History and Past Activities
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History and Past Activities |
ESA Conference: Ageing Societies, New Sociology
September 23-26, 2003 in Murcia, Spain
Two streams of sessions of the
Research Network 18: Sociology of Science and Technology (SSTNET)
Convenors:
Raymund Werle: Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies, Köln, Germany (werle@mpi-fg-koeln.mpg.de)
Marja Häyrinen Alestalo: Dept. of Sociology, University of Helsinki, Finland (marja.alestalo@helsinki.fi)
Luísa Oliveira: DINÂMIA/ISCTE, Lisboa, Portugal (luisa.oliveira@iscte.pt)
Maarten Mentzel: 38 Johan de Wittstraat, 2334 AR Leiden, The Netherlands (m.a.mentzel@planet.nl)
Second Stream: New Technologies in Ageing Societies
Friday Sept. 26
09.00 - 11.00 session 7 (Campus de La Merced)
Chair Luísa Oliveira
7.1. Author(s): Östlund, Britt
Institution: Institute for the Study of Ageing and Later Life (Linkoping University Sweden)
Professional Category:
City: Linköping
Country: Sweden
E-mail: TillBritt@privat.utfors.se
GERONTECHNOLOGY
Technology, expectations of increased life quality for elderly people, and increased efficiency within the care sector are among the major factors influencing social developments in Europe today. Research and development within the field of ageing and technology came of age in the 1990s after being long marginalized. The trigger was the huge expansion in the use of information and communication technology (ICT). It was followed by a vision and political activity linked to the notion that ICT could both create possibilities for old people to remain socially integrated and help them solve everyday problems. Policy documents linked to publicly funded R&D also articulated these possibilities.
The concept of gerontechhnology was launched to help bridge the previous gap between gerontology and technology studies. This concept is based on a "man-machine perspective" that seeks to compensate for human deficiencies and overcome age-related limitations. Social scientists responded to engineers by providing new insights about ageing to help make technological products and systems fit properly into elderly people's needs and life-situations. Not all scientists accepted the concept of gerontechnology, however. Some have criticized it because they view gerontechnology as unable to completely grasp human behaviour, arguing that it creates stereotypes surrounding older technological users.
This paper provides an overview of research on ageing and technology and evaluates social scientists' critiques of gerontology. It also provides answers as to why it is so hard for social scientists to accept gerontechnology. What is their understanding of technology and what can a social science perspective actually contribute with to the research and development of technology for elderly people?
Sociology of Science and Technology NETwork - last update: April 2006