Tags
baby boomers, elderly, infographic, internet, MedAlertHelp.org, seniors, use
A few weeks back, I posted about the ongoing fight against fake news. As always, I read with great interest the comments. I was surprised by how many people questioned the claim that Facebook users over the age of 65 are far more likely to share fake news than younger users. Particularly, the reasons cited: a lack of digital media literacy by people who didn’t grow up with the internet and age-related cognitive decline.
So, I did a little digging and discovered an Infographic on how the elderly used the Internet, courtesy of MedAlertHelp.org. This infographic convincingly dispels the myth of the computer-illiterate grandpa using correction fluid on the monitor to correct an error. As you’ll see, there are a lot of benefits of seniors using technology–and the seniors themselves would be the first to acknowledge that. Indeed, a whopping 70% of people over the age of 65 use the Internet on a typical day, with baby boomers spending 27 hours per week online! Women lead the way with 87% vs. men’s more modest 66%.
So, if you think that your book marketing efforts are wasted because your audience consists mainly of older readers, perhaps you need to reconsider! Read on for some more great statistics on this:
The Story Reading Ape said:
Reblogged this on Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Darlene said:
My 93-year-old great aunt uses the internet. Seniors love to be able to keep connected with family and friends, especially when traveling is limited. I spend more time on the computer than my kids do!
LikeLiked by 4 people
Nicholas C. Rossis said:
For some reason, it’s not as widespread in Greece among seniors, at least from what I can see. I hope that will soon change!
LikeLiked by 1 person
tidalscribe said:
The internet must be the most fantastic thing ever for the elderly, disabled or anyone restricted to home. As long as they can access help if it stops working! Most of us at some time are going to need on line shopping, Facetime for family, or just the contact with the whole world. An older lady told me once there is nothing wrong with old people sitting watching television all day, better than her grandparents who just used to sit in a dark corner, bored. How things have moved on for our oldest generation!
LikeLiked by 3 people
Nicholas C. Rossis said:
It’s certainly far better than watching television! And yes, things have sure moved on…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Joan Hall said:
Interesting. I’m on the tail end of the Baby Boom generation and I can’t imagine life without the internet.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Oh, absolutely! It’s funny how almost none of the sci-fi predictions had imagined something like it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
John W. Howell said:
Very informative, Nicholas. Speaking as a senior who spends a good share of the day on the internet and computer I don’t know how anyone can function without both. 😊
LikeLiked by 2 people
Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Speaking as an almost-50-year-old, neither can I 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
John W. Howell said:
Ha ha ha.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Staci Troilo said:
My parents and parents-in-law aren’t technology fans. They use the Internet via computer as necessary and the women muddle through with smartphones. But they’d all be happier with the paper-and-pen world we’ve largely left behind.
That said, they do use it. And the more they use it, the better they get at it. I wouldn’t write them off.
Glad you shared this, Nicholas.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Thank you, Staci 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Becky Ross Michael said:
Interesting information! I was surprised that there was no mention of working online, however. For example, my post-retirement earnings are supplemented by doing freelance editing online, mainly with one company.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Nicholas C. Rossis said:
That’s a good point! You’re absolutely right. I now wonder how many others supplement their income through the Internet.
LikeLiked by 1 person
OIKOS™-Publishing said:
Great information, Ncholas! We should give it to our German Parliament. Over 20 years i am monitoring the work of our parliament in the usage of internet. All over the world the people know how to productively use the internet. In exception our parliament dont know, can not teach this, and put Germany into something like a black hole. 😉 I am – so i think – not so old yet, but feeling like the last German internet mohican. Lol Best wishes for the weekend! Michael
LikeLiked by 2 people
Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Lol–the last German Internet Mahican… I wonder if that’s a good thing or a bad one 😀
LikeLike
V.M.Sang said:
Thank you for this, Nicholas. I am an older person who has had a computer since they first became available to the public, ( We had a Commodore Pet), in the 1970s, and was on the internet when it first started. At that time, email addresses were acstring of numbers, and there were so few people on that there was a directory of the local people who had emails. ( about 10 ).
Modems were dial- up and you couldn’t use the phone if someone in the house was on the net.
Because of this, I suppose, I get cross when people talk about how older people can’t use computers. This gives the lie to that idea. We are perfectly able and don’t need to keep calling our grandchildren to show what to do.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Nicholas C. Rossis said:
I actually remember the modem era well. BBS was my introduction to the Internet 🙂
LikeLike
DebyFredericks said:
See? We are not all Luddites.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Lol–there you go 😀
LikeLike
DebyFredericks said:
Also, we tend to sneer at prople of all ages who watch cat videos, but that is more complicated than you might think. Many seniors struggle with depression as they are less able to get out and about. Anything that makes us laugh is an important tool against depression.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Cat videos are my daughter’s favorite kind, so no one is speaking ill of them in this household 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pingback: [Infographic] Người lớn tuổi làm gì trên Internet?