Improving Older Adults’ Technology Adoption on Mobile Map: A Gamification Approach

Abstract

In the era of digitalization, it is critical to improve older adults’ digital literacy and inclusion by enhancing their technology adoption to create a more accessible and inclusive social environment. However, older adults always exhibit lower levels of technology usage, and there is insufficient support available to meet their specific needs. Gamification, with its potential to motivate people, presents a great opportunity to address the issue of technology adoption among older adults. Despite gamification being predominantly applied to younger generations, this study offers a unique contribution by examining the impact of gamification on supporting older adults’ technology adoption. A case study of tailor-made gamification for Google Maps was constructed based on the game-based learning model and game mechanics. The effectiveness of the proposed gamification strategy has been assessed through interviews and observation. The results revealed a significant positive effect of gamification on enhancing older adults’ technology knowledge and adoption intentions.