S-GEEK: addressing digital exclusion among older adults

The project collaborated with Accessibility Research Association, the 1st NGO in China which committed to promoting Information Accessibility. Our goal is to address the challenges faced by senior citizens who are often excluded from the digital world.

Design research: interview, workshop design and facilitation; Service design: ideation, concept development and prototype testing; Business Plan: business model and strategy, financial statement; Presentation

Team: Changxin Zheng, Jiaqi Wang

A Day of granny Liu: Challenges and “excuse me”

Granny Liu, a resolute lady residing in the bustling city of Shenzhen, has made the transition from the countryside to raise her grandchild. Despite the vibrant atmosphere of the city, her daily life is marred by the difficulties of digital exclusion.

Why digital exclusion makes her life so difficult?

Every morning, she arrives at the hospital, only to be met with disappointment as all expert appointments have been fully booked through online means. The persistent rain only adds to her frustration as she waits for a taxi, which are mostly pre-booked through apps, before finally managing to flag one down. After a much-needed afternoon nap, Granny Liu joins her new friends at the community center where they discuss the benefits of shopping on PinDuoDuo, which offers lower prices compared to the supermarket. Despite her eagerness to join in, Granny Liu is held back by her lack of familiarity with digital platforms. After dinner, she reflects on the memories of her family gatherings, struggling to compile them into a beautifully designed digital album complete with music. Granny Liu's daily life is a testament to the challenges faced by those excluded from the digital world.

In contemporary China, the concept of “lifestyle” has undergone a complete transformation. The rapid advancement of internet technology has facilitated access to superior resources online, making it a priority for the elderly population in China to embrace technology in order to enjoy better, more convenient, and cost-effective products and services.

Aging itself is not the issue, but rather the lack of preparedness for an aging population. Due to the weak voice of the elderly, society, businesses, and the government have not given enough attention to this matter, and service providers have limited understanding of their needs and how to cater to them.

Insights from research workshops

To understand the current digital life journey of older adults, we organized three “Mobile Application Learning Workshops” in Hangzhou with more than 20 older adults. We picked DiDi, a uber competitor that has launched the ageing-friendly version.

From those workshops, we found that ageing-friendly versions always mean small changes in the font & button sizes. Many services still fail to consider the broader social & cultural conditions. And there are many assumptions from designers about their users.

The results of our research indicate that it can be challenging for older adults to absorb new information quickly. To address this, it is important to create a learning environment that goes beyond traditional lectures and incorporates diverse teaching methods. Additionally, our findings suggest that peer learning is a practical approach as it provides a shared language and mutual support among individuals of similar ages and experiences.

HMW

empower the elderly so that they can be a force of urging as well as supporting the world design for them in a way they want?

We aim to be the bridge of different stakeholders, and deliver empowerment as a service, to let the world design for the aging by the aging.

Our approach is collaborative and iterative, and it involves two phases. In Phase One, we work with senior residents and community workers to co-design and access mobile lectures that fit the needs of the elderly. This approach has already proven to be effective in three communities, and it allows us to identify and engage with S-Geeks.

In Phase Two, we aim to amplify the voices of the elderly through our S-Geek Review platform. This user-centric service allows seniors to provide their own comments and feedback on different services, providing a real-world perspective on their usage. The first S-Geek Review video was produced by four grannies from the Lijiaqiao Community and will be published by the end of May.

S-Geek Services is an innovative initiative aimed at empowering seniors to become “silver geeks” with the knowledge, attitude, and confidence to share their opinions on non-aging-friendly services. Our goal is to empower seniors to take an active role in shaping the services they use and to ensure their opinions and needs are heard.

We have designed a comprehensive service flow to empower the elderly group and make it easy for them to access the resources they need. Our process starts with a pre-workshop in the Lijiaoqiao Community, where we gather information on the specific needs and demands of the senior residents. Based on these insights, we then co-design the lectures with the community to ensure that the scenarios, learning flow, and assisting tools are tailored to meet their unique requirements.

During the lecture delivery, we used elderly-friendly methods to make the experience engaging and accessible for all participants. Our focus is on creating an inclusive environment where seniors feel comfortable and supported in their learning journey.

After the lecture, we establish a virtual community where seniors can continue to receive support and access information. They can post questions, share their experiences, and connect with other members of the group. This virtual community serves as a hub for ongoing learning and growth, and it helps to keep seniors engaged and informed.

Mobile Lecture | Geek Community

Geek Review | Social Media Campaign

We have launched the S-Geek Review, a platform where seniors can test and review different internet applications and share their experiences through social media. The goal of this service is to give a voice to the elderly community and raise awareness about their needs and perspectives.

During our prototyping phase with an S-Geek, we encountered a challenge. The auntie who was participating in the project appreciated the idea behind the S-Geek Review but was overwhelmed at the thought of creating a video to bring attention to the needs of the ageing population. This highlights a common issue faced by seniors who may feel intimidated by technology and the idea of sharing their thoughts and opinions publicly.

We understand that some seniors may feel intimidated by the prospect of making a video review, so we have adjusted our approach to better support them. Instead of asking them to voice their opinions actively, we are working to amplify their voices and bring attention to their feedback.

We produced our first S-Geek Review video, which features the perspectives and feedback of four senior residents. The video was filmed in the comfort of their homes, creating an intimate and relatable experience for viewers. By combining our expertise and the voices of the elderly, we aim to shed light on the accessibility of the family support function on Taobao.

We created an S-Geek account on Tiktok and shared our first review video through social media. Within 24 hours, the video had gained widespread attention and garnered positive feedback from cooperates. Additionally, our efforts in Hangzhou city were recognized and featured in People's Daily, a prominent state-owned newspaper.