What Makes You Anxious & Fearful About Tech?

It’s the whole idea of ‘change’ for the older people. Humans like what they know, and change usually means something they DON’T know, which means they don’t like it, and they fear it. Well that’s my explanation for it anyway. 

I’m fifty and an engineer. For me it’s not so much fear of technology as it is weariness of new technology. When I was a teenager the cool new technology was a handheld calculator and cable television with HBO. With every new piece that comes onto the marketplace, one has to learn how to use it. So there comes a point in time where one gets tired of learning how to use a new device which is obsolete as soon as you buy it.  The same is true of social media. I started with message boards on AOL, then message… Read more »

I used to work as a network tech and tutor at my university, where I dealt with an older crowd on a daily basis. From my observations, the technofear boiled down to this: To some, technology is magic. Things happen without rhyme or reason, cause and effect. People are afraid to experiment because they’re afraid they’ll break something. We used to spend hours trying to disavow people of this notion, but software bugs, malfunctions and viruses often made it look like we were lying and computers were a terrifying world where random stuff just happened. There was also a big… Read more »

Great question Jane! The fearfulness I have for tech comes from the rampant spying technologies used by various governments & corporations to track every single thing one does on the computer and online. I am a staunch advocate of my privacy & I don’t want that. Plus for ereaders I loathe DRM & until it is obsolete & I actually OWN the ebook I am buying instead of leasing the right to read it, I refuse to buy one and instead get pdf format if it is available. With Tor now DRM-free I see a time when I will be… Read more »

 
Effort, ignorance, and fear of outcome. It takes effort to overcome my ignorance and I’m not sure I’ll succeed in the end (although I am trying; it just sucks when I fail to grasp something simple for others).

Jane your adorable. Ummm. I’m computer saavy but not ‘processing’ saavy. I want to write. I’ve got a story but margins, spacing…ugh.

I agree with Diana. People get tired of change and tired of finding out how to use new technology. When I see my parents they have given up on finding out anything new. But there are quite a few people who are only in their forties who feel technology like computers is only acceptable at work. For example, a friend of mine loves e-mails but she writes them at her office, not at home.

Maybe tech drives to the gates of isolation (in terms of human-human relations)… Don’t you think?

I’m 62 (and by the way, a graduate of your recent employer, University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music) and an admitted techno-phobe. Fears seem to thrive in the darkness, and I can’t fully explain this one. But I suppose it’s insecurity. Though I’ve used computers daily for over 25 years and have a relatively-successful web site (LNWhymns.com; over 2,000 unique visitors a week), I don’t really understand the technology and how it works. Thus I memorize procedures and mostly stay to familiar paths. When I get into unknown territory, I lean on my daughter, who is a programmer. I suppose… Read more »

Speaking as a writer, independent, thank you very much, who welcomes the digital revolution with open arms, since it has allowed me to pursue my vocation instead of working in total obscurity, I can still relate to the tentativeness many people, especially writers, feel about the new social media. For one thing, writers don’t like to self-promote. That’s why they’re writers not salesmen/women. Am i right? The seond thing is the time factor needed to overcome the learning curve, and the fear at the back of many minds that this is just a passing fad. It is not. Ok? I’m… Read more »

As you get older, you are supposed to get wiser. I didn’t grow up in the techie world. Data processing was just coming out in schools with the punch cards, and the electric typerwriter was king. So to teach an old dog like me, a new trick, and to be taught by kids you used to babysit, it is intimidating. I have been pushed into the social media arena now at age 51, kicking and screaming. I still feel a little awkward, and don’t like to make mistakes. I am finally getting the hang of it, even though my two kids that… Read more »

Jane, I’m a huge fan and hope we can connect sometime now that you’re moving to the East Coast. I’m a rare baby boomer who has been immersed in all things tech and Web for 20 years. So I often have the same question you do about “older” people not being comfortable with social media or computers. I think there is a generalized fear of “making a mistake.” Of course, that mindset (leaning back instead of forward) hampers the embrace of all the online tools and services that can help authors write, package and promote their books and eBooks –… Read more »

I’m 51 and a Career Coach.  If it weren’t for my passion for helping others navigate career transition, I probably wouldn’t have had the kick-in-the-pants to embrace technology.  Now that I’m in, I do get excited over how easy it can be to bring people and thoughts together. The downside for me?  The vast amount of information out there is overwhelming.  So it feels like a huge time vortex, sorting through all of the haystack before finding the pearl. The downside for some of my clients?  Other “older” folks are concerned about privacy.  That seems to be the most voiced… Read more »

I am one of those “older” people (age 57) and I do not fear so much as have anxiety about technology.   I cannot intuitively “fix” tech problems such as when my TV stops working or gives me the dreaded blue screen, or when my surround sound dvd system won’t respond or even eject the dvd, or when my printer refuses to work. Electronics in general and computer issues seem to eat up more hours of my time in trouble-shooting than they are worth. When my smart phone is working well I love it, but when it doesn’t I don’t… Read more »

I’m a freelance writer and (ARGH!) 60. When I worked as an editor at a publishing house, I experienced the transition from electric typewriters to PCs. I’ve always known that if I want to stay competitive in this business I have to keep up with technology. I am constantly telling friends in my age range that the world is moving beyond print and if they don’t keep up they will feel even more confused by technology in 5, 10, 15 . . .years. 

I’ll be retweeting your post and sharing it on my Facebook pages.

Glad to see this post, Jane. I’ll be passing it on to my writers’ group as soon as I’m done with this comment since many of them fit the category you’re asking about. A few thoughts: First, I have friends, a couple in their mid-80s, who have–and use–all the latest tech gadgets. They don’t have much of a social media presence but with the hardware, they’ve taken the approach that learning how to use them is an adventure. They’ve made it fun and that makes them unusual compared to the vast majority of their peers. Second, while I don’t consider… Read more »

Great question Jane. I think the comments shed a lot of light on the subject. I have friends in their 50s who have never touched a computer, but are in love with their cell phones. But I have an octogenarian mom who is comfortable with computer technology but has hit a wall with Office 2010. I just spent a morning trying to explain to her why some of her friends can’t open a .docx.   I myself have had to drop out of two joint blogs because the level of imaging tech and knowledge of HTML was above the capabilities… Read more »

Jane, I love this conversation.  It’s part of the reason I love technology.  I’ve been really struggling with getting up to speed on social media since we talked at AWP, but I wonder if I’ve made much progress?  Maybe a little.  I just hope the learning curve levels out soon.  I’m running out of storage space in my head.  

I answered your post more on my website: http://www.leafriverwriter.com.  I hope to bring in all the non-writers I know in my farming community into the conversation.

One of the reasons I think people are so scared of “breaking” a computer is that they have a poverty mindset. Growing up and seeing other items break due to poor quality, they’re sure that these new pieces of technology are going to do the same.

I once heard that it’s not so much learning a new technology for older folks, but reorienting yourself from a world of three dimensions (buttons, dials, etc.) to a world of two dimensions (tapping “buttons” on a screen).  Then again, I think it’s all in the way you’re wired (no pun intended).  I know older people with smartphones and emails address, and younger people without smartphones and FB pages and the like.  I would ask, too, to explain a bit about what you mean when you say “fear.”  I think there’s a huge difference between not using technology because you… Read more »

There may be a number of factors–fear of change, lack of knowledge about how to make them work, and in some cases, simple techno overload. Think back to the 50s–when I was born. My grandmother was still using an ice box. She didn’t live in a rural area–she lived 15 miles from NYC, but she had an ice box. TV was relatively new, radio was what she listened to. TV and radio sign-offs were 10 or 11 o’clock at night and nothing was broadcast until 6 o’clock the next morning. Most people were on a party line if they had… Read more »

I’m 58 and love technology. Several of my children – in their 20’s and early 30’s – call me for tech ideas. So it isn’t merely the old who are slow to embrace new things. Sometimes younger people are, as well, which makes me suspect that there’s another element at play here. Jane, I think you touched on it with your comment about problem solving skills.  I have tried to help people with their computer programs and had this sort of conversation: Them: “What’s this window on my screen for?” Me:”Well, what does it say?” Them: “I don’t know. I… Read more »

I’ve tutored kids in math and I saw the exact same thing. The non-geeks who don’t know about tech stuff (or math) see geeks who are proficient in the subject. These geeks always seem to know what to do.  So it looks like magic to the non-geeks. The non-geeks believe that tech is a mystical knowledge that is bestowed from on high, and so they assume that non-geeks can never ever learn about tech and become geeks themselves. It doesn’t help that many geeks are condescending jerks to anyone who doesn’t get it. You just have to convince them that… Read more »

Great conversation about a topic that I grapple with all the time.  I’m one of the 50+ who likes technology, but knows very little about it.  I realize that my computer has all of these fabulous abilities, but I don’t even know where to begin to ask someone how to help me learn more about it.  Computer terminology is a barrier for me. Also, I think that resistance to technology for many individuals in my age group is based on how expensive a computer or a smart phone w/ a plan turns out to be.  If I buy something today… Read more »

I am in awe of you, Jane. Given that networking is your job and passion, how do you decide priorities? I chuck 70 % of my inbox every morning before I can think clearly.   Growing up initially without TV I feel I lived several lifetimes, studying and working in different fields. Had I not challenged myself to do a sabbatical film degree as a mature student during the early 90’s I’m not sure I would have opened the door to the internet.  It came rushing at me. I learned fast that it helps to know what one wants from the web. While… Read more »

Well I meant demi gods, but semi is appropriate.

A funny thing happened on the way to building my platform: I learned a ton about tech and social media. Now I teach it to women who are 50+.  My oldest student is early 80s. These people are hungry for information, and when they get it, they feel empowered. My happiest moments are when I hear the little yips of delighted discovery. (I, myself, favor the Peanuts happydance. But then, as the teacher, I must have some dignity.) Then there are the people who say, for ex., “I have a Facebook account but I avoid it. The people are annoying… Read more »

I know for my father it’s fear of change combined with stubbornness. He would rather spend $1 everyday on USA Today then reading it online for free, among thousands of other publications.

I think it was Donald Maass who said that there are really just two things that sell a book:  1) a good story, well-written; and 2) word-0f-mouth.  Social media is a powerful way for word-of-mouth to spread.  So while I prefer to spend my time on craft, technique, getting the story right, and making my novel the best it can be, I’ve accepted that once I finish the book I’ll have to create an ‘on-line platform.’ I’ve learned enough of the social media technologies to allow me to do so, so why do I hesitate? Leaf River Writer (http://leafriverwriter.com/)  summed… Read more »

Damnit, Jane! I’m never learned how to program the VCR and now it’s Blu-Ray. What the hell is a Blu-Ray? Let me get two points in.  There is an Australian story I like very much and I’ve related it to tech.  Before the white man, this tribe of Aborigines had a system that worked. All property was owned by elders. Stone axes, spears, whatever they had, all owned by elders. The elders got the respect, culturally reinforced because the young people had to ask for the car keys. Along comes Captain English Explorer who trades with the young men of… Read more »

Fear of breaking equipment is reasonable when instruction manuals are now obsolete – or at least a web address with instructions. This information is not always easy to find.
I bought a camera last week. The enclosed booklet does not say what the symbols on the dials mean – this is basic info that I need. (The company site only has sales info, but no guide.) I can guess, I can go online again and hope to find something about my model, or I can use the settings that I understand and never really learn about the camera. 

I’m not fearful of new media, just getting to the saturation point.  I’m tech-friendly, I swear: I like to play 🙂 In November of last year, I leapt onto the platform-building bandwagon.  I abandonned what was an awkward Joomla! site in favour of a WordPress blog and mapped out a plan.  I was already on Facebook, but decided to add Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ to the menu, one a month, and see what I could do with it. My blog got hacked in February, something I attribute to the hosting service, and fearing residual code, said service insisted on a… Read more »

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well, as something who is familiar with the computer (writing a book, e mailing, documents etc) the tech thing sort of fills me with fear. Hash tags? Still not sure what they are . . but I am learning. Thanks for above post and I will share.

Tech doesn’t scare me it intrigues and interests me. In my home, I live on the cusp of two generations.  My oldest child is 20 years younger than me and my husband is 8 years older.  I love the next new gadget and am interested to learn to use it…and I usually do, through trial and error.  I am willing and wanting.  Unlike my kids though, I don’t leap first and think later.  I actually stop to think if this new piece of tech is really beneficial or another sparkly new toy.  My husband on the other hand is very… Read more »

As one of those aging writers, I can only say what frustrates me about technology. I started on a manual typewriter–yes, I’m that old. I knew the typewriter. I knew it’s limitations and how to manipulate it to type what I needed (most of the time). Today’s tech is not simple. It doesn’t require the same brain work that my old typewriter did. You learn how to do things one day and the next day it changes. You can’t just sit back and do your job, you have to keep learning things that have nothing to do with your creative… Read more »

I’m an older adult and I can explain a little about the tech-fearfulness. When I was 55 I was working as a clerk in a dept. store and I decided I wanted a better job. I went to an interview and when I arrived they sat me down at a computer and tested my skills. I had no experience at all and I failed miserably. I was mortified and left the building with a bad case of tech-terror.  Finally I took a weekend class on computers at a tech school, and now I’m fairly comfortable with my HP! The tech… Read more »

I’m sometimes hesitant about new technology, but I wouldn’t call it fear, exactly. More just a watching and waiting, rather than jumping right in with something that hasn’t been proven over time. I don’t have the time or energy to pour into some new app or social network that is more than likely just a fad that will pass in a year or so. Once I see that it’s more than a passing trend, I’ll gladly join in. But when it comes to technology, I’ll probably never be the first on any bandwagon. There’s often great benefit from watching and… Read more »

I am 66 years old.  I don’t see it as an age barrier when technology rears into view.  I do concede that each generation is more comfortable with their world around them – its a given, not something new. However, I believe there are two factors that make someone easily accept a ‘new’ technology – the first would be interest, the second faith in ability to use. My youngest son, in his thirties, loves all the newest gadgets that surround music and/or film but as far as computers go, it’s a make it work, I can’t be bothered with its… Read more »

I’m just over 50 and was hesitant to use social media when I restarted my writing life. Yet I realized that if I wanted to get serious about writing, I would need to learn how to use these tools. So I decided to create a blog for new writers to share what I learn. I’ve been exploring social media one tool at a time, and the fear (mistakes, looking foolish, my name in cyberspace, etc.) is fading, one post/tweet/update at a time.

I’m not afraid of new media technology, I’m concerned about getting it done right, because I don’t speak the language, which seems to change weekly (okay, monthly).  I still don’t understand hashtags, how you do it, why you do it, how long will it last in these days of rapid replacement of the New Big Thing.  The sense of what is lasting and valuable has the half-life of a Mayfly (hyperbole, yes, but at 70 I deserve some latitude).  Rapid changes in the rules and look of of Twitter, Facebook, Myface, Yourlife, Avatar, Gravatar, the T-thing you use in Facebook… Read more »

[…] Last week, I asked for your insight regarding: What Makes You Anxious or Fearful About Tech? […]

I am one of those people you refer to. The problem I find is there is too much information and that information is not simple. I’ve been told, just sit and experiment with the computer. However, each explanation leads to more and more and more stuff. It’s confusing so I just give up.

I love the way younger people like to explain “older people” (re: Bonnee). As an “older person” I find that the new media, twitter, blogs, facebook, etc., can be real time-stealers…and as I progress toward my own crypt, I’m less inclined to engage in what can become, pardon the expression, a masturbatory experience…I’d rather be writing, creating..not that you can’t do that in social media, it’s just that I’d like to produce something less transitory…

I just looked at your newsletter theme “Get Smarter with Tech” and realized one more reason why people find tech off-putting: IT’S SO TECHNICAL!  Reading the titles of some of your articles, some questions come to mind. For a person not comfortable with tech these questions might be obvious: Why would I buy a Kindle? Why would I want to know how to deal with PDFs? Why on earth would I want to create custom Facebook pages? To make them shinier, sexier, flash like a 50s neon hotel sign? Why?  You’re wondering why people feel uncomfortable with tech. Maybe you’re… Read more »