Intergenerational digital feedback and digital social integration of older adults: an empirical study from personal initiative perspective – Nature

Report on Digital Inclusion for Older Adults: An Analysis of Intergenerational Support and its Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals

Executive Summary

This report analyzes the mechanisms influencing the digital social integration (DSI) of older adults through their use of Artificial Intelligence Products (AIPs). Based on a mixed-method study involving 549 survey respondents and 11 interview participants, the research identifies personal initiative as the critical factor for successful DSI. This initiative is fostered by the individual’s motivation and capability, which are significantly influenced by intergenerational digital feedback from family, community, and society. The findings reveal that societal-level support has the most substantial impact, and motivation is a more potent driver of technology use than capability. This research directly informs strategies for achieving several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), by providing a framework to bridge the digital divide and ensure older populations are not left behind in an increasingly digital world.

Introduction: The Digital Divide and the SDG Imperative

The convergence of rapid population aging and accelerating digitalization has created a significant societal challenge: the digital exclusion of older adults. This “digital divide” prevents a growing demographic from accessing essential services, participating fully in society, and maintaining their well-being, directly conflicting with the core SDG principle of “leaving no one behind.” Digital exclusion negatively impacts older adults’ physical and mental health, diminishes their sense of self-worth, and leads to social and cultural isolation. This study investigates how leveraging AIPs, supported by intergenerational feedback, can foster the DSI of older adults, thereby promoting inclusive and sustainable development.

Research Findings on Digital Social Integration (DSI)

Methodology Overview

• An explanatory sequential mixed-method design was employed.
• Quantitative Phase: A questionnaire survey was administered to 549 older adults who use AIPs.
• Qualitative Phase: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 participants from the quantitative phase to provide deeper context.

Key Drivers of Digital Social Integration

The study, based on the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, Behavior (COM-B) model, identified the following causal relationships:

1. Intergenerational Digital Feedback (The Opportunity): Support from younger generations and societal institutions is a crucial external factor.
   • Societal Feedback: Support from government and enterprises demonstrated the strongest positive impact on older adults’ motivation and capability to use AIPs.
   • Family Feedback: Support from offspring positively influenced both motivation and capability.
   • Community Feedback: While community programs enhanced the capability (digital skills) of older adults, they did not show a significant impact on their motivation to use technology.
2. Personal Initiative (The Behavior): An older adult’s own proactive engagement is the central mechanism for DSI.
   • Motivation to Use: This was found to be a more significant predictor of personal initiative than capability. An older adult’s intrinsic desire to use AIPs (e.g., for social connection, health monitoring) is paramount.
   • Capability to Use: An individual’s perceived skill and confidence in using AIPs also significantly contributes to their personal initiative.
3. Digital Social Integration (The Outcome): Successful integration is characterized by acculturation and a strengthened sense of identity.
   • Personal initiative to use AIPs was proven to significantly enhance both acculturation (adapting to digital culture) and identity (feeling of belonging in the digital society).
   • The impact of personal initiative was stronger on building a positive digital identity than on acculturation.

Implications for Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

Promoting DSI for older adults is critical for ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all at all ages.

• Digital inclusion grants older adults better access to online health information and telemedicine services.
• The use of AIPs, such as smart health monitors, supports proactive health management and autonomy.
• Engagement with digital society helps reduce loneliness, depression, and the risk of cognitive decline.

SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

The digital divide is a primary driver of age-based inequality. This research provides a roadmap to reduce this inequality within and among countries.

• Actively integrating older adults into the digital world ensures they are not marginalized and can equally benefit from technological progress.
• The study highlights the need to address systemic barriers, such as ageism in technology design and a lack of tailored support, to foster social and economic inclusion for all.

SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

Creating inclusive, safe, and resilient communities requires catering to the needs of all residents, including older adults.

• Community-level support, such as digital training centers and mentorship programs, is vital for enhancing the digital capability of older residents.
• Fostering digitally inclusive communities strengthens social cohesion and ensures older adults can maintain independence and participate in civic life.

SDG 4, 9, and 17: Cross-Cutting Contributions

• SDG 4 (Quality Education): The findings underscore the importance of lifelong learning opportunities, specifically in digital literacy for older adults, facilitated through intergenerational and community-based teaching.
• SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure): The report calls for innovation that is inclusive by design. Enterprises must develop age-appropriate AIPs and digital infrastructure that consider the needs and preferences of older users.
• SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals): Achieving digital inclusion requires a multi-stakeholder approach. Effective partnerships between governments, the private sector (tech companies), community organizations, and families are essential to create a supportive ecosystem.

Recommendations for Policy and Practice

1. For Governments and Public Institutions:
   • Develop and fund national strategies for digital literacy among older adults, emphasizing empowerment over simple access.
   • Implement policies that incentivize enterprises to create age-friendly technologies and services.
   • Foster multi-sector collaboration to ensure a coordinated, society-wide approach to digital inclusion.
2. For Technology Enterprises:
   • Integrate user-centric and participatory design principles, involving older adults in the development process of AIPs.
   • Provide accessible, patient, and continuous customer support and training tailored to older users.
   • Prioritize features that enhance motivation, such as ease of use, clear utility for daily life, and social connectivity.
3. For Communities and Families:
   • Community centers should act as hubs for digital learning, offering structured courses and informal peer-to-peer support networks.
   • Families should provide not only instrumental help (how-to guidance) but also crucial emotional support (patience, encouragement) to build confidence and motivation.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

  The article directly connects digital social exclusion with negative health outcomes for older adults, such as a higher “risk of cognitive impairment” and increased “rates of depression.” Conversely, it highlights how Artificial Intelligence Products (AIPs), like “social robots” and “smart home technologies,” can improve well-being by reducing isolation, maintaining autonomy, and providing access to “health information and medical services.”

• SDG 4: Quality Education

  The article emphasizes the importance of improving “digital literacy” and “digital capability” among older adults. It discusses various educational approaches, such as “intergenerational digital feedback,” where younger generations guide the older generation, and formal training programs organized by communities (“AI training class in the community”) and other social organizations. This aligns with the goal of promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all.

• SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

  The core of the article revolves around the use of advanced technology, specifically “artificial intelligence products (AIPs),” to address the societal challenge of an aging population. It discusses the development and deployment of innovative solutions like “social robots,” “smart home technologies,” and “intelligent glucose meters.” This relates to fostering innovation and upgrading technological capabilities to build inclusive and sustainable infrastructure (in this case, digital infrastructure).

• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

  This is a central theme of the article. The entire study is framed around “bridging the digital divide” and combating the “digital social exclusion” of older adults. The article explicitly states that older adults are “increasingly marginalized due to their underuse of digital services.” By exploring ways to enhance their “digital social integration (DSI),” the research directly addresses the need to empower and promote the social inclusion of all, irrespective of age.

• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

  The article highlights the crucial role of the “community” in supporting older adults. It mentions that “support from the community is crucial to awaken a self-awareness” and that communities provide a space for older adults to learn and practice using AIPs through “community volunteers, young mentors, and health service providers.” This contributes to making human settlements more inclusive and supportive for all age groups.

• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

  The article strongly advocates for a multi-stakeholder approach, stating that promoting the integration of older adults “requires joint efforts across society.” It identifies a “multi-level intergenerational digital feedback system” that involves collaboration between “family, community, and society (government, enterprises, and social organizations).” This underscores the importance of public, public-private, and civil society partnerships to achieve sustainable development.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

  • Target 3.4: By 2030, reduce by one-third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through prevention and treatment and promote mental health and well-being. The article supports this by discussing how AIPs can help manage chronic conditions (e.g., “intelligent glucose meter”) and reduce “declining mental health and increased rates of depression” linked to digital exclusion.
  • Target 3.8: Achieve universal health coverage, including… access to quality essential health-care services. The article notes that digital exclusion “reduces access to health information and medical services,” while AIPs can improve this access.

• SDG 4: Quality Education

  • Target 4.4: By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills… The article’s focus on improving older adults’ “digital literacy,” “digital capability,” and skills to use AIPs through various forms of support and training directly aligns with this target’s aim of skill acquisition for adults.

• SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

  • Target 9.c: Significantly increase access to information and communications technology and strive to provide universal and affordable access to the Internet. The article’s central theme of “bridging the digital divide” for older adults is a direct reflection of this target, focusing on ensuring a specific demographic group has access to and can use ICT.

• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

  • Target 10.2: By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age… This target is the most relevant, as the article is entirely focused on the “digital social integration (DSI) of older adults” and overcoming the “digital social exclusion” they face.
  • Target 10.3: Ensure equal opportunity and reduce inequalities of outcome… The article’s call for creating a “friendly environment to use AIPs” and for “age-friendly policies” that empower older adults directly relates to ensuring equal opportunity in the digital realm.

• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

  • Target 11.7: By 2030, provide universal access to safe, inclusive and accessible, green and public spaces… The article’s discussion of community centers as places for training and support (“AI training class in the community”) extends the concept of accessible public spaces to include resources that ensure community inclusion for older adults.

• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

  • Target 17.17: Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships… The article explicitly calls for a collaborative system involving “government, enterprises, website designers, and social organizations” in addition to family and community, which perfectly embodies this target.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

  • The article implies indicators such as the “risk of cognitive impairment” and “rates of depression” among older adults, which could be measured to track mental well-being. The use of health-related AIPs, like an “intelligent glucose meter,” is another measurable indicator of technology’s role in health management.

• SDG 4: Quality Education

  • The study measures “capability to use” AIPs, which serves as a direct indicator of digital skills. The article also mentions participation in “AI training class[es] in the community,” suggesting that participation rates in such educational programs for older adults could be a key indicator.

• SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

  • The article explicitly mentions the “acceptance rate of social assistive robots among older Chinese people is 51.0%.” This “acceptance rate” of new technologies is a clear, quantifiable indicator for measuring the adoption of innovation within this demographic.

• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

  • The study’s primary outcome, “Digital Social Integration (DSI),” measured through the dimensions of “acculturation” and “identity,” serves as a comprehensive indicator for social inclusion. The article also refers to the “underuse of digital services such as those related to social interaction, shopping, and transportation,” suggesting that the proportion of older adults using these services can be an indicator of reduced inequality.

• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

  • The article implies that the number of communities providing “systematic training and skill transmission” or having “community centers” that offer digital support can be used as an indicator of how inclusive community infrastructure is for older adults.

• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

  • Progress can be measured by tracking the implementation of a “multi-level intergenerational digital feedback system.” This includes the existence and effectiveness of government programs (“China’s AI Elderly Care Social Experiment”), enterprise customer service initiatives, and community-based support programs, which are all mentioned in the article.

4. Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: nature.com