title: [Analysis of how elderly internet users react to unexpected situations].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Although internet usage among older adults is steadily increasing, there is still a digital divide between generations. Younger internet users seem to be more open towards new media. Recent studies showed the negative influence of computer anxiety on internet usage. It is not known how older adults deal with computer and internet issues in their home environment and which problem-solving strategies they apply.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The behavior of elderly people in unexpected situations when using an internet portal was analyzed to establish whether older users can solve the problems without assistance and what individual reactions (e.g. facial expressions and gesticulations) they show during the interaction.
  
  
  METHODS
  In a clinical trial with 50 older adults aged 60 years and older various typical problems which may occur while using web platforms were simulated and user behavior was analyzed using logging data, videography and with questionnaires to measure the subjective opinion of the study participants.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The study participants had severe problems in solving the tasks on their own and many of them could not find a suitable solution at all. Overall, the videography data indicated an increased concentration of the participants during the whole session, which is in contrast to the low levels of perceived mental workload reported by the participants. Regarding task completion, no differences were found between seniors with and without cognitive impairment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results showed the serious difficulties of older adults when dealing with unexpected events while using a web platform. For developers of internet platforms for inexperienced seniors, it seems to be crucial to incorporate a simple integration of all available features within the platform, without including features requiring high multi-tasking skills.
authors.affiliation: Forschungsgruppe Geriatrie der Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Reinickendorfer Str. 61, 13347, Berlin, Deutschland. marten.haesner@charite.de.
authors.forename: Marten
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Haesner
authors.affiliation: Forschungsgruppe Geriatrie der Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Reinickendorfer Str. 61, 13347, Berlin, Deutschland.
authors.forename: Anika
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Steinert
authors.affiliation: Forschungsgruppe Geriatrie der Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Reinickendorfer Str. 61, 13347, Berlin, Deutschland.
authors.forename: Julie Lorraine
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: O'Sullivan
authors.affiliation: Forschungsgruppe Geriatrie der Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Reinickendorfer Str. 61, 13347, Berlin, Deutschland.
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Steinhagen-Thiessen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001292:Attitude to Computers; D003197:Computer Literacy / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006801:Humans; D016247:Information Storage and Retrieval / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D020407:Internet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D008328:Man-Machine Systems; D008875:Middle Aged; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D014584:User-Computer Interface
keywords: Anxiety; Attitude to computers; Facial expression; Self-efficacy; Web usability