Essential Digital Competencies for the Citizen Empowerment of Older Adults
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25765/sauc.v11.5680Keywords:
Older adult, Digital competencies, Empowerment, CitizenshipAbstract
The objective of this article is to identify the essential competences for empowering the senior collective by guaranteeing their digital citizenship. A methodological triangulation is proposed based on a systematic review of the literature, a participant observation with 45 older adults, users of the Canal Sénior platform, and an open qualitative survey applied to 24 of these subjects. The results reflect the priority of strengthening three competences: Digital safety; digital communication; and management of health information available online. These findings show the scarcity of training for the development of a critical use of technologies by older adults. The change in the ways of communicating and accessing information requires meeting the demand of seniors with new knowledge and skills. This study provides a glimpse of the digital deficiencies of this sector of the population, but it also reveals the need for further research in this area.
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