In the last years, the lack of opportunities and places to gather information to know how the internet works, was one of the main reasons for seniors to depend of someone else, which was difficult for them because the use of smartphones was expensive and not common within the society. Now there are communities where seniors can share and learn the basic functions to be connected with others and even better enjoy apps like Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter.

The use of social media in seniors has increased due the rise of smartphones usage. In 2000 the 14% of the population in U.S.A. used internet, now more than 67% of seniors ages 65 and older are going online. Besides, the usage vary based on demographics factors such as education, income and age (Smith and Anderson, 2018).

In U.S.A. 76% of smartphone-owning seniors use internet several times a day. As the image shows the 51% of seniors use the internet several times and 8% almost constantly. (Smith and Anderson, 2018)

By Diana Caballero