Digitalisation and population ageing: Social policy dimensions of the digital divide and innovation

Population ageing has shaped social policy for a long time, which has resulted in manifold policies on ageing. At the same time, and without being declared policy on ageing, innovation and digitalisation policies have discovered population ageing as an important legitimation for new technologies because of their alleged potential to ‘fix the problems’ that population ageing presumably creates for society. In this chapter, we provide an alternative view to such an ‘interventionist logic’ by asking: how can we design policies on ageing differently when we (re-)think ageing and digitalisation as mutually shaping each other? To answer this question, we discuss the existing literature on the use and non-use of digital devices by older people, and then discuss examples of international and national innovation and digitalisation policies. We conclude with research and policy recommendations that consider innovation and digitalisation policies as shaping social policy priorities for older people too.