Reappraising the Intellectual Debate on Ageing in a Digital Environment

Abstract

Ageing is expected to raise significant challenges to the European community in the coming decades. These challenges are connected not only with the problems related to the labor market employment, the provision of healthcare, and the welfare programming for older people, but also with the quality of their social life, and in particular, with their communication activities. In this regard, the article presents a brief overview of the population ageing tendencies and the deficits in the institutional attention towards age discrimination. It also presents the analysis of a survey, conducted by the authors of the article, among senior citizens (61 of age and older, N = 30), which aims to answer the basic research question: how the digital communication technologies impact some aspects in their everyday life, namely: healthcare, professional life and communication. Also, the article seeks to find whether the Bulgarian media perform their basic task to inform the publics for the activities related to the improvement of the life of the older people over 61 years of age. Although many detailed expert studies and public discussions have focused on the problem of overcoming prejudices and negative stereotypes related to the working capacity, health status and communication habits of older people in Bulgaria, there is a telling need to reappraise the intellectual debate on ageing in digital environment and the degree of capacity of elderly people to take part in, and contribute to social developments. Developed in the framework of the COST Actions IS 1402, CA 16211, and CA 16226 of the European Commission, the article concentrates on the need to boost the debates on finding solutions for the better well-being of the older persons in Bulgaria – a country with disturbing tendencies of population ageing.