cristina Morais Santa Barbara Rehem & Marina Morato Stival, 2025. "Connecting Health and Technology: Validation of Instant Messaging for Use as Diabetes Mellitus Control Strategy in Older Brazilian Adults," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 22(2), pages 1-12, February.
    3. Frishammar, Johan & Essén, Anna & Bergström, Frida & Ekman, Tilda, 2023. "Digital health platforms for the elderly? Key adoption and usage barriers and ways to address them," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    4. Leite, Higor & Hodgkinson, Ian R. & Lachowski Volochtchuk, Ana Vitória & Cavalcante Nascimento, Thiago, 2024. "‘It's not the boogeyman’: How voice assistant technology is bridging the digital divide for older people," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).
    5. Preet Naik & Dolores Álamo-Junquera & Laura Igual & Marc Serrajordi & Albert Pérez & Carles Pericas & Constança Pagès-Fernández & Tarun Reddy Katapally & María Grau, 2024. "A Sustainable mHealth Intervention to Promote Physical Activity for Healthy Aging: A Pilot Study of the “Every Walk You Take” Citizen Science Initiative," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(13), pages 1-12, June.
    6. Yu Song & Chenfei Qian & Susan Pickard, 2021. "Age-Related Digital Divide during the COVID-19 Pandemic in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-13, October.
    7. Chengxiang Chu & Zhenyang Shen & Hanyi Xu & Qizhi Wei & Cong Cao, 2024. "How to avoid sinking in swamp: exploring the intentions of digitally disadvantaged groups to use a new public infrastructure that combines physical and virtual spaces," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-17, December.
    8. Liwen Xia & Mengyuan Qiu, 2025. "How Are Travel E-Commerce Platforms Becoming Sustainable? A Discrete Choice Experiment Based on the Technology Acceptance Preferences of Elderly Tourists," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(4), pages 1-22, February.
    9. Mukhtar Fatihu Hamza & Ahmed Farouk Kineber, 2023. "Normative Data on the Maximum Twisting Force for an Elderly Person’s Sustainable Life," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-14, March.
    10. An, Siyang & Cheung, Chi Fai & Willoughby, Kelvin W., 2024. "A gamification approach for enhancing older adults' technology adoption and knowledge transfer: A case study in mobile payments technology," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 205(C).
    11. Cenamor, Javier, 2022. "Use of health self-management platform features: The case of a specialist ehealth app," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 185(C).
    12. Nam, Jinyoung & Kim, Seongcheol, 2022. "Why do elderly people feel negative about the use of self-service technology and how do they cope with the negative emotions?," 31st European Regional ITS Conference, Gothenburg 2022: Reining in Digital Platforms? Challenging monopolies, promoting competition and developing regulatory regimes 265661, International Telecommunications Society (ITS).

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