A conceptual framework concerning education as factor of elders’ acceptance for smart assistive technologies

Abstract

Abstract The aging of the world's population, raises issues of assisting elderly in conditions of sustainable spending. In this respect, smart technologies bring both an opportunity, providing solutions to assist elders’ life and a barrier coming from the lower acceptance of older adults for digital technologies. The paper proposes a research focused on education and its influence on older adults’ readiness to adopt new, digital technologies. As reference the two versions of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT and UTAUT2) were used. The research is based on a systematic literature review aimed to draft a conceptual framework placed on two dimensions: the first one tries to establish "if and how the initial education is influencing the elders’ acceptance of assistive technologies" and, the second targeting "how this initial education is correlated and/or imbedded in the elements of the UTAUT models".