Seniors and HCI

1. Seniors and HCI SLIM LI 802XR Information for Introducing Older Adults to Computers and the Internet in a Library Context Presenter: Seán Henry26 October 2002 Images courtesy of www.eyewire.com

2. Repackaged for You… • General Statistics about Seniors,and their Computer/Internet Habits • Senior Websites • Senior-Friendly Web Design • Assistive Technology Considerations • HCI Learning Challenges for Seniors • Lesson Plans for Introducing Seniors to HCI in the Library

3. Percentage of PopulationSeniors constitute 12.4% of the U.S. population (13.3% in KS; 13.5% in MO) Ethnicity16.4% of seniors belong to a minority group. 5.6% of all seniors are Hispanic Median IncomeMales earn $19,168 annually, females $10,899, combined households $32,854 Education70% of seniors have completed high school. 16% have completed bachelors degree or higher Senior Statistics in Brief (2000) Source: Administration on Aging. A Profile of Older Americans: 2001

4. 28.4% have home computer access 12.8% use the Internet at home 24.3% own a computer 17.7% have Internet access Senior Statistics for Computer and Internet Access (2000) Among 21.8 million senior households … Among 32.7 senior individuals … Nevertheless, seniors constitute one of the fastest growing markets of computer buyers and Web users. Source: U.S. Department of Commerce:A nation online: How Americans are expanding their use of the Internet Source: Administration on Aging. A Profile of Older Americans: 2001

5. Online Activity of Seniors Compared to Other Age Groups Extrapolated fromA nation online: How Americans are expanding their use of the Internet

6. How Seniors Use the Internet Extrapolated from the SeniorNet Survey about the Internet, April 2001

7. Health Finance Travel Entertainment & Sports History & Genealogy Hobbies & Games Computers & Technology Politics & News Home & Garden Miscellaneous Senior Sites AARP categorizes senior website interests by … http://www.aarp.org/computers/Articles/a2002-10-04-topsites

8. Senior-Friendly Website Design Considerations • High contract text/background combinations • Sans-serif font like Arial in12-14 pt. font (size 3) • Text-relevant images only • Descriptive tags and alternate text • Optimize video and graphics to reduce download time • Limited animation and applets • Simple, consistent navigation with labeled links and text icons To identify accessibility barriers, scan your web page at bobby.watchfire.com! Sources: Luedtke, CB. (2000). Ensuring your website meets the needs of disabled library patrons. Texas Library Journal 76 (4), 154-157 National Institute on Aging. (2001). Making your website senior friendly: A checklist

9. ADA and Assistive Technology Considerations • Promote the purchase of assistive technology devices for seniors to easily access library materials & programs • Act as a clearinghouse for information and resources for seniors and their caregivers • Train older adults to become self-sufficient library users. The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Library Services to Older Adults Guidelines suggest that libraries… Source:Library Services to Older Adults Guidelines. (1999). Reference and Users Services Quarterly 39 (1).

10. Assistive Technology Devices for Seniors for purchase at http://www.abilityhub.com Devices that free seniors from sensory and physical limitations with HCI Screen magnifier Screen reader Foot mouse

11. HCI Challenges for Seniors • Diminished visuomotor coordination • Slower memory and cognitive response • More reliance on domain-specific knowledge than basic abilities • Less experience with computers Why older adults don’t seem to perform as well at computer tasks … However, the adverse effects of age typically diminish as seniors acclimatize, gaining practice and with computers Sources: Czaja, S.J., Sharit, J., Ownby R.,& Roth, D.L. (2001). Examining age differences in performance of a complex search and retrieval task. Psychology and Aging 16 (4). Czaja, S.J., Sharit, J. (1998). Ability-performance relationships as a function of age and task experience for a data entry task. Journal of Experimental Psychology 4 (4)

12. Attitudinal Factors for Seniors Learning HCI • Anxiety– technophobia, intimidation, fear of change or damaging the equipment • Self-Efficacy– the willingness to “try, try again!” • Attitudes toward Aging–positive or negative Source: Cody M. J., Hoppin, D.M., P.S. Wendt. (1999). Silver surfers: Training and evaluating Internet use among older adults. Communication Education 48 (4).

13. Are HCI Attitudes Effected by Health and Gender? Unexpected Observations from the Silver Surfers Study

14. Computer literacy and mouse skills Basic internet and email Search engines and senior sites Online catalog and electronic resources Senior learning styles Physical challenges seniors face Technological differences between generations The importance of relating technology to interests and practical needs The benefit of a positive, comfortable learning atmosphere An Effective Lesson Plan for Introducing Seniors to Computers In succession, seniors were introduced to … Along the way, librarian instructors kept in mind … Source: Kaplan P., Jacobsen, L., et al. (2001). How to be an information millionaire

15. Other Effective Curricula • Puaez, Jeanne H, & Bradfield, C. (2000). Surf’s up for Seniors! Introducing older patrons to the Web. Computers in Libraries 20 (8), 50-53Stresses comfortable “seniors only” learning environment in places where seniors congregate • Burwell, L. Too old to surf? No way! An Internet course for seniors. (2001). American Libraries 32 (10), 40-42.Places emphasis on self-paced learning and comfort level of seniors

16. Today you learned about … • The Internet Habits of Seniors • The sites seniors surf • Senior-Friendly Web Design • Assistive Technology Considerations • HCI Learning Challenges that Seniors Face • An Effective Lesson Plan for Introducing Seniors to HCI in the Library Armed with this new information, I hope you can better diagnose and customize the needs of your library’s senior community!