Date: 28-09-2023 Venue: Leuven, Belgium

​

​

BETA TPM2

​

BETA Survey Results

​

​

Ildiko Van Rillaer, Nathalie Drooghmans en Maria Romeo-Velilla

UC Leuven-Limburg

Erasmus+ | ID: 2022-1-EL01-KA220-ADU-000088752 | Acronym: BETA

Funding Scheme: Erasmus+, KA220

Project website: www.eu-beta.com

To outline the digital needs, skills, interest and online behaviour of the elderly population.

​

Results divided into the following sections:

• Requirements, target group and areas of interest of the survey
• Demographic details of the participants
• Users of digital devices such as computers, tablets, smartphones
• Users of landline phones and mobile phones without internet
• Questions for both groups of users

​

​

BETA survey

Survey for the purposes of needs analysis

Target group:

• elderly aged 60+ years
• living in Belgium, Cyprus, Greece and Italy
• no cognitive diseases that could have a negative influence on their digital behaviour
• users and non-users of digital devices

​

Areas of interest:

• Use of digital devices (purpose, frequency, confidence)
• Use of digital applications (purpose, frequency, confidence)
• User satisfaction with current digital offer
• Suggestions for improvement
• Online interests
• Possible interest in learning to use digital media: what would they like to learn and how

BETA questionnaire

Period: May and June 2023

Aim: collection of at least 50 questionnaires per partner, i.e. around 300 in total

Result: 296 filled-in questionnaires – 282 eligible answers

BETA questionnaire

The report shows a breakdown of answers per country, to help the facilitation of laboratories – not with the purpose of drawing conclusions on the digital behaviour of the local elderly population.

Our participants

BETA questionnaire

Our participants

BETA questionnaire

Digital devices

• Do you use it?
• If not, why?

BETA questionnaire – digital devices

Digital devices - frequency

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

• The most frequently used digital communication device was the smartphone, followed by the portable computer and the tablet.
• About 90% of the participants only uses these 4 devices: desktop computer, portable computer, tablet, smartphone. Additional devices were: TV, landline phone, Nintendo Wii, smartwatch.
• The fact that some elderly also consider it important to mention that they use other devices such as the Nintendo Wii or the smartwatch shows a good understanding of digital communication.

Digital communication

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

Digital communication with age groups

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

Digital devices - purpose

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

• Digital devices are overwhelmingly used for communication purposes, followed by the reading of daily news and relaxation activities
• The least popular purpose was using the digital device for services (buying and selling)
• The individual countries showed significant differences when it came to purpose of use of digital devices

​

How does digital communication take place?

Participants answered the question “how often do you use X for digital communication”, for a number of applications:

• Phone
• SMS text message
• Email
• WhatsApp
• Facebook
• Messenger
• Skype
• FaceTime
• Google Meet
• Zoom
• Viber
• Instagram
• another application?

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

• Most popular applications per country:
• Belgium: 1. WhatsApp; 2. E-mails; 3. Phone
• Cyprus: 1. Phone; 2. SMS text messages; 3. WhatsApp
• Greece: 1. Phone; 2. Viber; 3. Facebook
• Italy: 1. WhatsApp; 2. Phone; 3. Facebook
• Least used applications per country:
• Belgium: Viber
• Cyprus: Skype and Instagram
• Greece: Google Meet and FaceTime
• Italy: Viber
• Additional popular applications the elderly used were, in order of popularity, YouTube, MS Teams and TikTok.

Motivation

What was your reason to start using digital communication, was it:

• … because you had to?
• … because you wanted to keep up?
• … because you find it easy?
• … because you find it efficient?
• … because you wanted to learn and you are curious?
• … another reason?

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

• The majority of the elderly that took part in the survey recognised the efficiency and importance of digital communication and was curious to learn how to use digital devices.
• Additional motivational factors to start using digital communication were
• the need to communicate with family members,
• work
• the intention to keep up with the digitalization of everyday business, such as banking.

Initial challenges

Which difficulties did you have to face when you started using digital communication, did you:

• … have little help?
• … have to buy a device?
• … have to get internet installed?
• … find it challenging to buy a digital device?
• … have to learn a lot?
• … have another challenge?

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

• Most important challenge: having to learn a lot in order to participate in digital communication
• The majority also had to acquire a digital device, and the purchase of this was financially challenging for about one-fifth of all respondents across the countries.
• Visual aspects of digital communication formed another challenge: these include the size of the screens, the functionality of touchscreens as well as the meaning of icons

Learning to use digital communication

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

How do you feel about online communication? Is it…

• Easy?
• Safe?
• Risky?
• Fun?
• A positive development?
• Not as good as face-to-face contact?
• An advantage that you don’t need to move around?

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

• The majority of the elderly found digital communication a positive development and fun.
• Those that find digital communication safe were roughly as many as those that considered it risky.
• Slightly less than half of those questioned thought digital communication was easy.
• Slightly more than half of the elderly preferred face-to-face contact, while half of the participants appreciated the advantage of not having to leave their home

For which purpose do you use digital communication?

• Ask for help
• Contact at positive events
• Contact at negative events
• Keep in contact
• Not to feel alone
• Keep up-to-date
• Other purposes?

​

What could be improved in digital communication?

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

• Most of the elderly used digital communication to keep in touch.
• Positive or negative news made no difference in the frequency of digital contact.
• The second biggest purpose of use was to keep themselves informed.

​

• Many older people would like the digital devices and applications to become more user-friendly, particularly not to change the interface too frequently or indicate more clearly what each button or functionality does.
• The elderly would like to feel safer online.
• More help, e.g. in the shop or by customer services, would be welcome.
• Another suggested improvement was to make the Internet cheaper or free.

Opinion about digital communication

• I feel confident to communicate digitally
• I feel connected to my network
• I feel connected to the younger generation
• Without the use of digital communication

I would feel isolated

• When I have a problem, I contact my network

through digital technology

• Because of digital communication I feel

part of the digital world

• I feel part of society (I feel an active citizen)

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

• The majority of the elderly felt that digital communication played an important role in maintaining contact with family members and the younger generation
• Half of those asked agreed that:
• they felt comfortable to communicate digitally
• felt part of society through this
• felt part of the digital world
• they would use digital communication to ask for help
• without digital communication they would feel isolated

Online behaviour

Participants of the survey could choose a topic they would be interested in online:

• Cooking/baking
• Gardening, flower arranging
• History, art and religion
• Online card games and board games
• News
• Digital skills (online safety, use of applications…)
• Staying active (bicycle-, walking- and danceclubs…), sport
• People and society (sharing stories, experiences)
• Creative hobbies
• Making music
• Other topic
• None of the above

BETA questionnaire – digital devices (computers, tablets, smartphones)

Frequency of usage of landline phone and mobile phone without internet

BETA questionnaire – landline phones and mobile phones without internet connection

Phone communication with age groups

BETA questionnaire – landline phones and mobile phones without internet connection

(significant differences between individual countries)

Reasons for using the phone for communication instead of digital devices

• I had little or no help to make the switch
• I don’t want to buy a digital device
• I don’t want to have internet installed
• I cannot afford a computer or smartphone
• I would need to learn a lot
• I think digital communication is risky
• I find landline phone and mobile phone easy to use

and enough for me

BETA questionnaire – landline phones and mobile phones without internet connection

• Half of the participants agreed that they lacked help to move on to digital communication.
• The need to buy a digital device kept some people from using digital communication.
• The price of digital devices was for most people not an obstacle for digital communication.
• The requirement to install internet was not viewed as an obstacle for starting to use digital communication.
• People do not keep using the phone due to risks of digital communication.
• The elderly are worried that they would have to learn a lot to start using digital communication.
• For the majority of the participants the phone was enough for their communication needs; less than one-fifth disagreed with this

Purpose of using the phone for communication

Participants could select from the following options and say if the communication took place very often, often, regularly, sometimes or never:

• To ask for help
• To make contact at positive events
• To make contact at negative events
• To keep in contact
• Not to feel alone

BETA questionnaire – landline phones and mobile phones without internet connection

• Asking for assistance was not a primary reason to use the phone.
• People called or sent a text with positive and negative news alike.
• Almost everyone used the phone to keep in touch, but not so much to prevent isolation.
• Another reason to use the phone was asking for (practical) information, e.g. “how soon will you be back?”

Digital curiousity

Less than half of all participants would be interested in learning to use a new digital device.

BETA questionnaire

Learning preferences

BETA questionnaire

Questions? Feedback?

Did the results surprise you in any way?

BETA questionnaire

Thank you for your attention

Contact: Ildiko Van Rillaer; ildiko.vanrillaer@ucll.be

Bridges of Intergenerational Approach

Erasmus+ | ID: 2022-1-EL01-KA220-ADU-000088752