Vicissitudes na vida de pessoas idosas que utilizam smartphones: "na nossa época não tinha nada disso"

Abstract

In recent years, technology has advanced exponentially, influencing various aspects of daily life and transforming social relationships into a digital modus operandi. This progress is not limited to younger generations but also extends to older adults who are progressively incorporating Digital Information and Communication Technologies (DICTs) into their routines, despite existing challenges and difficulties. However, barriers such as a lack of digital skills and accessibility remain significant for many older adults. This dissertation aims to evaluate the relationship between smartphone use, quality of life, and social support among older adults. It is a cross-sectional, exploratory, and descriptive study with a mixed-method approach, combining mixed methods (quantitative and qualitative). The sampling was non-probabilistic, using the snowball method, and included 204 individuals aged 60 years or older residing in Campina Grande, Paraíba. The research protocol was conducted in a hybrid manner (both in-person and virtual) according to the participant's convenience. The results were divided into two articles: (1) "From Anachronistic to Digital: Smartphone Use by Older Adults," a qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews aimed at understanding the use of smartphones by older adults, highlighting the challenges in using the device and the social support it provides, with both positive and negative impacts on their daily lives; (2) "Relationship Between Smartphone Use, Quality of Life, and Social Support in Older Adults," a quantitative and correlational study that aimed to investigate the relationship between smartphone use, quality of life, and social support. The strongest correlations were found for the Domain of Social Relationships (WHOQOL-Bref) and Positive Social Interaction (MOS), indicating that smartphones can be a powerful tool to foster social integration in the digital world, offering new ways of interaction and connection among people.