Digital Technology Adoption among Older Adults in China’s Transition to a Smart Society

Against the backdrop of an accelerating digital economy and a deepening aging population, the digital technology adoption of China’s older adults has become a critical issue impacting social equity. Drawing on existing research, this paper systematically analyzes the fundamental attitudes, multi-dimensional determinants, and potential enhancement strategies for digital technology adoption among China’s elderly population. It constructs a comprehensive analytical framework encompassing individual, social, technological, and economic factors. The study finds that the willingness to adopt digital technologies among older adults is generally low, yet exhibits significant structural disparities. Older adults in rural areas, those in central and western regions, and elderly women constitute “multiply disadvantaged groups”. Their adoption barriers stem from the interplay of individual resource endowments and psychological characteristics, a lack of robust social support systems, a pervasive “youth-centric” technology design paradigm, and the economic burden of digital access. Accordingly, this paper proposes a systematic set of enhancement strategies across four dimensions: educational empowerment, multi-stakeholder collaboration, institutional safeguards, and grassroots capacity building. This research aims to provide theoretical insights and policy implications for bridging the elderly digital divide, fostering an inclusive digital society, and synergizing the “Digital China” and “Active Aging” national strategies

Digital divide · Digital Inclusion · Disadvantaged · Emerging technologies · Grassroots · Aging and Gerontology Research · Assistive Technology in Communication and Mobility · Technology Use by Older Adults

• Gendered Space

  Open Access•Lisa Dixon, Laura J Dixon et al.•Journal of Computer-Mediated…•2014

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