Learn how to – Bridging tech resistance to unleash its full potential

Learn how to – Bridging tech resistance to unleash its full potential.

Technology is embedded in every facet of our daily lives. Some of us are more receptive to and dependent on technological innovations. Others feel overwhelmed by the digital age we are living in. Tech is, however, an inescapable and integral part of life.

Attitudes about technology and the rapid pace at which new advances are introduced often influence how we use and understand our devices. Rockbridge Associates has a keen interest in anything tech and launched a National Technology Readiness Survey (NTRS) to gauge opinions on technology and how it impacts our lives. The latest rerun of this particular survey occurred in March 2020 and involved 1,216 respondents in the United States.

Some of these subjective opinions may influence a readiness to fully tap into technological innovations’ potential. This article explores some of the more prominent views raised in the survey. 

Is technology distracting?

While acknowledging that technology can be helpful, approximately 55% of consumers felt that too much tech could be overwhelming. In fact, this opinion may be linked to the rapid development and introduction of new devices and methods of doing things.

Some companies seem to incorporate tech just for the sake of tech. Customers find a barrage of tech distracting at the expense of the ‘human touch.’ Experts recommend that businesses focus on technological applications that will advance their goals and improve customer experiences. This strategy includes informing and educating customers about future applications and processes changes.

Technology and the older generation

These aspects of tech have given rise to the idea that seniors are not technologically schooled. There might be some truth in this, but there are also indications that it is instead a matter of not wanting to learn how to do something new or different. These reluctant attitudes may be harmful in today’s digitized society as almost everything is done in the digital sphere.

Online connectivity drives more than just social engagements. Medical care is also moving into the digital space, which speeds up numerous processes and cuts through unnecessary red tape. Access to and acceptance of technological advances can, indeed, help seniors and may even save their lives.

The Pew Research Center, a non-partisan fact provider on global issues, attitudes and trends, found that 73% of seniors – people over the age of 65 – actually use the internet. This is a 14% increase from 2000. Once they give the internet, smart devices and social media a fair chance, seniors fully embrace and use this technology.

Observations show that seniors are capable of learning the skills necessary to navigate and use tech. The actual obstacle is not an inability to use digital devices but rather a personal decision not to.

Addressing these gaps by educating seniors on the importance and use of tech is crucial. Industry professionals recommend that companies employ devices and systems that seniors can easily understand and use.

Losing that personal touch

No one can argue that technology makes it easy and convenient to keep in touch with people all over the world. Ironically, it seems to cause a rift between people who live together or during social events. Our ‘addiction’ to social media and communicating via smartphones and other digital means may negatively affect how we relate and interact with those around us.

In the Rockbridge Associates survey, 57% of consumers felt that tech harms their quality of interactions and relationships. Scientific research echoes this finding. It appears that our smart digital devices, whether fixed or mobile, make it challenging to maintain a healthy balance between tech and personal interactions. Tech addiction is a recognized phenomenon and can lead to sleep deprivation, social isolation, pronounced attention-deficit symptoms and impaired emotional and social intelligence.

Professionals suggest that businesses find a way to balance their tech and personal interactions with customers. Although digitization inarguably speeds up and makes things easier, in-person contact remains essential on business and personal levels.

Is tech making us dumber?

More than half of the respondents in the NTRS survey indicated that a reliance on technology causes people to think less. There seem to be grounds for this assumption as answers to most of our questions are at our fingertips. This means we rarely seek and deduce anymore. Finding a way to keep our cognitive processes turning while using technology is challenging. However, even with all the information presented to us, we still have the choice to think critically about and analyze it.

Proponents of tech

The tech-savvy community does not deny any possible pitfalls of engaging with technological devices. However, it does point out that these perceived pitfalls are artificial and primarily due to a lack of discipline found in human nature. In fact, technology makes countless things easier and possible.

It improves productivity and has paved the way for tremendous advancements in the way businesses run their operations. Automation has redefined modern society’s industrial manufacturing, assembly lines, and the supply and demand scales.

Digital apps enable both office and field-based workers to complete tasks much faster. Tech cuts through a lot of red tape and markedly reduces human error.

Thanks to digitization, distance is no longer an issue. Online schooling and tertiary learning are now possible at any number of institutions around the world. This availability and accessibility have broadened many students’ choice base and makes it possible to receive an education no matter where they are.

Artificial intelligence (AI), a broad base of technologies mirroring cognitive thinking, solves many real-life problems, such as targeting hate speech on social media. Identifying these sparks of societal antagonism can help prevent catastrophic crimes. Incredibly, AI learns as it goes along and adapts to instructions. Predicting human behaviour simplifies both our lives and interactions with technology.

Tech also brings us hours of entertainment. Online casinos are fast replacing their land-based counterparts, thanks in part to their enhanced bonus offers, making it possible to place your bets when and wherever you are.

Tech is not a threat waiting in the wings. Using it responsibly may be challenging, but it is also fun. It has put humanity on a path of craving and seeking constant progress, leading to improvements in overall quality of life.