Generational comparison of simultaneous internet activities using smartphones and computers

Abstract

Computers and smartphones are multipurpose devices with overlapping capacities. Thus, users end up interacting with the same information through different devices, sometimes simultaneously (or within a short timeframe). As our artifact ecologies grow, it is clear that the use of multipurpose devices cannot be understood in isolation, and diverse uses are widely influenced by personal interests. However, personal interests change over a lifetime. Tracking the online smartphone and computer activities of 178 Spanish users aged 17 to 76, we make an intergenerational comparison of simultaneous activities on both devices. We demonstrate that simultaneous activities are common to people of all ages, tending to happen more during working hours. While age stereotypes say that older people are less active users of technologies, some are also engaged in simultaneous smartphone-computer use, evidence that they are making the most of the devices available to them.