The End of The Digital Generation Gap

Abstract

It is commonly accepted that the more an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is recent the more it is suitable for young people and unsuitable for older people. However, several facts suggest that this idea is no longer valid and will not be in the future. User-centered design methods are increasingly used in companies, ICT tends to be more and more user-friendly, and it seems that digital natives (or millennials) are not really outdated by the next generations in terms of digital skills. These elements lead us to assume that the digital generation gap may have been a parenthesis in history related to the democratization of the first and complicated computers in the 80s. If generation is no longer a factor of ICT adoption, old age however is still related to sensory and motor impairments. Thus, the issue that is becoming increasingly important for technology designers should be better consideration of accessibility.