Grandpa's Best Friend
We gifted my grandfather an apple Ipad recently and now the tablet has become an extremely important part of his life. He enjoys sliding through pictures so he can go down memory lane, he loves researching about new things on Google and listening to old songs on you tube, further just by a click of a button he can get connected with me and stay in touch through Skype, even when I am seven thousand miles away.
The elderly can take advantage of the new gadgets and technology, since these tablets in comparison to the laptops and computers are much user friendly, which makes it easier for the older generation to operate them and login to the online world. In spite of the benefits these gadgets have for the elderly, a survey shows that around nine percent of the adults don’t use any gadgets, including 43 percent of the adults aged seventy-five and older. Even though there has been an increase in the portion of the over 65 age group using tablets, from eight percent to fifteen percent and people aged over 75 from three percent to twelve percent. |
The reason for this minimal increase in the use of technology and the continuing low access to the gadgets by the elderly is firstly, the resistance to change. Our generation came into a world where computers were a part of our lives and so for us it was easier to adapt to the technology. However for our grand parents the situation isn't the same, instead of researching on Google for their projects, they went to libraries and looked through various books, moreover they hand wrote their assignment rather than typing them on computers and laptops. This generational gap acts as hindrance for them to adapt to these changes, and hence they still prefer the olden techniques. The second factor is the cost of the gadgets. There are many elderly people who want to learn about the latest technology and access the Internet but the costly gadgets make them reluctant to buy them. While some are resistant to change others can’t afford it. These hindrances need to be taken up as important issues so that more awareness and steps can be taken towards providing greater access to technology by the elderly and these gadgets can act as a source of support for them in their time of loneliness.
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