Community Digital Nets
Mutual Support as Key to Tech Appropriation
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21975188 |
|---|---|
| Authors | David Alonso González (0000-0002-8876-8916, Universidad Complutense de Madrid), Juan Brea Iglesias (0000-0003-4292-5389, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, corresponding author), Adrián Jesús Ricoy-Cano (0000-0002-7354-619X, Universidad de Jaén), Inmaculada Herranz-Aguayo (Servicio de Salud de Castilla La Mancha), Raquel Ávila Muñoz (0000-0001-6798-6829, Universidad Complutense de Madrid), Andrés Arias Astray (0000-0001-8614-0714, Universidad Complutense de Madrid) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 15 |
| Issue | 7 |
| Pages | 450 |
| Publication date | 2026-07-06 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Social Sciences (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2076-0760 • E-ISSN: 2076-0760 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/socsci15070450 |
| OpenAlex | W7167478759 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 32 |
This study examines the processes of technology adoption and appropriation among older adults participating in two community-based digital inclusion workshops (LAB65+) in Madrid, exploring how digital technologies are appropriated within community learning environments and identifying the social, relational, and pedagogical factors that shape this process, with particular attention to the role of mutual support, warm experts, and community learning dynamics. Drawing on a series of workshops and group interaction recordings conducted with regular attendees, the research identifies a set of factors that consistently shape participants’ engagement with digital tools. Particular attention is given to socio-educational background, previous work experience, and prior exposure to technology, as well as to the everyday motivations associated with the use of mobile phones for communication through WhatsApp, online purchasing, access to health services, and routine banking procedures. Across both labs, the findings reveal that successful and sustained engagement with technology among older adults depends less on technical training per se than on elements related to motivation, self-efficacy, meaningful instruction, and the creation or reinforcement of social ties in familiar environments. Although minor differences emerge between the two settings, the evidence consistently underscores the centrality of these relational and contextual factors over purely operational or skill-based considerations. The study highlights the need for community-oriented approaches that recognize and build upon the social dimensions of learning and using technology in later life
Affordance · Appropriation · Centrality · Community engagement · Digital Inclusion · Informal learning · Social relation · Assistive Technology in Communication and Mobility · Impact of Technology on Adolescents · Technology Use by Older Adults
The Deepening Divide
Internet Society
The Digital Disconnect
Gerontechnology acceptance by elderly Hong Kong Chinese
User Acceptance of Information Technology
Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, and User Acceptance of Information Technology
Visual design and accessibility settings
Ageism in the era of digital platforms
Individual and shared digital repertoires – older adults managing digital services
Technology Adoption in Liquid Modernity
Exploring older adults’ ICT support
The digital divide has grown old
Exploring heterogeneous ICT use among older adults
The first-level digital divide shifts from inequalities in physical access to inequalities in material access
The emergence of a “digital underclass” in Great Britain and Sweden
The digital divide shifts to differences in usage
A Double Burden of Exclusion? Digital and Social Exclusion of Older Adults in Times of Covid-19
A nuanced understanding of Internet use and non-use among the elderly
Investigating the multifaceted role of warm experts in enhancing and hindering older adults’ digital skills in Finland
Revisiting digital participation as a prerequisite of digital inclusion
Situated Learning
Coming of (Old) Age in the Digital Age
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |