Suchergebnisse

Part I. Studying digital transformation in care of older people -- Introduction / Helena Hirvonen, Mia Tammelin, Eveline J.M. Wouters and Riitta Hänninen -- Healthcare and technology: the multi-level perspective. theories, models and frameworks / Eveline J.M. Wouters -- Part II. Digital agency of older people -- The ageing entrepreneur: co-opting older adults into the siliconisation of care / Virpi Timonen and Luciana Lolich -- 'Bridging' and 'fixing' endangered social rights in the digitalising welfare state: the ambiguous role of third-sector organisations in supporting marginalised older migrants in Finland / Ulla Buchert and Sirpa Wrede -- Ageism in applying digital technology in healthcare: implications for adoption and actual use / Ittay Mannheim, Yvonne van Zaalen and Eveline J.M. Wouters -- Part III. Digital agency in care work -- Temporalities of digital eldercare / Annette Kamp -- New choreographies of care: understanding the digital transformation of body work in care for older people / Agnete Meldgaard Hansen and Sidsel Lond Grosen -- Sense of belonging in a digitalised care work community / Mia Tammelin, Riitta Hänninen, Helena Hirvonen and Antti Hämäläinen -- Sealing the deal? Irish caregivers' experiences of paro, the social robot / John Pender and Perry Share -- Digital skills and application use among Finnish home care workers in the elder care sector / Tomi Oinas, Eero Rantala, Joonas Karhinen and Sakari Taipale.

Theories on technology adoption in the context of healthcare for older people have developed from a merely individual usability approach to a richer understanding of deeper personal motivations and values as well as a broader awareness of stakeholders and organisations. The aim of this chapter is twofold: first, to give an overview of the existing frameworks, models and theories that describe the multiple factors at several levels that influence technology uptake in the context of healthcare. Second, to critically analyse the meaning these frameworks, models and theories bring to the human aspects of healthcare technology adoption and use. Because the book focuses on care for older persons, specific attention is given to personal aspects that influence technology acceptance by older people.

Digital technologies shape our embodied lives and affect our knowledge of the self and the world. The introductory chapter of the book presents the state of the art in the research on digitalisation of health and social care work, with a focus on care for older people. In ageing societies, understanding what it takes to introduce and use digital technologies can pave the way to a successful, sustainable, and equally accessible system of social care and healthcare provision for older people. The chapter discusses some of the limitations in the present discussion and how the book at hand aims to address these gaps. The chapter proposes that living in an increasingly digitalised world requires digital agency, that is the individual's ability to control and adapt to their surroundings, and to critically address technological determinism in the everyday life. The chapter ends with an overview of the book's subsequent chapters that demonstrate different aspects to service users' and care workers' digital agency based on recent studies of digital technologies in care for older people.

This chapter explores the role digital skills, interest in technology, and social support have in home care workers' use of digital applications at work. The empirical research is based on the 2019 University of Jyväskylä survey study on eldercare work (N = 6,903), drawn from the members of four majors trade unions in Finland. In this chapter, a sub-sample of home care workers (n = 1,398) is used in the analyses. Structural equation models are used to estimate the direct and indirect effects of available technology support, digital skills, and interest in technology on the actual use of various digital applications at work. According to the results, technology support has no direct effect on the use of digital applications. However, technology support seems to increase interest in technology and improve digital skills, which in turn promotes the use of digital applications. The availability of technology support appears as a crucial facilitator for home care workers' digital agency at work.

Digital technology is perceived as a solution to meet the 'challenges' of ageing and promote independent and healthy ageing. This approach, often driven by policy makers, is leading to the vast development of a so-called 'Age-tech' market, mainly focused on healthcare technologies. Despite the potential positive outcomes, adoption and actual use of digital healthcare technologies are often low, and chronological age is often considered a barrier to the adoption of digital technology. Yet, the role of ageism in adoption and actual use is overlooked. This chapter discusses the potential theoretical influence of ageism in applying digital technology in care and healthcare. First, the chapter provides an overview of the perception of age in relation to digital technology and the manifestation of ageism in healthcare. It continues by providing recent evidence, from the field and from the authors' research experience, in an attempt to describe two potential ways in which ageism is related to adoption and actual use of digital healthcare technology: 1) through the perspectives of different stakeholders (older adults, healthcare professionals, caregivers and designers) and 2) through the design of digital technology. Finally, the chapter discusses possible implications for practice in healthcare, design, research and policy concerning digital technology.

This chapter uses the theoretical framework of sense of belonging to explore how eldercare workers from Finnish service housing units for older people describe the use of digital devices and applications in their work and the work practices that relate to their sense of belonging. The study is based on interview data (n = 25) that was collected in 2018 for a study on digitalisation of eldercare. The chapter asks: what does a sense of belonging mean for care workers' agency in a digital era? The analysis concentrates especially on the practices of belonging and how they are enacted in a digitalised work environment. The chapter proposes that in the digital era, a sense of belonging is particularly fluid and dynamic, and that it is constructed in the daily practices of work.