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Online Representations of Older People Generated by Public Sector Organizations

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Human Aspects of IT for the Aged Population. Technology Design and Acceptance (HCII 2021)

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Abstract

This article investigates the generation of online representations of older people by institutions. Specifically, it discusses the ways in which public sector organizations generate online representations of older people from a production perspective. This article uses the following questions to frame its analysis: What do we know about online representations of older people generated by public sector organizations? What do we know about the way in which public sector organizations generate online representations of older people? And, how can public sector organizations improve online representations of older people from a production perspective? The analysis primarily draws on secondary data (i.e., existing literature and examples of public sector organizations) to address these questions. After summarizing existing research examining online representations of older people generated by public sector organizations, this article offers a specific example of a public sector organization generating online representations of older people (i.e., a Swedish municipality). A discussion of the approaches public sector organizations takes to generating online representations of older people is provided, and the argument is made that public sector organizations have a convergent position where they must take care of older people while presenting this care online. Moreover, this article discusses the generation of online representations of older people in the public sector concerning accountability, calling for greater accountability in representations of older people online.

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Acknowledgements

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 764632. This study was accomplished within the context of the Swedish National Graduate School for Competitive Science on Ageing and Health (SWEAH) funded by the Swedish Research Council.

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  1. Linköping University, Bredgatan 32, 602 21, Norrköping, Sweden

    Wenqian Xu

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  1. Wenqian Xu
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Tsinghua University, Beijing, China

    Qin Gao

  2. Chongqing University, Chongqing, China

    Jia Zhou

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Xu, W. (2021). Online Representations of Older People Generated by Public Sector Organizations. In: Gao, Q., Zhou, J. (eds) Human Aspects of IT for the Aged Population. Technology Design and Acceptance. HCII 2021. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 12786. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-78108-8_34

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-78108-8_34

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