New Age Aging, formerly known as aging in place with the aid of technology, or widely known as “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” allow seniors to remain as independent as they can be, in their own homes with autonomy and dignity. However, before we mainstream this concept, there are a few equity impacts we should consider.

1. Affordability: Given the growing costs of independent and assisted living, many middle-income seniors will not be able to afford these technologies.
2. Usability: Seniors tend to associate adoption of new technologies with a lack of confidence in their ability to understand or access them. A significant source of frustration in their interactions with digital products lay in the inadequacies in software and hardware interfaces that permit access to different functionalities.
3. Privacy: Seniors are less likely to take certain online privacy protections to protect themselves. Researchers found that many seniors are willing to provide sensitive data if it meant getting meaningful feedback on the status of their heath. But at the same time, they said they were reluctant to share data of other categories due to hacking or data loss concerns.
4. Age Friendly Design: Tech startups have historically overlooked older adults in favor of Millennial and Gen Z users. Many existing tech products are not designed to deliver value for older audiences. Building for older adults may require different UX/UI principles than the sleek, minimalist ones attractive to younger audiences, and distribution channels need to be thoughtfully crafted to reach seniors.
5. Isolation: Some seniors may perceive it as being “trapped” in a place without the ability to move. Social isolation is also a health risk—loneliness is associated with progression of mental and physical conditions such as heart disease, Alzheimer’s, and depression. 
6. Choice: Seniors want choices about where and how they age in place, encouraging aging in place may give some seniors the sense that they lack real choice in terms of their preferred living arrangements and support.
7. Distrust: Some seniors believe that most technology devices have radiation which may be harmful. In addition, they consider technology as one of the main causes of reduced interpersonal interactions. They believe that technology is not beneficial for older adults and that they can live comfortable lives without technology.

Similar to aging, the use of technologies by seniors is complex, dynamic and personal.

What is your perspective? Comment below and let’s get the conversation going.

It’s RAP (Respect science, Address systemic racism, Promote awareness of ethnic and racial health disparities)