Connecting with the elderly online

ABSTRACT Increasing numbers of older adults above the age of 60 are using new media such as the Internet and smart phones primarily for information seeking and remaining in touch with their family and friends via email. Other studies have examined how older adults navigate and attempt to use these devices for biomedical and technological competency purposes – e.g. medical health information seeking and the design of web pages for older adults. This study attempted to find out more about the motivations of the Singaporean elderly in their use of the Internet and social media from a socioemotional perspective. Based on the socioemotional selectivity theory, where goals related to obtaining emotional meaning from life are most important, the direction of this research was to first establish the socioemotional goals that were important for older adults and whether Internet use and that of social media has had any impact on helping them achieve those goals (selective optimization with compensation model), resulting in an improved sense of socioemotional and/or physical well-being. Hence, by identifying the roles and social and psychological impact of using the Internet and social media in addressing their needs, this study used the narratives of the elderly participants to understand those needs and their lifeworlds. A qualitative method of obtaining data through focus group and individual interviews was used to understand the circumstances and milieu in which these elderly resided to provide an authentic and more detailed picture of their environment – their lifeworlds. The interpretive phenomenological analysis approach surfaced recurring themes from the narratives of the participants in their use of the Internet as they pursued their desire for continual learning and personal interests. This suggests an improved self-definition and feelings of empowerment for themselves. Being connected to others online also helped to satisfy the needs for companionship and friendship, thus reducing feelings of isolation and loneliness. 1 The socioemotional and psychological impact of using the Internet and social media were found to be mostly positive and meaningful for the older Singaporeans. This research, in particular, focused on the social and psychological aspects of Internet and social media usage as recounted by the elderly participants, augmenting existing knowledge of the intangible, socioemotional needs of the increasingly greying population of Singapore, and how the Internet and social media could have a part to play in mitigating the mortal consequences of loneliness. 2 INTRODUCTION There was a great surge in the number of births following the Second World War as a result of families postponing having children during the difficult times of war. Coupled with increased wealth and introduction of mechanised home appliances to assist with house chores in the early 1960s, families began to have more children, leading to the large number of children born between 1946 and 1964, known as the ‘baby boom generation’ (MCYS, 2006). These baby boomers would now be in their 60s and older. The population census conducted in Singapore in 2010 indicated that nine percent of all adults in Singapore were over 65-years of age. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in a speech in 2011 that this percentage will hit 20% by 2030. In the same address, PM Lee said that ‘we are going to have a silver tsunami coming and we need a national effort to plan ahead to be ready for it’ (Lee, 2011). According to the report, ‘An Uncertain Age: Reimagining long-term care in the 21st Century’ (2013) by KPMG International, commissioned by the Lien Foundation, Singapore ‘has one of the fastest ageing populations in the world’ (KPMG, 2013), having ‘to cope with 870,000 elderly people in 2030, and the median age of Singapore’s resident population rising from 39 years to 49 in 2030 and 55 in 2050’ (KPMG, 2013). Further, a Paper issued by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in 2012 posits that ‘life expectancy is 78 years in developed countries and 68 years in developing regions between 2010-2015’, which is slightly lower than Singapore’s average life expectancy of 83.2 years for females and 78.4 years for males (Dept of Statistics, 2009). With a rapidly ageing population, government bodies and researchers have conducted surveys on the needs and state of older adults in Singapore. For example, the National Survey of Senior Citizens completed in 2005 by the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports, was undertaken to ‘map the financial, physical and social health of senior citizens in Singapore’ (MCYS, 2005). The main objectives of the survey were to determine the socio-economic profile, living 3 arrangements, the family, financial and care support systems of senior citizens in Singapore; their health, physical, mental and functional status; the types of problems they face and how they are coping; their awareness and use of existing services for senior citizens; their employment status and their attitude towards employment and retirement issues; their social health and contributions to family and society (involvement in leisure, grandparenting, volunteering and community activities), and the extent of active ageing in Singapore. The Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) conducted a survey of infocomm usage of households and individuals in Singapore in 2009 (IDA, 2010) which found about 83% of all households had at least one computer in their homes and 81% of these had access to the Internet. Of the total sample, 14% of the households had adults above 60 years who used the computer and only 13% accessed the Internet. Of the 13% who accessed the Internet, 70% went online at least once a day and the top two primary Internet activities were to communicate with others and to search for information. The two most commonly cited reasons for not using the Internet were: a lack of knowledge (51%) and a lack of interest (47%) (IDA, 2010). However, this survey did not include the number of elderly who had smartphones with access to the Internet. There are many benefits for the elderly in using the Internet. As life expectancy increases and we are living longer, the Internet is a good tool for communication and to obtain information, especially health information. A survey conducted by the Pew Research Center found that more than 70% of the American population has used the Internet to search for health information (Pew Research Center, 2011). Out of a sample size of 2,252 people for the same survey, 14% who used the Internet were more than 65 years old (Pew Research Center, 2011). This might be particularly pertinent to the elderly in Singapore in terms of the number of older persons using the Internet as a means of obtaining information about their health and well-being. Not every elderly who has access to the Internet or a smartphone may know how to make best use of the technology. In a study conducted by Lim and Tan (2003), they found that elderly members of wired households with computers, Internet 4 connections and mobile phones suffer from social exclusion within their households as a result of their ignorance of these new technologies (Lim and Tan, 2003). This suggests a divide which stems not from their lack of access to new ICTs but from social exclusion arising from their ignorance of new technologies (Lim and Tan, 2003). Being connected with their friends and families online might also help the elderly combat loneliness and depression and hence improve their well-being (Shapira, Barak, and Gal, 2007). A recent study by Chan et al (Tan, 2014), reported in The Straits Times on 5 January 2014, showed that loneliness significantly increases the risk of early death among Singapore’s elderly and it did not matter whether they were living alone or with their families. The longitudinal study tracked 5,000 Singaporeans aged 60 and above for two years and found that those who said they were lonely in 2009 were more likely to have died by the end of 2011 (Tan, 2014). It was also mentioned in the report that more men than women said they were lonely (Tan, 2014). What does it mean for older adults who access the Internet to communicate with others and to search for the information they want? Why would they choose the Internet as a means and medium for them to do so? How does accessing the Internet and social media meet their needs for communication and self-improvement? These questions became the two core foci for this study and research to understand the circumstances and motivations behind why older adults in Singapore would choose the Internet and social media as their vehicle for communication and information. By examining the role and impact that the use of the Internet and social media has had on the elderly, this study is important as it situated the lifeworlds of the elderly against their use of the Internet and social media. This research, in particular, focused on the social and psychological aspects of Internet and social media usage, and serves to plug the gap in our knowledge of the intangible, socioemotional needs of the increasingly greying population of Singapore, and how the Internet and social media could have a part to play in keeping more elderly connected and hopefully stave off loneliness. 5 LITERATURE REVIEW The literature reviewed for this thesis is presented in three parts: (3.1) research that explored the experiences of older adults in the use of the Internet, in particular task maintenance, and the digital divide between those who are able to use the Internet proficiently and others who faced some difficulty; (3.2) relationship maintenance based on the Socioemotional Selectivity Theory and Selective Optimisation with Compensation model that examined the need to remain connected, and focusing on those relationships that brought greater affective returns by spending more time and effort on them. These two theories form the theoretical framework for understanding the motivations and narratives of the elderly participants interviewed for this thesis. The last section, (3.3) describes how people obtained a more positive self-definition and sense of empowerment from the use of the Internet and social media, in terms of their quality of life. 3.1 Task Maintenance Cody, Dunn, Hoppin, and Wendt (1999) used the term ‘silver surfers’ to describe a ‘burgeoning group of confident and competent older users of information communication technologies (ICT)’ (Selwyn, Gorard, & Furlong, 2003, pp. 3) and their ability to make use of this new technology to bridge the generation gap. Some scholars believe that the intergenerational quality of the Internet can improve the situation and quality of life as it pervaded every aspect of life and had the potential for assisting with many of the problems associated with ageing (Bernard & Phillips, 2000). In the study conducted by Selwyn, Gorard, and Furlong (2003) in the United Kingdom and Wales, researchers found that using ICT is ‘not about having or not having access to technologies, rather it is the scope and intensity of the relationships that people develop with technologies and the nature of what they do with them that is important’ (Selwyn et al., 2003). Data from the study showed that the influences behind older people’s (non)use of ICT are multifaceted and historical, and they moved through different levels of complexity of technology depending on their 6 circumstances and context. Interestingly, there was a non-enduring influence of the workplace in enrolling people into the information age for the rest of their lives. The study found that the forced or coerced use of technology at work was often not translated into later use when they got older and they became resistant to the use of computers. The majority of the participants of that study found little or no use for ICT in their everyday lives (Selwyn et al., 2003) when they were older. Erik Erikson’s (1959) life-span developmental approach described various developmental tasks that all individuals have to accomplish throughout their lives. For example, in middle age, a lot of time and energy are placed on career advancement and people have limited time or motivation for taking care of the other things like household chores or furthering their education. Hence, domestic help is employed for household chores or to care for young children. Baltes and Baltes (1990) expands on this approach with the Selective Optimization with Compensation (SOC) model which acknowledges that ‘at all stages of the life span, there are things that we are good at and things that we are not so good at’ (Baltes and Baltes, 1990). More importantly, it posits that ‘at all ages, we resign ourselves to dependence on certain fronts, in order to gain independence on other fronts’ (Harwood, 2007). What this means is that we will select particular areas of our lives, optimise our performance in those areas and compensate in other areas where we lack ability or motivation. The SOC model presents a more optimistic view of old age as a time when we continue to do what we have done all our lives - focus our energies on the things that are important to us and look for help with the things that we do not have the time or ability to do ourselves. This leads to the first research question: RQ 1: What is the role of the Internet and social media in the task management of older adults? Using the SOC model, how did the Internet and social media compensate and help in those areas where the older adult would not have the ability to do so? For instance, for those seniors who did not have the opportunity to complete their secondary education, how did access to the Internet afford them the ability to learn about the things they were interested in, in spite of language barriers? Or did it exacerbate the digital divide between those who were literate in the English Language 7 and was able to navigate the Internet on their own, and those who were not and required help? How did this translate into feelings of empowerment and independence? How important would this be to them? Being able to use the computer and the Internet to gather information and perform tasks like communicating with friends and family or make travel and holiday transactions has enabled many older people to gain confidence in the adoption of new technologies and provided possibilities of re-establishing old ties and relationships. Another salient use of the Internet for older adults was also the sourcing of biomedical information for health-related issues for ageing adults. For example, there are many websites now catering specifically to older adults like www.c3a.org.sg, www.rsvp.org.sg, ageuk.org.uk, or seniorsforliving.com that provides information or weblinks on health and tips for general well-being. Entertainment websites offering videos, music, games and other leisure activities are gaining popularity as older adults seek to find avenues to pursue personal interests, relief boredom and pass time. 3.2 Digital Divide between older and younger generations According to a study on the phenomenon of a digital divide between different age groups of users that was conducted by Lim and Tan (2003) of families in Singapore, the study noted that some elderly members of wired households with computers, Internet connections and mobile phones suffer from social exclusion within their households as a result of their ignorance of these new technologies. Responses from some of the elderly participants interviewed for this study affirmed the presence of a digital divide between themselves and the younger generation in their families. However, this divide is slowly closing as more and more of the elderly learn how to use the Internet and social media through the ownership and use of their smartphones and also by attending ICT courses organized by grassroots associations. The biggest disparity was between the Net-generation, conversant with personal computers and the Internet, and the older generation, more accustomed to an industrialized society (Kim and Kim, 2001). The digital divide could be categorized into three levels: 8 (i) Access to information devices and information (media accessibility); (ii) Ability to utilize information resources (information mobilization); and (iii) The eagerness to use information devices and information resources (information consciousness) (Kim and Kim, 2001). As Kim and Kim (2001) explained, the ‘Internet was not only entertaining and informative but also expensive and complicated. For the latter reasons, class and regional differences manifested themselves clearly in the use of the new medium, resulting in social gaps in information distribution’. Furthermore, ‘the more information flows throughout the entire society, the wider the gap becomes between information haves and information have-nots, leading to a digital divide of differing aspects of an information-based society’. In their view, the core issue of the digital divide has moved from who has better access to information media to who makes the right use of the acquired information (Kim and Kim, 2001). Is this still relevant today when more and more elderly own a smartphone and/or have access to the Internet? ICTs provide communication links between households and amongst individual household members (Lim and Tan, 2003) and the convergence of family dynamics and technologies has been described by Venkatesh (1996) and Venkatest, Kruse et al., (2003) as the interaction of the ‘social space’ where family behaviour occurs and the ‘technological space’ in which household technologies are embedded and used. While the Internet may not have improved family relationships directly, researchers Lenhart, Rainie and Lewis (2001), found that it has contributed to family activities through the facilitation of planning of activities via email. The negative influences of computer technology include the risk of isolation of certain family members as they get addicted to computers and neglect responsibilities and contacts with others in the family (Hughes and Hans, 2001). 9 Haddon (2000) observed that ‘amongst single parents and the young elderly in particular, the telephone helps them to stay connected with friends and relations, thereby preventing them from becoming victims of social exclusion’. DiMaggio and Hargittai (2001) wrote that ‘at first, access to the new technology is restricted to an elite and the distinction is between the haves and havenots. However, as penetration increases, the gap in access between the rich and poor, urban and rural dwellers, old and young, the well-educated and unschooled is reduced. As access diffuses to parts of the public who were initially excluded, dimensions related to the quality of use become important bases by which the benefits of the technology are stratified’. While the older generation’s ignorance of new technologies can be attributed to their lower levels of education and a general lack of exposure, it can also be blamed on their apathy and the deep-rooted fears they exhibit towards new technologies (Lim and Tan, 2003). Some of these fears originated from negative experiences and the net result of such technophobia is an increased reliance on their children or grandchildren for instruction on the latest technologies (Lim and Tan, 2003). 3.3 Relationship Maintenance The literature showed that there was a need for older adults to remain connected and in touch with family, friends and the self, and adults began to be more selective in the types of relationships and friendships as they aged. The socioemotional selectivity theory posited that over time, goals related to obtaining emotional meaning from life became more important and thus shaped the way in which people selected which relationships to focus on as they aged. But what brought or created emotional meaning for the elderly? 10 ‘As people age, their personal meaning perspectives evolve to become more inclusive and integrative of their experiences’ (Moore, Metcalf & Schow, 2006). Moore, Metcalf and Schow (2006) conducted a qualitative study to find out how 11 seniors between the ages of 66 and 92 derived meaning in their lives. The study found six key themes: 1) Philosophy for living 2) Sense of self 3) Connecting with others 4) Spirituality and faith in God 5) Living through adversity 6) Embracing life Of these six themes, the sense of self and connecting with others presented possibilities and opportunities for the use of the Internet and social media as conduits which older Singaporeans could tap on to derive greater meaning in their lives. 3.4 Socioemotional Selectivity Theory (SST) According to the Socioemotional Selectivity theory (Carstensen, 1991), individuals are guided by the same essential set of socioemotional goals throughout life, such as seeking novelty, feeling needed and expanding one’s horizons. The socioemotional selectivity theory, or SST, proposed by Carstensen (1991) posited that reduced rates of interaction in the later part of adult life were viewed as the result of lifelong selection processes by which people strategically and adaptively cultivated their social networks to maximize social and emotional gains and to minimize any social and emotional risks (Carstensen, 1991). Strong emotional connections in late life were also found to predict happiness and adjustments in old age (Antonucci & Jackson, 1987). These theories have helped the researcher in understanding why some of the elderly participants prefer to spend their time and effort in keeping in touch with friends whom they have known for a long time, or with family who are overseas, instead of trying to acquaint themselves with as many new contacts (new social relationships) and friends as possible. 11 Social interaction requires energy expenditure and risks the experience of negative emotions and threats to one’s concept of self (Carstensen, 1992). There are many functions and purposes to social interaction and gathering information is one of them. Seeking information is more important in childhood, adolescence and younger adulthood as the individual learns about the workings of the world (Lansford, Sherman & Antonucci, 1998). However, such information or knowledge diminishes in importance as the individual became more well-versed about the world around him and of life’s many situations (Lansford, Sherman & Antonucci, 1998). Thus, with age and experience, the information obtained through social interactions is less and less likely to be valuable (Carstensen, 1992). Over the course of many years, emotional intimacy with family and close friends – having shared innumerable joys and sorrows together – may increase (Carstensen, 1992). At the same time, interaction with unfamiliar social partners becomes less likely to yield returns enough to warrant the required energy expenditure. Therefore, the potential risks and gains from social interaction change over a person’s life cycle (Carstensen, 1992), suggesting why the elderly may prefer to connect online only with those whom they know rather than find different people to chat with. Fredrickson and Carstensen (1990) conducted two studies to determine how individuals organized social partners in terms of affect anticipated in the interaction and how anticipated social endings influence partner selection. In the first study on the categorization of social partners, results showed that the level of anticipated affect was most important to older people, especially for those with infirmities, as they gave more importance to the affect anticipated from the other person in the interaction than to possibilities for future contact or information seeking. These findings were parlayed into the theory of socioemotional selectivity which posited that if the conservation of one’s emotion is a primary goal, then, the anticipation of a positive experience in a potential interaction was a necessary precursor to choosing optimal social partners (Fredrickson & Carstensen, 1990). The second study tested the hypothesis that when social endings were salient, (for example death, or a single graduate facing the job market) individuals recognized 12 that they did not have limitless time in which to develop new social relationships and selected familiarity over novel, new partners (Fredrickson & Carstensen, 1990). Overall, older people chose familiar partners most frequently; yet when social endings were salient, younger people patterned the preferences of the elderly (Fredrickson & Carstensen, 1990). These results reiterate that social partner selectivity functions to conserve emotion resources in the face of limited future opportunities (Fredrickson & Carstensen, 1990). A longitudinal study over a time span of 34 years from early through to middle adulthood was conducted by Carstensen in 1992 to explore two hypothesis: (1) The frequency of social contacts with acquaintances would be highest in young adulthood and decline gradually, but such reductions would not be evident in relationships with significant others. Instead, reductions in interactions would be selective – acquaintance relationships would diminish but significant relationships would be maintained or even increased. (2) Emotional intimacy would increase in significant relationships throughout adulthood even when physical interactions were reduced because of the increased emphasis on affective returns and the quality of social contacts that came with age (Carstensen, 1992). Findings from the investigation validated the two hypotheses and further suggested that low rates of interaction in old age were simply a continuation of a narrowing of the range of social partners begun in early adulthood (Carstensen, 1992). Carstensen (2006) conducted a series of studies examining the impact of time and/or goal constraints on preference for familiar social partners and the findings again suggested that social endings or other forms of goal constraints increased the desire for emotional comfort and time constraints led to an increased emphasis on emotionally meaningful aspects of relationships. According to an American Internet tracking firm Experian Hitwise (Rosenbloom, 2011), people who were 55 years and older were visiting American dating sites more than any other age group – an increase of 39% in the last three years. The article quoted an example of a couple who met online and married ten months later. The groom was 75 and the bride 65 and this was 13 the third marriage for both of them. The bride remarked, ‘At our age, you don’t have much time to waste.’ Intergenerational Relationships Intergenerational relationships between grandparents and grandchildren are becoming increasingly salient in our families today where one or both parents work. Some grandparents may take on the role as primary caregivers when the grandchildren are young and this relationship usually translated into continued communication and/or interaction between these two generations. The mode of communication depends on how receptive the older adult is towards information communication technologies (ICT) since the younger generation these days would more likely adopt ICT as their primary mode of communication with family and friends. A grandparent may use social media tools like Facebook and/or Skype to stay in touch with their grandchildren or extended family who live overseas. Harwood (2000) examined the types of communication media used in the intergenerational relationship between grandparents and their grandchildren and found that the frequency of telephone communication seemed to be associated with more satisfying grandparenting relationships among college students (more so than face-to-face or written communications) in America. Another study by Holladay and Seipke (2003) also showed that communication via email is relatively frequent in the grandparent-grandchild relationship. There are four main themes in the way grandparents describe their relationships with their grandchildren (Harwood & Lin, 2000) and the first is the sense of affiliation and the expression of love. The ability to express their affection and communicate it to their grandchildren and receive the same in return is key to maintaining a quality relationship. Grandparents express considerable pride in their grandchildren’s accomplishments and frequently recount and share these accomplishments with their friends and contacts outside the family. A third theme that emerges is that of distance, either geographically or because of the generational gap. 14 Finally, the fourth theme that runs through the grandparent and grandchild relationship is the way both parties describe an exchange that occurs between them. However, relationships between the older adults and their children may be more tenuous. A key tension or dialectic that encompasses many of the issues of parent-child relationships is that of autonomy vis-à-vis connectedness (Baxter & Dindia, 1990). Young children seek autonomy while also seeking connectedness and these tensions do not disappear even after the children enter adulthood. For instance, young adults who are buying their house for the first time may resolutely insist on doing everything on their own, but would call their parents for advice or financial help if things do not go according to plan. At certain points, it is also common for adult children to begin to question their parents’ competence and attempt to take control of financial and personal matters in their parents’ lives. Ironically, this sometimes happen at the same time as they are asking their parents for help with things like caring for their grandchildren. Such tensions illustrate the complexity of parent-child relationships and demonstrate that it may gain complexity as we age (Fingerman, Chen, Hay, Cichy & Lefkowitz, 2006). Social networking sites like Facebook is an example of such complexities. Adults (children) post information and photographs of the things happening in their lives and if their parents (older adults) have access to the information as their ‘friends’, they may begin to probe or express interest about the information which may be deemed intrusive by their children. This could result in a dilemma about how much information the children would choose to grant access to their parents. The children may sometimes not ‘add’ their parents or other elders in the family as ‘friends’ if they want to keep the information on their Facebook accounts private from their parents. Moreover, the proliferation of cell phones within one generation (for instance, the grandchildren) affects the connection between generations, even when the phone is not owned by the grandparent. In a research conducted by Kim and Crow (2012), one participant (a grandmother) loved the camera function in the cell phone even though she had not used it herself. This was because she received numerous pictures of her children and grandchildren taken by the camera of the cell phone and sent to 15 her via email. Even if one generation rejects the actual device, for example, the handphone, the interoperability of software between platforms means that the practices associated with one technology (camera on the handphone) may be incorporated into the habits one has with another device (viewing via email on the desktop computer) (Kim and Crow, 2012). Those who wanted a higher degree of involvement in their families, texting had become a skill – a new language – they were required to learn (Kim and Crow, 2012). Many learned to text because of their desire to communicate with their grandchildren not only with this media, but also on their (grandchildren’s) terms. Friendships Older adults tend to have fewer friendships, choosing to focus on the most rewarding relationships and shedding peripheral acquaintances (Carstensen, 1992) and one very important reason why friendships are particularly important in old age is the fact that they are voluntary and non-obligatory (Antonucci & Akiyama, 1995). Friends are better able in connecting older people with society since a number of activities involve having to ‘get out’ and do something together at a public space. If there is a discernible relationship between the need to connect with others and how this motivated older adults to use social media, this could be a significant boost to the role of social media as a medium for which to enhance the psychological and socioemotional well-being, and quality of life for the elderly. Hence, the second research question is: RQ 2: What role does the Internet and social media play in the relationship maintenance of older adults? 16 3.5 Social and Psychological Impact of using the Internet and social media Besides using the Internet for email and information gathering, the convenience and relative affordability of Internet-based communication tools like chat rooms, Skype and social networking sites have enabled the social needs of older adults to be met easily and directly. Shapira et al. (2007) found that involvement in various online social and political activism can lead to feelings of self-worth; and obtaining health and medical information that is perceived to be important to adults can promote self-confidence and help reduce anxiety. Chen and Persson (2002) noticed that Internet use among older people tended to be associated with a greater sense of well-being. Karavidas, Lim and Katsikas (2005) also found a positive relationship between older people’s use and knowledge of computers and the Internet and their general self-efficacy and life satisfaction, suggesting a correlation between the ability to use the Internet and self-empowerment. In fact, Shapira et al. (2007) argued in their study that ‘computer and Internet use not only prevented the (psychological) deterioration but enhanced the psychological factors important to the quality of life of older people.’ (Shapira et al., 2007) This was because the reasons for the improvement in the sense of well-being were related to the psychological processes associated with experiences of personal empowerment, enhanced interpersonal communication, learning and overcoming personal and physical difficulties related to mobility. It is worth noting the four key factors cited by the subjects in their research: (i) Learning of an innovative field – using computers and the Internet at an old age and receiving cheerful feedback from those around them made the subjects feel proud of themselves; (ii) Social benefits of using online communication – they experienced the social benefits of enhanced interpersonal communication; (iii) Experiencing involvement and action – browsing the Internet contributed to feelings of being ‘in’ and updated, which elevated a personal sense of belonging 17 (iv) Positive feelings stimulated by using the Internet – participants reported an emergence of positive feelings while surfing the Internet, an elevated selfimage and experiences of motivation and enthusiasm. The participants in the study felt a general sense of personal empowerment as a process of personal growth, resulting from developing skills and abilities along with a more positive self-definition (Shapira et al., 2007). Studies conducted by Fredrickson and Carstensen (1990) and Carstensen (2006) suggest that relationships that bring the most affective returns (especially from familiar partners) are not affected even when interactions are reduced. Hence, what does this portend in the use of social media by the elderly in terms of connecting with others like family, friends and acquaintances online? Are there differences between physical and virtual interactions for the older adults? How do they derive meaning from these virtual connections and does this have any impact on their socioemotional well-being? Besides these important questions, this research also sought to explore how older adults define a good quality of life and again, whether this has any impact on their socioemotional well-being. Therefore, the final research question is: RQ 3: What are the social and psychological implications of the Internet and social media for the maintenance of a good quality of life for older adults? ‘One cannot live the afternoon of life according to the program of life’s morning; for what was great in the morning will be of little importance in the evening, and what in the morning was true will at evening have become a lie.’ (Jung, 1953). 18 METHODOLOGY A qualitative mode of inquiry was adopted for this study as a means for the researcher-interviewer to obtain a more holistic understanding of the reasons and motivations behind why older Singaporeans use smartphones and other devices to access the Internet through the participants’ narratives. Qualitative research attempts to capture a holistic, situated perspective of the phenomenon under study and aims to give voice to the participants (Denzin & Lincoln, 2003; Marshall & Rossman, 1999; Merriam, 1998). This helps to understand not just one version of reality, but multiple realities (Lincoln & Guba, 1985). Bryman (2004) argued that one of the defining characteristics of qualitative research was to see through the eyes of the participants. Moreover, unlike quantitative research, which is more suited to gathering data related to pre-determined dimensions and their indicators, qualitative research, with its limited structure and flexibility, is best suited to a deeper appreciation of hitherto less understood phenomena. Qualitative research can help to generate richer and more meaningful data and tease out fine nuances of social phenomena that might be important to the participants but may not be readily obvious to researchers who were relatively unfamiliar with the social setting (Bryman, 2004; Mason, 1996). In this study, it was important that the elderly participants be given the opportunity to narrate their life circumstances and realities so that the researcher-interviewer could better recognize their socioemotional needs and what the social and psychological implications were from the use of the Internet and social media, which are the two areas of foci for this study. 4.1 Interview Protocol and Procedure This study was conducted using focus groups and one-to-one interviews of 30 older adults above 60 years - 16 males and 14 females, over a period of nine months. The median age of the participants was 67.5 years. Participants were mostly members of senior groups like an information technology (IT) classes for seniors from the Chinese Development Assistance Council (CDAC), Good Life Centre (Marine 19 Parade), People’s Association, Association of Muslim Professionals, and contacts from church. These were the organisations that responded to the researcher’s request for participation in the research. The researcher-interviewer approached RSVP Singapore to participate in the study but the organization did not follow-through on its initial agreement to participate. Interviews conducted with the seniors from CDAC were done in Mandarin and while they navigated the websites using hanyu pinyin (romanised phonetics of Chinese characters), not all of them completed secondary education. This proved to be a challenge for some of the participants who had to learn basic English in order to assign the correct letter of the alphabet to the phonetic sound of each Chinese character when typing in the link for the website. The request to conduct interviews for the purpose of this research was sent via email to the person-in-charge of the IT classes for seniors from CDAC; person-incharge of Good Life Centre; person-in-charge of the Senior Cyber Guides programme from People’s Association; senior executives from the Association of Muslim Professionals and personal contacts from church and former colleagues. After obtaining permission and contact details of potential participants from the persons-incharge, invitations to participate in the research were sent to every potential participant via email and this was followed-up with telephone calls by the researcherinterviewer to confirm their interest and participation. It took some time and effort to persuade the seniors to participate in the research as many of them said they were mere beginners in the use of the Internet and would not be able to provide useful answers. The interviews were conducted at a time and venue most convenient to the participants and Mandarin was used with those participants who were not conversant in English. Interviews with the Malay, Indian and Ceylonese participants were done in English. All interviews were done by the researcher-interviewer and all, save one, were recorded on a voice recorder. The audio recordings were then transcribed into 20 Microsoft Word documents by a graduate student from the Department of Communications and New Media, National University of Singapore. The interview that did not have an audio recording had notations written on the question sheet directly by the researcher-interviewer. This was due to an oversight by the researcherinterviewer of not bringing the voice recorder that day. The audio recordings were then transcribed into Microsoft Word documents by a graduate from the Department of Communications and New Media, National University of Singapore. No. of participants Median Age Achieved post-secondary education Male 16 70 14 Female 14 65 11 Table 1: Median age and education level of participants Fourteen female participants were interviewed by the researcher-interviewer and the median age for the female participants was 65 years old. 11 out of the 14 female participants had post-secondary education while all but one of the 16 male participants received post-secondary education. Only one male participant stopped school after his Primary Six education but two of the female participants had to discontinue their education after Primary Six due to financial difficulties at home. This provided the context for understanding the circumstances the not-as-well educated female participants faced when learning how to use the computer and the Internet. Three of the 14 female interviews were conducted in English and the remaining ten were in Chinese. The interviews in Chinese were translated into English by a graduate of the Communications and New Media degree programme, National University of Singapore. 21 There were three focus groups of mixed genders, each group consisting of not more than three participants, and four single-sex focus groups – two all male and two all female – a total of seven focus groups and 15 participants altogether. There were eight indepth, individual interviews with male participants and seven indepth, individual interviews with female participants – a total of 15 participants. 30 participants were interviewed in all – 16 males and 14 females. The focus groups that were facilitated by the researcher-interviewer had a set of questions, but the sessions were guided by the questions rather than dictated by it. The participants also introduced some issues that the researcher-interviewer had not thought of as it related directly to their lives. In this relationship, the participants were the experiential experts on the subject and were therefore afforded the maximum opportunity to narrate their own stories. Focus group interviews use a method that can help people explore and clarify their views and are more appropriate for open-ended questions (Kitzinger, 1995) like the ones used for this research. Although group norms may potentially silence dissenting opinions (Kitzinger, 1995), the researcher-interviewer noted that most of the participants in the focus groups did not rebut each other’s comments but attempted to wait for each other to finish speaking before they added their own views to the question. Participants were given the time to talk about their anecdotal experiences and perceptions on the impact of the Internet and social media even if the question was on a different topic. Each individual interview took between 45 to 60 minutes and the focus group sessions took about 75 to 90 minutes on average. This excluded the time given to the participants to fill in the Participant Information Sheet (PIS) before the interview started. 22 A token of appreciation in the form of a shopping voucher was given to every participant in recognition of the time and effort spent in participating in the research. A document, indicating their approval and permission for the researcher-interviewer and the National University of Singapore to use the information obtained, was signed by all the participants. There were instances where the researcher-interviewer had to disqualify a few participants’ inputs as they were not 60 years old at the point of interview but had told the researcher-interview otherwise (over the telephone) when they agreed to participate. Nonetheless, tokens of appreciation were given to them for their presence and time. Male participants were numbered B1, B2, B3 etc, and the female participants numbered A1, A2, A3 etc. accordingly for confidentiality. All data will be kept for a period of five years, from November 2013. 4.2 Demographic Profile 60 was used as the minimum age in the selection of potential participants for the study. This number was decided upon after considering age markers used by government agencies for defining the age at which Singaporeans are considered ‘elderly’. For instance, NTUC Club has a community called U Live for ‘active agers’ who are 55 years old and above (NTUC Club, 2013); the Retirement Age Act from the Ministry of Manpower states that the official age for retirement in Singapore is 62 years old (MOM, 2013), and a Paper issued by the Ministry of Social and Family Development called ‘State of the Elderly in Singapore – 2008/2009’ states the age of an elderly as 65 years old (MSF, 2009). Hence, by using a simple average of the three official ages - 55, 62 and 65, the median of 60 years old was adopted as the minimum cut-off age for shortlisting participants for this study. The average age of the male participants was 70 years old while that of the female participants was 65. 23 4.3 Interview/Focus Group Questions Participants filled in a ‘Participation Information Sheet’ that sought to establish socio-economic status (SES) information such as level of education attained, marital status, number of children, type of housing, profession before retirement, and last drawn salary. All the participants for this study were married: there was one divorcee and three widows. The information sheet and interview questions are appended with this report. Note that the questions for the focus group and individual interviews were identical. The information sheet included questions about their perceived level of proficiency or familiarity in using the smartphones and computer. Participants were asked to rate, on a scale of one to seven (with one being least proficient and seven being the most proficient), their perceived proficiency in using their smartphones and the Internet. The information allowed the researcher-interviewer to understand better the environment in which each participant used the smartphone and/or the Internet. About 20 participants needed some form of assistance with calculating how much time they spent on the Internet in a week and which applications they used more of that required the Internet. For example, searching for information; sending emails, or Skype with family and friends. The questions for the interview guide were framed using the theories of Socioemotional Selectivity (SST) and Selective Optimization with Compensation (SOC). The first set of questions looked into socioemotional goals that were important for older adults in terms of relationship management. Here, questions examined which goals were related to obtaining the greatest amount of affective returns and emotional intimacy, and how the elderly made use of areas of competency, such as the use of technology and social media, to compensate for areas they lacked. The next set of questions touched on whether Internet use has had any impact on helping them achieve those goals and if they resulted in an improved sense 24 of socioemotional and/or physical well-being, such as, a perceived improvement in the sense of self. 4.4 Data Analysis - Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) or Phenomenology Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA, or Phenomenology) was adopted to enable this researcher-interviewer to understand and delve into the ‘lifeworlds’ of the participants through analysis of the data. In phenomenology, reality is comprehended through embodied experience. Through close examination of individual experiences, phenomenological analysts seek to capture the meaning and common features, or essences, of an experience or event. The truth of the event, as an abstract entity, is subjective and knowable only through embodied perception; we create meaning through the experience of moving through space and across time (Starks & Trinidad, 2007). It involves the use of thick description and close analysis of lived experience to understand how meaning is created through embodied perception (Sokolowski, 2000; Stewart & Mickunas, 1974). A typical IPA study generates an intensive and detailed analysis of the accounts produced by a comparatively small number of participants (Larkin, Watts & Clifton, 2006). Larkin, Watts and Clifton (2006) noted that these verbatim accounts are generally captured via semi-structured interviews, focus groups, or diaries, and the analysis then proceeds such that patterns of meaning are developed, and then reported in a thematic form. At the heart of this perspective lies a clearly declared phenomenological emphasis on the experiential claims and concerns of the persons taking part in the study (Larkin et al, 2006), which are based on the philosophical thoughts of 25 Heidegger. Hence, an IPA researcher must approach their data with two aims in mind. The first aim is to try to understand their participants’ world, and to describe ‘what it is like’. However, the analytic process cannot ever achieve a genuinely first-person account, so the objective during this initial stage is simply to produce a coherent, third-person, and psychologically informed description, which tries to get as ‘close’ to the participant’s view as is possible (Larkin et al, 2006). The second aim of the IPA perspective is to develop a more overtly interpretative analysis, which positions the initial ‘description’ in relation to a wider social, cultural, and perhaps even theoretical, context (Larkin et al, 2006). This second-order account aims to provide a critical and conceptual commentary upon the participants personal activities and affords the researcher an opportunity to deal with the data in a more speculative fashion: to think about ‘what it means’ for the participants to have made these claims, and to have expressed these feelings and concerns in this particular situation (Larkin et al, 2006). Larkin et al (2006) opined that aspects of this interpretative work may also be informed by direct engagement with existing theoretical constructs (something which distinguishes IPA from grounded theory approaches) and the process is sometimes directed towards answering a pre-formed research question. Heidegger’s view of the person was always and indelibly a ‘person-incontext’. It is a mistake to believe that we can occasionally choose to take up a relationship with the various somatic and semantic objects that ‘make up’ our world, because such related-ness is a fundamental part of our constitution (Larkin et al, 2006). We are a fundamental part of a meaningful world (and hence we can only be properly understood as a function of our various involvements with that world), and the meaningful world is also a fundamental part of us (Larkin et al, 2006). 26 The researchers Larkin et al (2006) believe that this view of persons has a number of implications for IPA in particular. It is the recognition that it is not actually possible to remove ourselves, our thoughts and our meaning systems from the world, in order to find out how things ‘really are’ in some definitive sense (Larkin et al, 2006). Any discoveries that we make must necessarily be a function of the relationship that pertains between researcher and subject-matter – a dilemma of reflexivity familiar to most qualitative researchers (Larkin et al, 2006). Indeed, the writers Larkin et al (2006) believes that this function is precisely what we would expect, given that we must identify the researcher as an inclusive part of the world they are describing. The emergent ‘reality’ (that is, the resultant explanation and/or understanding of the nature of the subject-matter) can thus be seen to be dependent upon the processes of intellectual construction that shaped the ‘structure of encounter’ (Larkin et al, 2006). In this Heideggerian sense, the central goal of phenomenology is to approach and deal with any object of our attention in just such a way that it is allowed maximal opportunity to show itself ‘as itself’ (Larkin et al, 2006). Nonetheless, the theorists think that it is inevitable that we will fall short of this target - for being a ‘person-incontext’, for we can never fully escape the ‘preconceptions’ that our world brings with it. If the empathetic treatment of our subject-matter is central to our approach, and we are prepared to adjust our ideas and assumptions in response to the promptings of that subject-matter, then we are on the way to developing a Heideggerian phenomenology (Larkin et al, 2006). Larkin et al (2006) suggests that an account can be used to reveal something about a person, but only that person’s current positioning in relation to the world of objects – the bodies and bodies-of-knowledge. We can only glimpse a person’s current subjective mode-of-engagement with some specific context or aspect of the world (Larkin et al, 2006). Thus, as analysts, we zoom in upon the person-in-context and that person’s relatedness to the phenomenon at hand. We are interested in how they understand and make sense of their experiences in terms of their relatedness to, and their engagement with, those phenomena (Larkin et al, 2006). 27 In choosing IPA, the researcher-interviewer commits herself to exploring, describing, interpreting and situating the means by which our participants make sense of their experiences – their ‘lifeworlds’ (Larkin et al, 2006). Phenomenology in the Heiderggerian tradition demands that the analyst develop a hermeneutic account of the person’s relatedness to the prevailing topic of interest. This requires us to identify, describe and understand the key objects of concern in the participant’s world, and the experiential claims made by the participant (Larkin et al, 2006). Larkin et al (2006) puts forth the argument that hermeneutic approaches view the knower and the known as fundamentally interrelated, and thus assume that any interpretation necessarily involves an essential circularity of understanding – a hermeneutic circle in which the interpreter’s perspective and understanding initially shapes his interpretation of a given phenomenon. Yet, as the interpretation interacts with the phenomenon in question, it is open to revision and elaboration, as the perspective and understanding of the interpreter, including his biases and blind spots, are revealed and evaluated (Tappan, 1997). Thus, IPA’s phenomenological component maps out the participants’ concerns and cares – their orientation toward the world – in the form of the experiences that they claim for themselves (Larkin et al, 2006). The interpretative component contextualizes these claims within their cultural and physical environments, and then attempts to make sense of the mutually constitutive relationship between ‘person’ and ‘world’ from within a psychological framework (Larkin et al, 2006). According to Larkin et al (2006), the overall outcome for the researcher should be a renewed insight into the ‘phenomenon at hand’, informed by the participant’s own relatedness to, and engagement with that phenomenon. Phenomenologists ask questions about lived experiences, as contrasted with abstract interpretations of experience or opinions about them (van Manen, 1990). Van Manen (1990) wrote that phenomenological analysis is primarily a writing exercise, as it is through the process of writing and rewriting that the researcher can distill 28 meaning. Analysts use writing to compose a story that captures the important elements of the lived experience. By the end of the story, the reader should feel that she has vicariously experienced the phenomenon under study and should be able to envision herself (or someone else who has been through the experience) coming to similar conclusions about what it means (Starks & Trinidad, 2007). This process, as described by van Manen (1990), was closest to how this researcher-interviewer attempted to experience and be in that lived moment with the participants as they narrated their own personal experiences of learning how to use and why they desired to learn how to use the Internet. Van Manen’s (1990) interpretive approach to understanding the nature of a social phenomenon involves the researcher in making explicit the meaning of a particular lived experience, and generating a pedagogical thoughtfulness in his or her readers. The aim of hermeneutic-phenomenology is to create a dialogical text which resonates with the experiences of readers while, at the same time, evoking a critical reflexivity about their own pedagogical actions (Geelan and Taylor, 2001). To construct a full interpretive description of some aspect of the lifeworld, and yet to remain aware that lived life is always more complex than any explication of meaning can reveal (van Manen, 1990). Van Manen’s (1990) hermeneuticphenomenological approach to human science combines, in a dialectical fashion, a phenomenological concern for describing our ways-of-being-in-the-world with a hermeneutic concern for interpreting the social-symbolic world (Geelan and Taylor, 2001). Phenomenology focuses the researcher (ontologically) on immediate experience without being obstructed by pre-conceptions and theoretical notions, and drives the researcher to an understanding of the essential nature of social phenomena (Geelan and Taylor, 2001). The participants are trying to make sense of their world; the researcherinterviewer is trying to make sense of the participants trying to make sense of their world. The ordinary word ‘understanding’ usefully captures these two aspects of 29 interpretation-understanding in the sense of identifying or empathizing with and understanding as trying to make sense of. IPA combines an empathic hermeneutics with a questioning hermeneutics. Thus, consistent with its phenomenological origins, IPA is concerned with trying to understand what it is like, from the point of view of the participants, to take their side (Smith & Osborn, 2008). 4.4.1 Hermeneutics in IPA Spielgelberg (1976) has identified hermeneutics as a process and method for bringing out and making manifest what is normally hidden in human experience and human relations. In relation to the study of human experience, hermeneutics goes beyond mere description of core concepts and essences to look for meanings embedded in common life practices (Lopez and Willis, 2004). These meanings are not always apparent to the participants but can be gleaned from the narratives produced by them. The focus of a hermeneutic inquiry is on what humans experience rather than what they consciously know (Solomon, 1987). A central tenet of Heidegger’s (1962) thought was that the relation of the individual to his lifeworld should be the focus of phenomenological inquiry (Lopez and Willis, 2004). Heidegger used the term lifeworld to express the idea that individuals’ realities are invariably influenced by the world in which they live (Lopez and Willis, 2004). Lopez and Willis (2004) suggests that the term, ‘being-in-theworld’, was used by Heidegger to emphasize that humans cannot abstract themselves from the world. Therefore, it is not the pure content of human subjectivity that is the focus of a hermeneutic inquiry but, rather, what the individual’s narratives imply what he or she experiences every day (Lopez and Willis, 2004). Another philosophical assumption underlying the interpretive phenomenological approach is that presuppositions or expert knowledge on the part of the researcher are valuable guides to inquiry and make the inquiry a meaningful 30 undertaking (Lopez and Willis, 2004). Heidegger (1962) emphasized that it is impossible to rid the mind of the background of understandings that has led the researcher to consider a topic worthy of research in the first place (Koch, 1995). In an IPA study, Lopez and Willis (2004) proposed that theory is not used in a formal way of generating hypotheses to be tested. Instead, a theoretical approach can be used to guide the inquiry in terms of shaping the research process and the questions used in the study (Lopez and Willis, 2004). The use of an orienting framework by the researcher-interviewer, for example the socioemotional selectivity theory and selective optimization with compensation theory, is also a way of making explicit study assumptions and the researcher-interviewer’s frame of reference (Lopez and Willis, 2004). Hence, the study should provide evidence that the framework does not have a biasing effect on the narratives of the participants but used to interpret the findings (Lopez and Willis, 2004). The aim of an IPA study is to say something in detail about the perceptions and understandings of this particular group rather than prematurely make more general claims. Hence, the IPA was a suitable approach for this study as the researcher-interviewer attempted to find out how individuals perceived the particular situations they are facing, how they were making sense of their personal and social world vis-à-vis the pervasiveness of the Internet and social media. In Phenomenology, meaning is central, and the aim is to try to understand the content and complexity of those meanings rather than measure their frequency. 16 main themes emerged from the discussions and some quotes were selected as examples to describe the social environments of the various participants. The interpretative phenomenological analysis approach uses systematic data analysis procedures which include highlighting significant statements, meanings, themes, and an exhaustive description that were initially advanced by Colaizzi (1978) 31 and modified by Moustakas (1994). First, the written transcripts are read several times and key phrases and words are highlighted to obtain an overall understanding. Significant statements (phrases or sentences) were then identified that pertained directly to their experience of using the Internet and social media. Meanings were formulated and clustered into themes common to participants’ transcripts and the fundamental structure depicting their experiences with the Internet and smartphones were integrated into an in-depth description through significant statements, formulated meanings, and themes. The data were reviewed several more times for congruence with the identified structure. To identify the essential meaning of the participants’ experiences, phenomenological reflection was done many times on participants’ text and theme statements. 76 meaningful statements were identified and 11 main themes were constructed through these statements. 32 RESULTS The interview questions were divided into two key areas: (a) Socioemotional Well-being, and (b) Reasons/Motivations for the adoption of the Internet and/or new media. The former was aimed at finding out what socioemotional needs and desires were most important to them at this point in their lives while the latter half of the questions determined if the Internet has been able to meet those needs and if so, to what extent and why. We would also refer to some of the studies and research that were conducted overseas to find out if they could be or could not be supported by the data obtained in this study. Data from the narratives that seemed to best respond to the respective research questions were grouped under that question’s area of focus. The themes were derived from both the narratives and the interview questions. Hence, 11 main themes were selected to summarize participants’ statements that were most significant and relevant to that research focus. To recap, the three research questions are: RQ 1: What is the role of the Internet and social media in the task management of older adults? RQ 2: What role do the Internet and social media play in the relationship maintenance of older adults? RQ 3: What are the social and psychological implications of the Internet and social media for the maintenance of a good quality of life for older adults? Themes that were relevant to the respective research question’s focus, for example RQ 1, were labeled 5.1.1, 5.1.2, 5.1.3, etc., and those that provided insight to RQ 2 were labeled 5.2.1, 5.2.2, 5.2.3, etc. 33 5.1 Research Question 1 What is the role of the Internet and social media in the task management of older adults? Findings from the interviews and focus groups indicated that many of the male participants found the practical functionalities of smartphones like lit screens, bigger number pad and the untethered nature of mobile connectivity - the ability to search for news, information and entertainment, particularly useful. The participants capitalized on the calendar and address book features of the smartphones to key in their personal schedules and contact details as they faced the reality of a poorer short-term memory in their old age. 5.1.1 Practical Functionalities Most of the 16 male participants commented that they experienced a noticeable deterioration of their physical strength and wellness with advancing age, especially their mobility and eyesight. Hence, the advent of handphones and smartphones with bigger screens and lit numbers compensated for their weaker eyesight and enabled them to use handphones and applications easily. For example, 69 year old B13 noted that ‘now, (the phones have) light, very easy to see. Last time the number very small, when you dial you are bound to make a mistake, now got light. That’s the difference.’ Furthermore, the integration of what was previously a desktop-bound capability to now connecting to the Internet with a mobile phone in the palm of one’s hand, was mentioned by a number of the participants as one of the key significant changes in the rapid development of information communication technology for them. The speed and ease at which they could access information were two of the most frequently mentioned aspects of new media that made an impact in their lives. As recounted by B7 (61 years old), ‘last time, (the) computer is computer, hand phone is hand phone, never link. Now link. Now touch screen, last time no touch screen. Make my life easier.’ 34 The older adults noted that the more tangible enhancements in equipment like smartphones – elimination of the need to be tethered to a wire; lit displays; aggregation of functions on a single device, and the ability to connect with others via the Internet almost instantaneously have ‘the potential for assisting with many of the traditional problems associated with ageing’ (Bernard & Phillips, 2000). The role of the Internet and social media, accessible via their smartphones, were becoming more salient for these elderly: ‘It’s all cordless now, you can carry your phone around and talk wherever you want in the house.’ (73 years old, A7) Two other participants made similar observations, 66 year old A6 said, ‘with the hand phone it is easier to contact friends or even relatives. You can send messages and even emails through the handphone’, and ‘everything is so convenient now’. (64 years old, A5) 5.1.2 Calendar and Address Book Functions The use of the Internet and/or smartphones were more pronounced when the questions revolved around their mental well-being as some of the participants relied on their smartphones to remember information that was required for day-to-day task management such as scheduling their activities and essential telephone numbers. B13, 69 years old, said, ‘my family members will tell me, you cannot remember this, cannot remember that. You know only after your family tell you how you have changed.’ They could refer to the activities on the calendar function and for those who had smartphones, they made use of the map and road directory functions online to locate unfamiliar venues and find out how to get there. Almost all the male participants conceded that their short-term memory recall was not as quick as before: ‘One of the things that has gone down is memory. Shortterm memory especially, I think it has deteriorated in the last 20-30 years’ (66 years old, B6). Another comment from 61 year old B7, said, ‘(my) memory not as good as before. That’s why I depend very heavily on my iPhone, everything, every appointment, anything, any program, event I will record immediately into the diary. Very useful.’ This observation supports literature that found ICT equipment like 35 Internet-enabled smartphones having ‘the potential for assisting with many of the traditional problems associated with ageing’ (Bernard & Phillips, 2000) and related directly to Research Question 1 of how the use of the Internet and social media has helped the elderly manage their tasks more effectively. Furthermore, the adoption of technology like smartphones by the participants to compensate for their poorer short-term memory was aligned with the theory of selective optimization with compensation (SOC) which acknowledged that ‘at all stages of the life span, there are things that we are good at and things that we are not so good at’ (Baltes and Baltes, 1990). Similarly, four female participants said their short-term memory was not as good as 10-20 years ago and it took them a slightly longer time now to process information mentally. A4, 77 years old, was one of two female participants who were very driven to master the use of the Internet in order to pursue her interests. She completed a three-year course in counseling from SIM University in 2012 and added, ‘I am surprised I am still interested in learning. I am surprised because when I meet friends my age, they don’t want to study but I must tell you, when I was 40 I was told to do a degree.’ A4 completed a degree in law and was called to the Bench when she was in her 60s and had to adapt to the new information technology to research for the information and materials she needed, online. This desire to continue learning was a strong impetus for A4 to use the Internet in order to complete her assignments and tasks. Another female participant, A6, 61 years old, did not complete her primary school education when she was young due to financial difficulties. After her children had grown up, she was determined to make up for the missed education opportunity by taking up English classes so as to maximize her use of the Internet and fulfill her desire to learn. However, she noted that ‘my mental responses are slower - it is like your brain is not connected and cannot process. My memory is not the same, because when I study English, I have to care about present tense and past tense, it is difficult.’ 36 The awareness of the weakening of their physical bodies and short-term recall motivated the female participants to focus their energies on the things that were important to them (for example, continual education) and looked for help (via Internet resources) with the things they did not have the time nor ability to do themselves. Such adaptations were in line with the selective optimisation with compensation model of how older adults optimised their performance in certain areas and thus enhanced their ability at managing those tasks by using the Internet and/or social media. 5.1.3 Consumption of news online The main sources of news and information for the male participants were the newspapers (hard copy), television and radio. One participant said that he liked the web interface for the Yahoo! news site and obtained news from international news agencies that were online, such as the British Broadcasting Corporation and Washington Post. This was not far removed from the observation of a study conducted by Gamberini et al. (2006) which noted that older persons preferred television and radio as their main source of news. 73 year old A7 commented, ‘when I need to know anything, I will immediately go into it (the Internet).’ A male participant, 78 year old B1, made an observation about his friends who could not access news websites easily as they were not familiar with the English language, he said, ‘my friends are Chinese-educated and the computer is all in English and they don’t know how to change into Chinese, so I did it for them to read news.’ 37 Medium Traditional New Media Publication/Channel No. of participants 1) The Straits Times 4 2) News on TV 7 3) Radio 1 4) Finding out from friends 1 1) The Internet via desktop computers or other handheld ICT devices 2 Table 2: Main sources of news and information for female participants When it came to the male participants who were Chinese educated, some of them did not encounter problems accessing the Internet as they could type in the romanized spelling of the Chinese characters, or hanyu pinyin, when searching for information or websites. However, it was a challenge for some of the female participants, like A6, who were not familiar with hanyu pinyin and had to learn the letters of the alphabet before they were able to identify the correct phonetics corresponding to the intended Chinese character. 5.1.4 Online Health Tips Seven of the 14 female participants expressed their concerns and worries about their health with all of them making the effort to read up and/or find out more information online about how they could maintain good health or of certain health conditions, for instance, high cholesterol or dementia etc. This is half of the female participants interviewed who would use the Internet and social media to help manage their health and well-ness status. For instance, 77 year old A4 said, ‘I used to do some exercise from the Internet (YouTube)’, or 64 year old A5, ‘I would go onto the Internet to check things out like my eyes and high cholesterol and roughly know what I should eat and not eat to ensure your own health.’ 38 Besides going online to search for health information for themselves, 73 year old A7 would also relay relevant information to others around her, ‘you have to keep yourself updated. It is important so that I can maintain my own health and I can also tell people who want more information as what can be done to help them live better lives.’ When the conversation turned to their thoughts about health, most of them echoed the prevailing public sentiments of the need to be in good health as one aged. However, none of the female participants intimated reasons why they felt the need to want to be in good health, that is, to view being in good health as a means to an end, rather than as an end in itself. There was also no direct mention of the increasing cost of healthcare as a reason to keep themselves in good health. There was only one female participant who appeared to take a more balanced view towards managing her health by keeping tabs on her diet and remaining aware of her own physiological changes and needs. The use of the Internet, however, like watching aerobics exercises on YouTube, was an important example of how a need of wanting to exercise led to the elderly selecting to use new media rather than a more traditional method of registering for exercise programmes at a community or fitness club. This could portend important possibilities in reaching out to those elderly who want to remain fit and healthy but were unable to sign up for fitness programmes for various reasons, which is a way of compensating for the inability with the use of ICT. 5.1.5 Performing online transactions, sending emails or information gathering online Two male participants said they spent more time at home on the computer to send emails, follow movements of stock prices and one of them was ‘researching how to get an app to locate hand phones.’ (66 years old, B6) When asked why they did not 39 use their mobile devices to check emails or stock prices, they usually cited the expensive mobile data plans as the key reason for preferring to use the Internet at home or in public libraries. 77 year old B2 added that, ‘after retirement, I spend more time on the computer. Now that I have the computer, I sleep late and get up early (because I) do research on stock prices and it takes quite a while.’ Computer/Internet applications No. of participants 1) Email 4 2) Entertainment – YouTube and games 2 3) Social Media tools – Facebook and Skype 2 4) Searching for information 1 Table 3: Four most frequently used computer applications by female participants The Internet and social media applications figured importantly among the female participants as an easy-to-use, fast mode of communication in a relatively cost-effective way. There were also a number of participants who became animated and excited when talking about how they were able to watch their favourite dramas, listen to old songs and learn just about anything they want on YouTube and other websites now. Although some of them were not literate in the English Language, they were able to use hanyu pinyin (Chinese phonetics using letters of the English alphabet) to search for the dramas or singers they enjoy quite easily. Computer and Internet use had enhanced the quality of life for the female participants to some extent because through its use, the psychological processes associated with the experiences of personal empowerment, enhanced interpersonal communication, learning and overcoming personal and physical difficulties related to mobility had resulted in a more positive self-definition (Shapira et al., 2007). 40 Most frequently used handphone application No. of participants 1) Text messaging 3 2) Email 1 3) Taking pictures 1 4) Games 1 Table 4: Four most frequently used handphone applications by female participants The use of new media and mobile phones mirrored the attitude the female participants had towards computer and Internet tools. That is, they served as the main mode of communication with their family and friends because of the ease of use and the almost instantaneous response from the other party. The handphone was also a means of keeping themselves occupied with social activities like taking pictures or playing games (solitaire) when they were alone or taking a break from work. For instance, 61 year old A6 noted that, ‘the hand phone is very good when there is nobody (around you).’ 5.1.6 Perceived benefits of the Internet The top three benefits commonly cited by the male participants when asked what they found most useful when using the Internet and new media were the ease of communication, convenience and speed. 77 year old B2, noted that the Internet increased the frequency of social interaction he had with his friends and family. An additional benefit was that online communication tools like Skype and MSN Chat are free. 61 year old B7 liked that fact that ‘everything is in your hand’ and 71 year old B15 installed a closed circuit camera in his home that can be monitored via his handphone to make it easier for him to keep an eye on his family. Speed was another attribute that was important as B9, 81 years old, said that ‘speed was necessary to facilitate business opportunities.’ 41 Findings were similar with the female participants with most of them citing ease of communication and convenience as the two major benefits of the Internet. For example, 77 year old A4 said that the Internet ‘keeps me in touch with my family and children, especially those who are overseas.’ A12, 60 years old, found it easy to use Skype and it was free of charge. 62 year old A1, said that ‘it is very convenient to do anything, there is no need to make phone calls to find out things, a few clicks on the computer (Internet) and you can find out everything immediately.’ The Internet as a quick and easy source of information was also an advantage for the female participants: 73 year old A7 noted that the Internet is the easiest source of information and ‘it’s the fastest’, while A3 (64 years old) said that Internet has helped her to ‘upgrade and improve’. The convenience of being able to perform tasks like taking pictures using the handphone and watching videos on the iPad were cited by two female participants as examples. However, the reliance on the younger generation by 67 year old A9 to download movies suggests a digital divide in that household. Using Facebook as a means of communication and staying in contact with others was helpful for 60 year old A12 because she is able to ‘just look at their faces. It’s easier, don’t have to go to so much trouble because Facebook has all the correspondence.’ Almost all the male and female participants provided positive feedback on their use of the Internet and computer and agreed that it had brought them a lot of convenience and benefits in managing their day-to-day activities and tasks. They recounted that once they were able to get over the initial anxiety and fear of using technology, they discovered the possibilities and near-limitless access to information, and constant communication with people whenever they chose to do so. The change in mental paradigms and preferred mode of communication with others were perhaps the most obvious and tangible benefits that have occurred in their lifetimes. In fact, the barrier of entry to learning and self-discovery had been drastically lowered for those who may not have been able to learn and afford formal education and this may 42 be one of the more important roles played by the use of the Internet especially for the female participants in terms of managing their tasks and maintaining those relationships that were important to them. As the participants spoke of how the use of the Internet and new media has had mostly positive impact on their lives, they were also cognizant of the consequences of being overly reliant on technology and how that would affect people. The three most often heard refrain of the ills of information technology were related to privacy – ‘information could be hacked into’ (76 years old, B8); addiction – ‘try not to over-join online groups’ (63 years old, B4), and the high costs of repair or replacement of ICT – ‘sometimes we may misplace it or we need to repair it’ (71 years old, B15). Furthermore, the participants were also concerned with the over-dependence on new technology. 68 year old B5 said, ‘people are overly dependent on mobile phones. Many parents indulge their children with gadgets and still think that it is good for their kids.’ Another cause of concern was the ability to surf for pornography very easily which could lead to social problems among the young of today. ‘At our age there isn’t much of that aspect (viewing pornographic sites) but more worrying is how our children will be affected instead’, said B3, 73 years old. He also believed that iPads were also redundant: ‘I wish to be able to make use of new media/technology better but currently, I think it is sufficient to send text messages and make calls. The iPads are redundant.’ Three out of the 16 male participants were still concerned or anxious about not knowing how to use the computer correctly with one of them having a constant fear of the computer ‘crashing’ (77 years old, A4). 60 year old A13 added that the ‘young IT trainer’s hands go so fast (when teaching them how to use the computer)’, that he could not follow where his hands were going. 43 Even though most of the 14 female participants have attended courses on how to use the computer and the Internet, there was still considerable fear and anxiety in using technology and social media and these feelings were articulated by A3 and A4 in the table above. Another participant, 64 year old A10 explained, ‘the older you get, the slower (stupid) you become, that’s why when we learn the computer, it is impossible for us to learn it just like that.’ Bearing in mind that information communication technology was not just about having or not having access to technologies, but the scope and intensity of the relationships that people developed with these technologies, and the nature of what they did with them that was important (Selwyn et al., 2003), we turn now to how the use of these technologies have contributed to the maintenance and/or enhancement of relationships for the female participants. The next section contained statements from the data that illustrated the role of social media tools like Facebook in the maintenance and/or improvement of relationships between the participants and others (Research Question 2). 5.2 Research Question 2 What role does the Internet and social media play in the relationship maintenance of older adults? A number of the older Singaporeans experienced closer relationships with their grandchildren even as they went through the empty-nest syndrome. In order to bridge the generation gap and remain connected with their children and grandchildren, several of the participants used social media tools like Facebook and Skype to maintain or enhance familial relationships. 44 5.2.1 Relationship with Family post-retirement Connecting with others was an important theme in the way older adults created meaning in their lives (Moore, Metcalf & Schow, 2006) and across the world, mobile phones and the Internet helped older persons keep in touch with their families and friends (Gamberini et al, 2006). Many of the participants shared that they used social media tools like Facebook because the younger members of their families were using Facebook often and that was the most effective way of connecting with them. For instance, 62 year old A1 keeps in contact with her family and friends mostly with her handphone while A4 (77 years old) said that the Internet keeps her in touch with her family and friends, especially those who are overseas. The similarity between the male and female participants was the use of social media tools like Facebook to connect with the younger set of relatives in the extended family. They acknowledged these tools to be the preferred mode of communication for the young, and hence wanted to ‘talk their lingo’ in order to encourage greater two-way communication between them. Thus the use of Facebook could be said to meet two needs of the participants: connecting with familiar others and grow in emotional intimacy (socioemotional selectivity), and to compensate for the generation gap and physical distance (selective optimization with compensation) by using a medium that they knew would appeal to the family, particularly those who were younger. However, it was not clear to what extent social media could assist with enhancing the affective returns for the female participants when a number of them spoke of existing relationships between them and their children as not being close. Most of their children were busy at work and for B16 (64 years old), he always had conflicts with his children. Others, like B2 (77 years old), observed that many elderly did not know how to spend their time and chose to look after the grandchildren in order to keep themselves busy. Nonetheless, video conferencing media like Facebook, Skype and Microsoft’s Messenger were cited as tools that the elderly used to stay in touch with their children and their families who were overseas. 45 The ease of use and cost-effectiveness of these tools contributed to the popularity and frequency of these social media tools to maintain and enhance family relationships for the older Singaporeans. Such efforts were consistent with the socioemotional selectivity theory of choosing to expend one’s time and efforts on relationships that would maximize affective returns and positive outcomes were expected. 5.2.2 Relationship with Friends One of the criteria for the selection of participants for this research was some experience with the Internet or smartphones with access to the Internet, hence, the group was fairly comfortable with the use of handphones and the Internet. But they had friends who either did not know how to use the computer and the Internet, or were not proficient in sending text messages using the handphone, much less connect to the Internet using them. 68 year old B5 recounted: ‘some of my friends don’t know how to SMS (short message service) only know how to make calls even though they are same age as me’, and B13 (69 years old) added, ‘I have three close friends, but the problem is these three persons do not know how to use computer. That’s the trouble. I have to call by phone.’ When the male participants spoke about some of their friends who were not adept in using the handphones other than making voice calls, they expressed disbelief and exasperation but they would still call them on the phone when necessary. It would be relevant here to refer to the point made in the study by Selwyn et al. (2003) that it was ‘not about having or not having access to technologies, rather it is the scope and intensity of the relationships that people develop with technologies and the nature of what they do with them that is important’ (Selwyn et al., 2003). Half of the 16 male participants selected email as their most frequently used computer/Internet application; three said they use the computer/Internet mostly to search for information and two had personal blogs and Facebook as the top 46 application they used via the Internet. The main reason for using email was to keep in touch with friends and family by sharing news and/or information about each other in a more private and directed manner vis-à-vis posting status updates on Facebook where it was not addressed to anyone in particular and could be seen by those granted access to view. The extent and the role of the Internet and social media in relationship maintenance was mostly determined by the participants but as in the case of B4, he had selected to use his Facebook profile page as a platform to extend his network as he was a private entrepreneur. Others, like 61 year old B7, sends about 3000 short messages each month because of his community grassroots activities and said: ‘without SMS, I cannot survive.’ The responses from the male participants were different from the female participants when the questions revolved around their relationships with friends. Only one to two female participants said that they met up with their friends, albeit not frequently, and usually kept in touch either by phone, short text messaging or emails. It was not uncommon for the female participants to respond that they were not close to their friends or colleagues due to family commitments and of those who have friends, they were usually from the same senior activity centre like Good Life Centre or the IT classes. For instance, 61 year old A6 said, ‘I don’t have many friends. I won’t always ask my friends out for meals as you can see, my schedule is very packed as I go around myself for my activities (lessons etc). I don’t have the time to look for people, if I have some time I will go onto Facebook to chat with people or send emails or call them.’ This pattern substantiates the observation made by the socioemotional selectivity theory (SST) of the elderly not wanting to invest too much time and effort in others whom they know may not bring as much emotional affect or positive outcomes and could help us understand why some elderly Singaporeans choose to be alone or isolate themselves rather than be with others they did not like. 47 The ability to choose who the user wanted to communicate and link up with could be a possible mode in which agencies could adopt to persuade more older Singaporeans, especially those who were living alone and isolated from others, to reconnect again with others using social media, and thus move a step closer towards creating meaningful experiences for themselves in their later years. Some grassroots IT champions like 61 year old B7 organized numerous interest groups in his community club to draw out the elderly living in his precinct to mingle, and encouraged them to maintain these connections with each other through Facebook and Whatssap (instant messaging tool). He also obtained second-hand desktop computers and conducted subsidized IT classes for those elderly who did not know how to use the computer and the Internet, with the primary aim of keeping the elderly connected with the community at large, through their interests, by using social media tools. For instance, singing karaoke with each other using YouTube instead of buying karaoke compact discs. When asked if they were active on social media like Twitter or Facebook, less than half of the male participants said they had Facebook accounts and among them, only two persons maintained more than one account, usually for their different social capacities. What was pertinent to this study was the fact that their activity on Facebook came about because they wanted to ‘connect’ with their friends and family – especially those who were overseas or whom they do not meet often, and those who were in the same interest groups. This demonstrated the role of social media in the maintenance of relationships for the participants, echoing the position by Selwyn et al. (2003) that it was what the elderly did with the technology that was more important than the technology itself. 5.2.3 Impersonal nature of technology The ambivalence felt towards the Internet and new media was obvious among the participants. After describing the advantages of the Internet, they shared their concerns and thoughts of the potential backlash of over-using social media, 48 sometimes without prompting from the researcher-interviewer. 67 year old B10 said, ‘communication has become impersonal, (there is) no more that personal touch. You don’t have to tell me to ‘Like’ you. It becomes bizarre.’ Another male participant, B11 (66 years old), was also apprehensive about the future development of the Internet, especially with social media. He said, ‘you can do things now even without meeting the other party, it has become ‘Faceless’. I don’t know where it will end, things will get deeper. IT has developed so fast, after Facebook, I do not know what else they will develop.’ This reflexive stance manifested itself mostly as concerns about the decreasing levels of face-to-face communication and the ‘personal touch’ between people. Therefore, while the Internet and social media had a great impact on the maintenance of relationships with families and friends, the tangible, personal touch remained important to these participants. Another example of the ambivalence was captured by A7 who said, ‘I still think that voice contact is more personal. Sending messages is okay to ask ‘Are you free, can I call you?’ etc., but the personal touch is not the same. It is difficult to compare if sending email or short messages is better, but other than that to keep in touch, calling and talking, meeting is the best. But when you become used to IT, to give it up is difficult.’ After being introduced to the varied and almost instantaneous method of communicating with whomever they wished to, most of the female participants cited this ease of communication and convenience as the top two benefits brought about by improved technology and social media. The demarcation between their real, physical activities (life) began to blur with the introduction of this new virtual space (media) which brought them closer to the things and people whom they may have been distant from previously or with whom communication had been mostly one-way – in this case, the spiritual relationship with God. 77 year old A4 said, ‘I talk a lot to God, half the time I am talking to Him but I can’t Facebook Him.’ While new media has enabled them agency in keeping close contact with family and friends, the pages on Facebook with spiritual content, for now, are managed by human beings. 49 Another theme that helped older adults derive more meaning in their lives was spirituality and faith in God (Moore, Metcalf & Schow, 2006). When an elderly person’s personal meaning perspective become more inclusive and integrative of their experiences, including virtual ones, online spiritual resources were thus important to participant A4. Besides spirituality and faith, there were other factors that contributed towards the participants’ definition of a good quality of life. The last section of the data offered insights on the social and psychological implications from the use of the Internet and social media and to what extent they could have led to the definition and maintenance of a good quality of life for these adults. An important element in this scheme of questions was the participants’ definition of the phrase ‘good quality of life’ and what were some factors necessary to achieve a good quality of life. 5.3 Research Question 3 What are the social and psychological implications of the Internet and social media for the maintenance of a good quality of life for older adults? When posed the question about what having a ‘good quality of life’ meant, the researcher-interviewer took care to be as generic as possible without suggesting or projecting ideas of what a ‘good quality of life’ could consist of. The descriptors that were mentioned most often are listed in the table below according to frequency. These attributes set the tone for the discussion on the social and psychological implications of the use of the Internet and social media for the quality of life for the elderly Singaporean: 50 No. Males Females 1) Being in good health Being in good health 2) Being happy Family relations 3) Financial stability Financial stability 4) Living life to the fullest Personal time and independence – to do the things they like 5) NIL Use of computer and the Internet Table 5: Descriptors of a good quality of life by male and female participants The use of the computer and the Internet enhances the psychological factors that are important to the quality of life of older people because the reasons for the improved well-being were related to the psychological processes associated with experiences of personal empowerment, enhanced interpersonal communication, learning and overcoming personal and physical difficulties related to mobility (Shapira et al., 2007). However, only the female participants selected the ability to use the Internet and social media as an important attribute towards their good quality of life. This point could be an area of further research for gender differences on the extent of which the use of the Internet and social media contributed directly towards a better quality of life for the elderly. 5.3.1 Giving back to society through IT 71 year old B15, fixed computers for free for lower-income families who were unable to afford the service charges for computer repairs. He had also given secondhand sets to the families if he was unable to repair the set that was spoilt. When asked why he did this, he started tearing and said, ‘I come from a poor family so (I want to give back to society).’ The sense of self and philosophy for living were two of the six key themes generated from a study by Moore et al. (2006). The study found that an 51 individual’s perspectives on personal meaning would evolve to become more inclusive and integrative of their experiences (Moore et al., 2006). This provided the context for which we could attempt to understand how his humble family beginnings led him to develop a philosophy and raison d’être for wanting to help others who were in the same financial situation like him before. The social effect of knowing how to use the computers and fixing them was expanded through these charitable gestures of B15 and in return, provided a measure of positive self-fulfillment and meaning, which are key themes for a good quality of life. 5.3.2 Social and Psychological Impact of new media and technologies 5.3.2.1 Positive After being introduced to the capabilities of the computer, the Internet and social media tools, most of the participants took to it like fish to the water. They provided several examples of how the Internet made positive changes to their lives: being able to access information easily; connected with family and friends who were overseas, and found tools and applications that were useful for their hobbies and interests (photography, singing, aerobics to investment). 63 year old B4 said, ‘if I haven’t gone onto the Internet, I wouldn’t have known a lot of the other things. It has opened up a whole new dimension in my life because it has given me accessibility to more things. New media is indispensable because it is part and parcel of life.’ A 73 year old female participant A7, appreciated the fact that ‘ICT has improved the quality of life, because I am able to keep in touch with people whom I would not have otherwise, and that has brought my circle of friends closer to me. Many friends in US with whom I have lost touch for a long time, but now with Facebook I was able to contact them.’ There was also a 77 year old male participant, B2, who started an IT training consultancy with some of his friends when ICT first took root in Singapore. ‘I learnt (how to use the computer) because it is a major advancement for our country and the government encouraged everybody to learn IT and be IT literate.’ 52 The positive feelings stimulated from overcoming initial difficulties in learning how to use the Internet was congruent with the findings from Shapira et al. (2003) where participants reported ‘an emergence of positive feelings while surfing the Internet, an elevated self-image and experiences of motivation and enthusiasm.’ Both B3 and B15 (73 years old and 71 years old respectively) felt that the Internet was indispensable in their lives now. 77 year old A4 said, ‘I think I will die without IT - that’s what I am worried about now.’ A number of the positive comments revolved mostly around the benefits the Internet brought in terms of access to information; connectivity with others in spite of the geographical distance, thereby maintaining or increasing the level of emotional intimacy between them and others, and being able to learn continuously, resulting in an improved sense of self and empowerment. These observations support extant literature on the several social and psychological implications brought about from the use of the Internet and social media, one of which was Karavidas et al. (2005) that found a positive relationship between older people’s use and knowledge of computers and the Internet, and their general self-efficacy and life satisfaction. Such observations suggested that data from Singapore and other countries show a correlation between the ability to use the Internet and self-empowerment. Furthermore, having a zest for life and wanting to help others were not unlike how other seniors derived meaning in their lives, that is, through their philosophy for living, embracing life, sense of self and connecting with others (Moore, Metcalf & Schow, 2006). A7 was the only participant who made a direct reference to how the Internet and social media had made an impact on her social and psychological states by enhancing and strengthening her relationships with significant others. These remarks also resonated with the positions put forth by the selective optimization with compensation, where how the elderly will be more dependent in some areas (the use of the Internet and social media) to be more independent in others (continual learning and upgrading themselves). It was the nature of what these participants did with the new technology that was important, rather than the technology itself (Selwyn et al., 2003). 53 5.3.2.2 Negative The concerns the female participants had towards technology were about the impersonal nature of such communication and the constant change and ‘updating’ of new technology and equipment which made it difficult for them to keep up and stay relevant. ‘(I) don’t have the confidence to use it (sending emails) well. We just want to learn a ‘normal one’ and use it in our lives, we are not working hence we don’t need to update and catch up all the time.’ (67 years old, A9) The female participants were generally less confident of their proficiency with using the computer and the Internet, hence the reluctance to make more use of the new technology to improve their self-definition or derive greater meaning through these virtual experiences. For instance, 63 year old A8, felt that ‘I don’t dislike (using the Internet), I just don’t know how to do it.’ Not being proficient in the English Language proved to be another stumbling block for some female participants like A10, ‘My English is not as good hence it is more difficult for me. I envy the people around me who can use these gadgets.’ With the provision of more computer classes taught by the elderly themselves, like those offered by RSVP Singapore - The Organisation of Senior Volunteers (Tan, 2013), these challenges could hopefully be overcome with time and effort. 54 DISCUSSIONS Three questions guided the analysis of the research data and these would be used to frame the findings presented in this section. The research questions were: RQ 1: What is the role of the Internet and social media in the task management of older adults? RQ 2: What role do the Internet and social media play in the relationship maintenance of older adults? RQ 3: What are the social and psychological implications of the Internet and social media for the maintenance of a good quality of life for older adults? 6.1 Role of the Internet and Social Media in area of Task Management Many of the participants observed a weakening of their physical strength and having more aches and pains were deemed part of the ageing process. They also cited a deterioration of their short-term memory as they struggled to remember the things that happened awhile ago. How can technology and social media be used then to compensate for those areas of physical deficiencies in order for older Singaporeans to manage the day-to-day tasks of living better, and in a dignified way? The data found many of the participants taking to the practical functionalities of the smartphones like lit screens, bigger number pad and the wireless-ness of mobile connectivity - the ability to search for news, information and entertainment, quite easily. They relied very much on the calendar and address book features of the smartphones to key in their personal schedules and essential telephone numbers as they coped with the reality of a poorer short-term memory in their old age. The awareness of the weakening of their physical bodies and short-term recall motivated the female participants especially, to focus their energies on the things that were important to them (for example, continual education) and looked for help (via Internet resources) with the things they did not have the time nor ability to do 55 themselves. Such adaptations were in line with the theory of selective optimisation with compensation of how older adults optimised their performance in certain areas and thus enhanced their ability at managing those tasks by using the Internet and/or social media. Furthermore, the supervision of young children at home, performing stock market transactions and doing aerobics by watching demonstrations on YouTube were ways in which the elderly used technology to their advantage and were within their control. Accessing the Internet and social media instantly, and sometimes constantly, on their smartphones was also a common phenomena among the participants interviewed. The ease of communication and convenience of the smartphones lowered the barrier to continual and self-directed learning significantly and this could be a key role performed through the use of the Internet, especially for female participants. With the lowered costs of acquiring smartphones, older Singaporeans can now have easier access to the Internet, although pricey data plans for surfing the Internet remained a concern for the retired adults who were sensitive to the prices of the data plans and preferred to opt for cheaper or free alternatives via public libraries and community clubs. It could also be argued that with years of experience and skills attained in specific areas like IT know-how, photography or handicraft, the theory of selective optimization with compensation could prove a useful framework for agencies to consider when planning activities for the elderly. This is because the elderly themselves are reservoirs of resources that could be tapped on. This potential is evident through the examples of some of the male and female participants who conduct IT and handicraft classes for other seniors within their community and among their friends (Tan, 2013). 56 6.2 Role of the Internet and Social Media in the area of Relationship Management Connecting with friends and family was one of the most frequently cited reasons why older adults were drawn to social media, but the greatest benefit afforded by this communication tool was the fact that relationships, especially those separated by distance, which were socially dormant for a number of years could now be easily ‘rebooted’ again. This ability contributed to strengthened social networks for these older adults, evident by the statements provided by participants A2, A4, A6, A12, B2 and B7. This supported the literature posited by the socioemotional selectivity theory (SST) where ‘older adults tend to have fewer friendships, choosing to focus on the most rewarding relationships and shedding peripheral acquaintances’ (Carstensen, 1992). Furthermore, the ‘key tension or dialectic that encompassed many of the issues of parent-child relationships’ (Baxter & Dindia, 1990) revealed itself in the strained or distant relationship some of the older Singaporeans felt with their adult children. The elderly participants acknowledged that their adult children had their own families and lives to lead and hence would not have as much time and energy to spend with them as before. The amount of time spent talking to each other was also reduced over the years. Hence, the use of social media like Facebook to connect with their friends or turn to relatives of a similar age as the elderly participants helped us to better understand Research Question 2 on the role of social media in meeting the need for companionship and maintenance of inter/intra-generational relationships and also its relation to how these tools could assist in the maintenance of relationships that brought the greatest affective returns from familiar others. In order to bridge the generation gap and remain connected with their children and grandchildren, participants used social media tools like Facebook and Skype to maintain or enhance intergenerational relationships. However, the state of relationship they had with friends was different for both genders. 57 The use of new media and IT appeared to fulfill several needs at the same time for the participants and most of them were social in nature, indicative, perhaps of the social implications and role of social media in enhancing the quality of life for older adults. For instance, companionship, friendship/love, self-confidence for mastering a new device, need for information (health and financial instruments), social (entertainment) needs and service for the common good (volunteering). Of greater relevance, perhaps, would be augmenting the findings for this particular area of research to recent studies that loneliness hastens death for older adults, and how agencies could capitalize on social media to reach out to as many isolated and lonely elderly Singaporeans as possible through their peers who are IT-savvy. 6.3 Social and Psychological implications of the Internet and social media for the Maintenance of a Good Quality of Life The need and desire for leisure and entertainment was noted in the use of YouTube and other video streaming and online games websites by the participants who wanted to learn how to sing, dance or play games on their smartphones. The ability to listen to the radio or music was also an important feature in the smartphones as it helped them to relax and pass time. The positive feelings stimulated from overcoming initial difficulties in learning how to use the Internet was also evident in the narratives and supported the findings where an emergence of positive feelings while surfing the Internet led to an elevated self-image and experiences of motivation and enthusiasm (Shapira et al. 2003). There were a few occasions when, in the process of the dialogues, two of the participants started to tear because of strong emotional reasons in wanting to learn how to use the computer, and/or wanting to teach other senior adults to use the computer. The participants themselves did not appear to be aware of these feelings they had towards learning and this could be an area of interest for future research. However, in many of the conversations and instances where the participants 58 conducted IT classes for other older adults, there was a discernible sense of pride and empowerment as they spoke of sharing their knowledge and skills with their peers. Computer and Internet use had enhanced the psychological factors important to the quality of life for the participants because through its use, the psychological processes associated with the experiences of personal empowerment, enhanced interpersonal communication, learning and overcoming personal and physical difficulties related to mobility had resulted in a more positive self-definition (Shapira et al., 2007). Another notable aspect that emerged through the conversations was the preferred mode of learning IT and social media skills from peers because they felt that they could relate to them better. The senior participants felt that younger IT trainers were more impatient and were not able to understand their difficulties and address the anxieties they faced. For instance, the comment from B1,‘when I conduct my IT or photography classes, because they are all seniors and if you talk technical it is no use, so I talk about something they can understand easily’ and B5, ‘when teaching computer to elderly, there should be consideration of their ego and pride. There should be more patient, it is rather challenging for elderly, it is best to teach in small groups or one-to-one learning.’ This feedback would be useful when introducing new IT classes for the elderly because of the need to be patient with them, and to be respected and not talked down to. It was a challenge finding suitable candidates, especially from the other ethnic groups, to participate in the study. Requesting for the permission to interview the elderly from some of the elderly centres also proved difficult as they were not amenable to revealing ‘personal data’ about their members. Hence, the time and effort taken to conduct the field work necessary for this qualitative research was more than expected. The data would have benefitted from having more participants from the other ethnic groups, especially the Malays and Eurasians, so as to better reflect the ethnic makeup of Singapore. 59 CONCLUSIONS Less than 20 years from now, by 2030, the median age of the Singapore population will be 49 and in 2050, the median age will rise to 55 years. This rapid greying of the population is a reality that our society must be adequately prepared for and not just in terms of physical infrastructure and healthcare provisions. The socioemotional aspect of the human person is equally important for ensuring a good quality of life in our silver and golden years. The need for relationships, companionship, friendship and healthy sense of self give meaning and panache to our lives as Singaporeans, more so after retirement. Singapore is not alone in her efforts in ensuring that measures are taken to meet the demands of a greying population. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) convened the Second World Assembly on Ageing in Madrid, Spain, in 2012 to address the challenges of rapid population ageing around the world and to examine further if a greater adoption of technology and new media could bridge some of the disconnects some of the older adults may face in our fast-changing society (UNFPA, 2012). The Assembly adopted the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing which focused on ‘mainstreaming older persons in development’ (UNFPA, 2012) and ‘advancing health and well-being into old age, ensuring enabling and supportive environments’ (UNFPA, 2012). Of relevance to this research is the recommendation from the Plan for countries to develop ‘an age-friendly physical environment that promotes the development and use of innovative technologies that encourage active ageing’ (UNFPA, 2012), which is perhaps ‘important as people grow older and experience diminished mobility, and visual and hearing impairments’ (UNFPA, 2012). Through the interviews, a number of participants (both male and female) recounted their experiences of decreased strength and a worsening of short-term memory as they got on in years but how they used their smartphones and other technological devices to 60 keep abreast of the latest news and continued to pursue their interests in spite of these physical challenges. Advances in technology over the past decade have transformed the way society works and created tremendous benefits for persons of all ages and in all aspects of their lives including work, health care and social and family life. Technology, with its multimedia affordances, could alleviate the disadvantage, isolation and marginalization experienced by many older persons (UNFPA, 2012), as evident in the use of Skype and other video conferencing tools to maintain relationships with significant others online. However, this is not without disadvantages. A real-life example was seen in one of the male participants who felt isolated and distant from his friends whom he used to be very close with. Now, he emails his former colleagues in America frequently but this was a poor cousin of the physical interaction he used to enjoy with his friends. The findings obtained through this study on the social and psychological implications brought about through the use of the Internet and social media, especially in terms of enhancing a sense of self, empowerment and creating more meaningful activities for themselves were important observations and mirrored data from other foreign research. This suggested some measure of generalization in the impact and result from use of the Internet and social media among the elderly, across countries. This study began with the intention of the researcher-interviewer wanting to discover the sort of motivations and needs driving older Singaporeans to use the Internet and social media, and the narratives that unbundled themselves as a result of the study were rare glimpses into the lives and situations of ordinary Singaporeans in the midst of unprecedented technological development, dependence and infiltration. 61 In conclusion, the entire research process taken for this thesis had been a very illuminating and enriching experience for the researcher-interviewer. Each encounter with every participant was an invitation into their milieu – the physical, social and emotional environment they were in when approaching the Internet, a virtual plane. The older adults are not technology natives and there were several instances in which the researcher-interviewer was forced to unlearn and relearn some of the technological affordances that she had taken for granted and did not think very much of. For example, the lit buttons on a handphone, placing the cursor at the exact point so that only the item that is needed is selected, the touchscreen and most crucial of all, sending messages to and fro almost instantaneously and communicating with another person across geographical distances. Research into the physical and mental health, family relationships, living arrangements and other social indicators (Tan, 2014) of the elderly in Singapore has been gaining momentum as our society ages. It is hoped that this report has provided an insight on how the use of social media and the Internet could help older Singaporeans better manage their tasks, strengthen relationships, and thus encourage even more, elderly Singaporeans to be savvy users of the Internet and social media so as to enhance their quality of lives. Future Research In the search for possible participants for this study, the researcher-interviewer encountered numerous refusals, mostly from females, to be a participant because they perceived their IT proficiency to be low and/or almost non-existent. While there was no way to ascertain the fact, the researcher-interviewer wondered if this was more a perception rather than fact. It might be beneficial, as a follow-up study to this thesis, to conduct further research on how older adults perceive their IT proficiency and whether it matches their actual ability in accessing the Internet and other computerrelated tools. 62 Of the 30 participants, 25 were Chinese, three were Indians and there was one each from the Malay and Ceylonese ethnic groups. It was a challenge finding suitable candidates and persuading older adults, especially from the other ethnic groups, to participate in the study. Thus, obtaining qualitative data from the Malay, Indian and other ethnic groups on their use of the Internet and social media could be a possible area for further research in the future. Furthermore, while there was no explicit mention and discussion of viewing pornographic material and visiting gambling websites with the researcher-interviewer, it could be likely that a number of older adults do visit these websites. To find out the extent and pattern of such activity would require the gender of the interviewers to be the same with the intended participants and for the questions to be more directed at the need for sexual gratification and for gambling. These activities could point to other important areas of sexual and social needs for the Internet that were not covered in this report. 63 APPENDICES Appendix 1 – Personal Information Sheet Participant Information Sheet (SES Info) Project Title: Understanding the socioemotional needs, and the disposition of older adults towards New Media Principal Investigator: Dr Tracy Loh (loh.tracy@nus.edu.sg/6516-3430) Co-investigator: Wendy Wong (cnmwpwhc@nus.edu.sg/6516-4148) Participant’s Name / Code No.: _____________________________________ Date: ________________________ Please CIRCLE the answer that best relates to you. 1. May I know your race (according to I/C)? 0 = Chinese 1 = Malay 2 = Indian 3 = Others (please specify ___________________) 2. Are you a: 0 = Singapore Citizen 1 = Permanent Resident 2 = Others (please specify __________________) 3. Gender 0 = Male 1 = Female 64 4. May I know your marital status? 0 = Single 1 = Married 2 = Divorced 3 = Widowed 5. What is your religion? 0 = Buddhist 1 = Muslim 2 = Taoist 3 = Hindu 4 = Christian / Roman Catholic 5 = Free Thinker 6 = Others (please specify __________________________) 6. What type of housing are you staying in currently? 0 = HDB 1 – 2 room flat 1 = HDB 3 room flat 2 = HDB 4 room flat 3 = HDB 5 room flat/HDB executive/HUDC 4 = Private housing 5 = Others (please specify __________________________) 7. How many children do you have? 0 = None 1 =1 2 =2 3 =3 4 = 4 and more 8. Do they live with you? 0 = No 1 = Yes 9. What is your occupation? (Or the work you did before retirement) 0 = Professional/managerial 1 = White collar (sales, clerical) 2 = Blue collar (mechanical, production) 3 = Self-employed 4 = Educator/Teacher 5 = Housewife 6 = Others (please specify ____________________________) 10. What is your highest level of education? 0 = Primary 6 or below 1 = O - Level 2 = A - Level 3 = Diploma 4 = Degree and above 5 = Others (please specify ______________________) 65 11. What is your monthly income? (Or last-drawn income before retirement) 0 = $2,000 or less 1 = $2,001 - $3,000 2 = $3,001 - $4,000 3 = $4,001 – $5,000 4 = $5,001 - $6,000 5 = $6,001 – $7,000 6 = Above $7,000 12. What type of handphone do you own? 0 = Non-3G enabled phone. I.e., unable to connect to the Internet 1 = 3G enabled phone with touchscreen. For example, Samsung Galaxy, Blackberry, iPhone etc. 13. Who bought the handphone? 0 = Myself 1 = Spouse 2 = Children 3 = Sibling/Relative 4 = Friends 14. How would you rate your own proficiency at using your handphone? (On a scale of 1 to 7, 1 = Very poor, 7 = Very good.) 1 2 3 4 5 15. Do you own a tablet PC or iPad? 0 = No 1 = Yes 16. How did you learn how to use the Internet and/or your smartphone? 0 = Myself (Through work, courses and/or trial and error) 1 = Spouse 2 = Children 3 = Grandchildren 4 = Friends 5 = Siblings/Relatives 17. How often do you use the Internet? 0 = At least once a day 1 = A few times a week 2 = A few times a month 3 = Very seldom or only when I need to 18. How many hours do you spend using the Internet each week? (Average) ____________ hrs _____________ mins 66 6 7 19. What do you use the Internet for? (Select any 5 and rank them in order of frequency of use; 1 being the most often and 5 being least often.) Email = ____________ News = ____________ Search for information = ____________ Online transactions (For e.g. Internet Banking, booking of air tickets, hotel accommodation etc) = ____________ Online shopping = ____________ Social media/networking sites (For e.g. Facebook, MSN chat) = ____________ Skype/Face-to-face chats = ____________ Online games/videos = ____________ Gambling/Betting = ____________ Others (please specify) = ____________ 20. Which computer application do you know how to use? (Circle as many as they apply to you) 0 = None. I do not use the computer. 1 = MS Office (MS Word, MS Excel, MS Powerpoint) 2 = Adobe Photoshop or any other photo/video editing tool 3 = Dreamweaver or any other web page designing tool 4 = Email 5 = Getting on the Internet and using most websites 6 = Skype and/or MSN Chat 7 = Others (please specify) _________________________________ 21. How would you rate your own proficiency at using the computer? (On a scale of 1 to 7, 1 = Very poor, 7 = Very good.) 1 2 3 4 67 5 6 7 Appendix 2 – Questions for Focus Group & Individual Interviews National University of Singapore – Faculty of Arts and Social Science Department of Communications and New Media Research Topic: Understanding the socioemotional needs, and the disposition of older adults towards New Media Interview ( Code No. 1 ) Date: Name: Date/Year of Birth: Contact Details (HP and/or Email) Aud Rec (/×) What do you think are some areas in your life now that may be different from 20-30 years ago? In terms of (can be improved or deteriorated): (a) physical health, (b) mental/intellectual capabilities, (c) daily activities, (d) relationships with family and friends, (e) use of new equipment or technological devices (computers, the internet, smartphones, digital cameras etc) 2 How would you describe the impact or effect of these changes on your life? 3a As you become older, what are some area(s) that has(ve) become more important to you? 3b Why? 4 What do you enjoy doing most nowadays? Why? 5a What does the phrase, ‘having a good quality of life’, mean to you? 68 5b What do you think are essential in ensuring a ‘good quality of life’? (Rank them in order of importance – can be as many as they prefer.) 6 Do you sometimes feel the need to find out information about certain medical illness, medical remedies or even health tips like exercises, dietary practices etc? Why or why not? 7 What is your most regular source of news and information? For those who use, or are planning to learn how to use IT/smartphones: (Participants who do not use or wish to use IT/new media, proceed to Question 11.) 8a Which application(s) and/or software do you use most frequently on the computer and/or smartphones? (Smartphones can include iPads or Android tablets.) 8b Why? 9a What do you think has been the greatest benefit and disadvantage to you as you use IT/new media? 9b Has the use of new media had any impact on your ‘quality of life’? How so? 10 Do you feel that IT/new media is an indispensable part of your life now? Why? (Proceed to Question 12.) Participants who do not use or wish to use IT/new media: 11 Why do you not wish/like to use IT/new media? 12a Do you feel that you are leading a ‘good quality of life’ currently? What makes you say that? 12b Is there an area in your life that you wish you had done differently or done more of? Why do you say that? 69 BIBLIOGRAPHY Antonucci, T. C., and Akiyama, H. (Eds). (1995). 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Singapore. 78 [...]... assisting with many of the traditional problems associated with ageing’ (Bernard & Phillips, 2000) and related directly to Research Question 1 of how the use of the Internet and social media has helped the elderly manage their tasks more effectively Furthermore, the adoption of technology like smartphones by the participants to compensate for their poorer short-term memory was aligned with the theory... communications) in America Another study by Holladay and Seipke (2003) also showed that communication via email is relatively frequent in the grandparent-grandchild relationship There are four main themes in the way grandparents describe their relationships with their grandchildren (Harwood & Lin, 2000) and the first is the sense of affiliation and the expression of love The ability to express their affection and... other elders in the family as ‘friends’ if they want to keep the information on their Facebook accounts private from their parents Moreover, the proliferation of cell phones within one generation (for instance, the grandchildren) affects the connection between generations, even when the phone is not owned by the grandparent In a research conducted by Kim and Crow (2012), one participant (a grandmother)... seven (with one being least proficient and seven being the most proficient), their perceived proficiency in using their smartphones and the Internet The information allowed the researcher-interviewer to understand better the environment in which each participant used the smartphone and/or the Internet About 20 participants needed some form of assistance with calculating how much time they spent on the. .. smartphones – elimination of the need to be tethered to a wire; lit displays; aggregation of functions on a single device, and the ability to connect with others via the Internet almost instantaneously have the potential for assisting with many of the traditional problems associated with ageing’ (Bernard & Phillips, 2000) The role of the Internet and social media, accessible via their smartphones, were... Embracing life Of these six themes, the sense of self and connecting with others presented possibilities and opportunities for the use of the Internet and social media as conduits which older Singaporeans could tap on to derive greater meaning in their lives 3.4 Socioemotional Selectivity Theory (SST) According to the Socioemotional Selectivity theory (Carstensen, 1991), individuals are guided by the same essential... as the perspective and understanding of the interpreter, including his biases and blind spots, are revealed and evaluated (Tappan, 1997) Thus, IPA’s phenomenological component maps out the participants’ concerns and cares – their orientation toward the world – in the form of the experiences that they claim for themselves (Larkin et al, 2006) The interpretative component contextualizes these claims within... situations they are facing, how they were making sense of their personal and social world vis-à-vis the pervasiveness of the Internet and social media In Phenomenology, meaning is central, and the aim is to try to understand the content and complexity of those meanings rather than measure their frequency 16 main themes emerged from the discussions and some quotes were selected as examples to describe the. .. together – may increase (Carstensen, 1992) At the same time, interaction with unfamiliar social partners becomes less likely to yield returns enough to warrant the required energy expenditure Therefore, the potential risks and gains from social interaction change over a person’s life cycle (Carstensen, 1992), suggesting why the elderly may prefer to connect online only with those whom they know rather... photographs of the things happening in their lives and if their parents (older adults) have access to the information as their ‘friends’, they may begin to probe or express interest about the information which may be deemed intrusive by their children This could result in a dilemma about how much information the children would choose to grant access to their parents The children may sometimes not ‘add’ their ... examining the role and impact that the use of the Internet and social media has had on the elderly, this study is important as it situated the lifeworlds of the elderly against their use of the Internet... time and effort on them These two theories form the theoretical framework for understanding the motivations and narratives of the elderly participants interviewed for this thesis The last section,... cares – their orientation toward the world – in the form of the experiences that they claim for themselves (Larkin et al, 2006) The interpretative component contextualizes these claims within their