United States older adults’ willingness to use emerging technologies

Abstract

The United States (US) population is aging and an increasing number of older adults (aged 65 and older) will experience chronic health issues that can threaten quality of life. We investigated older adults’ willingness to use six distinct emerging technologies, which can allow older adults to better manage their health and maintain independence. Data were collected by using a large-scale cross-sectional online survey, which we designed and administered using Qualtrics. The analytical sample (N = 1148) reflected the sociodemographic characteristics of the US older adult population (aged 65 and older) based on the 2010 Census. A series of nested binary logistic regression models were used to assess the willingness to use each type of emerging technology. Our descriptive findings indicated that 19% of participants were willing to use autonomous vehicles, 24% were willing to use assistive robots, 37% were willing to use Internet-connected home appliances, 48% were willing to use Internet-connected cameras for home monitoring, 29% were willing to use a smart home with a built-in personal digital assistant, and 15% were willing to use virtual reality. Our binary logistic regression results revealed that health variables, e.g., limitations with instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) and self-reported health status (SRHS), had statistically significant associations with willingness to use some emerging technologies, such as assistive robots. Our study provides novel insights regarding US older adults’ willingness to use a range of emerging technologies. The findings may help guide future interventions aimed at enhancing health and independence for older adults.