Abstract
Information technology can help older persons continue living independently and keep them active for many years. The aim of the present study is to understand the expectations of older people regarding information technology, how they perceive it, how useful they find it and how significant it is in their life. For this purpose, we interviewed 40 older people aged 65-93 who were attending day centers.
 The findings, which were examined in light of the continuity theory presented by Atchley (1989), reveal different levels of resistance to technology that range from rejection and tendency to preserve previous familiar patterns to acceptance of the technology. Findings indicate cracks in the continuity strategy. The discourse about information technology among the older persons is ambivalent, incoherent, and laden with internal contradictions. Older people are immigrants to the new digital world; they do not speak its language and feel alienated from it, simultaneously accepting and rejecting it.
Highlights
Smart cities, smart villages, smart living compounds, smart homes, and smart phones have all become household terms in recent years
The current research was conducted using a qualitative method that offers an in-depth understanding of the experience of older people when using information technology (IT), in order to reveal the subjective meaning of the investigated phenomenon
The findings presented below are organized according to four central themes that express different levels of resistance to IT, ranging from lack of interest and lack of a sense of necessity, through clinging to familiar patterns that impart a feeling of continuity, to acceptance of the change and willingness to adopt new patterns
Summary
Smart villages, smart living compounds, smart homes, and smart phones have all become household terms in recent years. Findings indicate that older persons tend not to use computers and the Internet since they fail to see the advantage of using online services, are not motivated to learn, and most of them are not familiar with the digital jargon. They perceive computers and the Internet as useless and sometimes even as dangerous and as a threat to their freedom and lifestyle (Hakkarainen 2012). Other times the limitations are physical or due to a decline in cognitive abilities (Seifert & Schelling 2018)
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