LONG PAPER Technology learning and use among older adults with late-life vision impairments Anne Marie Piper 1 • Robin Brewer 1 • Raymundo Cornejo 1 Ó Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2016 Abstract Increasing numbers of older adults are now using computers and going online. Yet, certain disabilities that are acquired later in life, such as severe vision impairments, make it difficult to use modern information and communication technologies (ICTs). Currently, we have a limited understanding of how older adults with late- life vision impairments adopt, learn, and use ICTs to communicate and seek information. To address this gap in the literature, this paper presents results from in-depth interviews with 15 older adults (age 60–99), who are low vision or blind, to understand how they use technologies to stay connected and engage online. While the older adults in this study have physical access to computers and many are motivated to explore new technologies to stay in touch, a number of barriers exist to using modern communication devices and online tools (e.g., e-mail, search, social media). Vision impairment in older adulthood presents complex challenges due to one’s changing visual abilities coupled with an evolving landscape of accessible communication technologies. Additionally, the benefits of using modern devices are juxtaposed with generational values of what is meaningful communication and the familiarity and inher- ent accessibility of phone communication. The paper concludes with a discussion of challenges and opportunities for the design of accessible ICT for older adults with vision impairments. Keywords Older adults Á Vision impairments Á Information and communication technology Á Accessibility 1 Introduction The proportion of older adults (aged 60 and over) in the USA and worldwide is growing rapidly with respect to the general population. As such, it is critical to ensure equitable access to and accessibility of information and communication technology (ICT) for older populations. While there is a growing body of work on ICT adoption and use among older adults more generally (e.g., [8, 36, 38]), this work tends to focus on older adults as a whole and neglects the unique—and arguably more complex—needs of individuals who experience significant disability later in life, such as vision impairment. An estimated 5.3 million Americans aged 65 years or more report experiencing significant vision loss [2]. Some individuals experience severe vision impairment at birth or early childhood (e.g., from retinopathy of prematurity), while others may experience vision loss later in life from conditions such as macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and cataracts [5]. Cases of age-re- lated macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy alone cause vision impairments in 10 million Americans, and this is expected to nearly triple by 2050 [5, 34]. Despite the pervasiveness of severe vision impairment among older adults, there are few studies examining this population’s use of and challenges with ICTs. To bridge this gap, this paper relies on in-depth interviews to address the following questions: • How do older adults who experience severe late-life vision impairments use technology to communicate and seek information? • What challenges do these older adults face in learning and using accessible ICTs? & Anne Marie Piper ampiper@northwestern.edu 1 2240 Campus Drive, Evanston, IL 60208, USA 123 Univ Access Inf Soc DOI 10.1007/s10209-016-0500-1