How do older adults with impairment participate in a digital society? Insights from the 2023 survey ‘Swedes with impairment and the internet’

Abstract The rapid digitalisation has transformed how individuals participate in society. In Sweden, one of Europe’s most digitalised nations, being able to participate digitally is essential for societal integration. The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of older adults with impairment in Sweden with regard to their participation in the digital society. This study draws on data from the cross-sectional survey Swedes with impairment and the internet (SMFOI) undertaken in 2023. Using an explorative study design, responses from older adults (aged ≥ 65 years) with impairments were collected regarding perceived participation in the digital society. Data were analysed using mixed methods: descriptive statistics of questions with fixed response options and qualitative thematic analysis of free-text responses.Our findings highlight narratives of exclusion and opportunities, which older adults with impairment encounter as part of their digital participation in society. Our findings challenge binary perspectives of digital participation as being either included or excluded. Instead, our results show a more flexible and individualised approach to digital participation. We propose a four-quadrant framework that captures unique and multi-directional digital participation trajectories, showing that participation in a digital society is not binary but may be experienced as a complex and dynamic process with underlying tensions. Understanding individualised trajectories of digital participation, helps to unravel the complex interplay between age, impairment, and digitalisation, thus contributing to a more nuanced understanding of digital participation and exclusion dynamics.