Prelims

Johanna L. H. Birkland (Bridgewater College, USA)

ISBN: 978-1-78743-292-5, eISBN: 978-1-78743-291-8

Publication date: 5 February 2019

pdf (152 KB) ePub (199 KB)

Citation

Birkland, J.L.H. (2019), "Prelims", Gerontechnology, Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. i-xii. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-78743-291-820191018

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

License

Except where otherwise noted, this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Licence (CC BY 4.0). Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this book (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence may be seen at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Half Title Page

GERONTECHNOLOGY

Title Page

GERONTECHNOLOGY

Understanding Older Adult Information and Communication Technology Use

BY

JOHANNA L. H. BIRKLAND

Bridgewater College, USA

United Kingdom – North America – Japan – India – Malaysia – China

Copyright Page

Emerald Publishing Limited

Howard House, Wagon Lane, Bingley BD16 1WA, UK

First edition 2019

Except where otherwise noted, this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Licence (CC BY 4.0).

Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this book (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence may be seen at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-1-78743-292-5 (Print)

ISBN: 978-1-78743-291-8 (Online)

ISBN: 978-1-78743-949-8 (EPub)

An electronic version of this book is freely available, thanks to the support of libraries working with Knowledge Unlatched. KU is a collaborative initiative designed to make high quality books Open Access for the public good. More information about the initiative and links to the Open Access version can be found at www.knowledgeunlatched.org

Dedication

To my children: for reminding me the joys of curiosity and always giving me a reason to adventure.

To my husband: for being an equal partner (in crime).

List of Figures

Figure 1.	Alice’s Living Room, Seen From her Front Door	20
Figure 2.	(a) Boris’ Computer Room and (b) Boris’ Entertainment Room.	37
Figure 3.	Gwen’s Cell Phone Is Never Far From Her Reach.	53
Figure 4.	Nancy’s Walker with her Portable Pad and Pen.	54
Figure 5.	Mindy Jean’s Living Room Television.	67
Figure 6.	Mindy Jean Keeps Her Digital Camera and Computer Hidden in this Desk.	70
Figure 7.	Margaret’s ICT-free Living Room.	82
Figure 8.	Margaret’s Boyfriend’s Television.	84
Figure 9.	Willingness to Try New ICTs.	99
Figure 10.	Fun versus Function.	100
Figure 11.	Positive versus Negative Experiences with Technology.	101
Figure 12.	Willingness to Experiment/Play (On Their Own) with ICTs.	102
Figure 13.	ICT Anxiety.	103
Figure 14.	Self-assessed Skill Level.	104
Figure 15.	Tendency Toward Technological Nostalgia.	105
Figure 16.	An Example of a Lifeline Phone.	147

List of Tables

Table 1.	The ICT User Typology: Comparison of the Five User Types.	96
Table 2.	Secondary Participants by Generation and ICT User Type.	111
Table 3.	Designing Products and Services for the Five User Types.	153
Table 4.	Case Sampling Frame with Cases Completed.	165

About the Author

Johanna L. H. Birkland is an Assistant Professor in Communication Studies at Bridgewater College in Bridgewater, Virginia, USA. An interdisciplinary Gerontechnology scholar, she uses a mixture of approaches to study how technology use changes over the life course as well as intergenerational technology use and communication.

Acknowledgments

This research would not be possible without the participants who invited me into their homes and lives: thank you for sharing your stories with me. I appreciate the support of my current Bridgewater College colleagues, too numerous to list. Many thanks to Sarah Chauncey and Fatima Espinosa Vasquez for their numerous discussions about the material within these pages, and for being friends in addition to colleagues. I want to recognize and thank my mentors and those who guided my development as a researcher, most notably Michelle Kaarst-Brown, Janet Wilmoth, Renee Hill, and Steve Sawyer. I gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Bridgewater College Faculty Research Fund and the Syracuse University School of Information Studies Katzer Doctoral Research Fund. Thank you to the support team at Emerald, most notably Jen McCall and Rachel Ward. On a personal note, I want to thank the late Kathy Berggren for her support and mentorship. Finally, I owe my husband, Aaron, and my children, a debt of gratitude for supporting me, always.

Book Chapters

Prelims

Chapter 1 Understanding Older Adult Technology Use: An Introduction to the ICT User Typology

Chapter 2 Enthusiasts: The Technological Evangelists

Chapter 3 Practicalists: The Technological Tool Users

Chapter 4 Socializers: The Technological Social Butterflies

Chapter 5 Traditionalists: The Keepers of Technological Tradition

Chapter 6 Guardians: The Technological Resistance Fighters

Chapter 7 Understanding the ICT User Typology and the User Types

Chapter 8 User Types and the Life Course: Toward Understanding the Universality of User Types

Chapter 9 The ICT User Typology in Context: A Theoretical Perspective

Chapter 10 Breaking the Digital Divide

Chapter 11 Discovery of the ICT User Typology

Glossary

References

Index