Social Media Use in Older Age – Developing Best Practices

Anja K Leist

University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam, Netherlands

Kick-off Symposium: ‘Engaging generations...’ at the IFA Global Conference on Ageing, Prague, Czech Republic, May 30, 2012.

Social Media Use in Older Age

1. Effects of Social Media Use

2. Facilitating Factors in ICT Use

3. Developing Best Practices

4. An Example AAL Research Project Providing Access to Social Media for Older Adults

Effects of Social Media Use of Older Adults

1. Social Connectedness/Sense of Belongingness• Alleviating loneliness by connecting with existing and new

contacts• Getting support

2. “Empowerment”• Self-efficacy, control beliefs

How to Engage Older Adults in Social Media Use?

• Existing Barriers – Privacy issues– Views towards existing social networking sites– Access: No social contacts facilitating access to ICT,

accessibility issues

• Facilitating Factors– For ICT use in general: openness to ICT use, ICT experience– For social media use: Disinhibition effect; self-disclosure easier

via ICT than in eye-to-eye contact

Developing Best Practices to Facilitate Social Media Use in Older Age

• Show added value Benefits such as information, support, emotional rewardsBenefits vary according to participation in network!

• Transfer between virtual and real world– Use existing real-world social structures– Use existing interests/needs

An Example of an AAL Project Providing Access to Social Media for Older Adults

An Example of an AAL Project Providing Access to Social Media for Older Adults

V2me (Virtual Coach reaches out to me)• A mobile platform-based friendship enrichment and loneliness

prevention program • Virtual Coach acting as mediator and friend• Online Social Networking

– Via existing networking sites and online communication channels

– Features specifically designed for online social networking: Interest groups/calendar function

– Social contacts stored in the system: can be activated by user, can be established pro-actively by the system

– Social circles as basis for friendship enrichment program

V2me – The Social Circle

V2me – Initiating Contact with Others

V2me – Proactive System Engages User

Thank you for your attention!

Research supported by a FLARE 2 postdoctoral grant funded by the National Research Fund Luxembourg.

V2me work presented on behalf of the V2me consortium funded under the AAL Joint Programme.www.v2me.org

anja.leist@uni.lu