eGovernment in Norway: Are Older Users Included?

Abstract

There is a trend in the “western” world towards digitalization of governmental services. This process has as a goal to reduce costs in the public sector by providing more of the services digitally. Older adults are a population group that are increasing in Norway. In this study, different questions regarding their inclusion in the introduction of eGovernment have been explored. The methods used was a literature survey, interviews, and a heuristic evaluation of Norwegian eGovernment websites. The study showed that while the regulations and guidelines are adapted to make the websites accessible for older adults, they need to be used by developers that understand the needs behind the guidelines. For older adults to use the websites they require understanding of why and knowledge of how to do so. The study also showed that there is ethical consideration here. How much do we force the older adults to adapt to the technology, or do we adapt the technology to them?