Desafios e Oportunidade de Inclusão Digital para Mulheres Idosas

Abstract

Digital inclusion in the elderly is an extremely important issue, given the need to ensure that older people can enjoy the advantages of digital technology, thus improving their quality of life and enabling them to actively participate in digital society. This challenge requires a careful approach in order to overcome the initial barriers and, in fact, promote effective digital inclusion in this demographic group. The aim of this study is therefore to investigate and assess the level of digital inclusion of elderly women in the city of Naviraí, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. The specific aims are: a) to identify the profile of the elderly women investigated; b) to verify the advantages and difficulties encountered by the elderly women in using digital technologies; c) to identify whether and/or how the elderly women have access to public services through digital technologies. To this end, a qualitative study was conducted using semi-structured interviews with three elderly women from the municipality of Naviraí - MS. The results show that the elderly women interviewed demonstrated an basic level of digital inclusion, since they have cell phones, wi-fi access in their homes and make use of various tools and applications available on the internet. However, it is important to note that they still face challenges and even resistance when dealing with certain types of applications and services.