Children, Grown-ups and Technology.

[Deleted]

During Christmas I came to wonder about why it is that many people 45+ years of age have such a difficulty with technology?
At the same time, I could watch my sisters 2-year old daughter use an Android tablet without barely ever needing help.

Why is this so? Are childrens minds that radicly different and easier to teach new things?

[Adam Jensen]

Why is this so? Are childrens minds that radicly different and easier to teach new things?

That's a big part of it, yes. At young ages, the mind has an easier time adapting and accepting new concepts.

[Remilia]

Off topic - Is it bad that I recognize the sig artist... >.> then again I recognize a lot... =\ I have too much images......

Children are influential comes into mind. As we are young, language comes easier to learn and adapt to using.
We live more technologically influenced / reliant. In school asking you to type up an essay as opposed to writing it (yaaaay), using power point (noooo) presentations.
More we grow up with these, the more we learn to use it and adapt with it. Elders just don't have these around back then.

However the older we get the less we're able to adapt. Obviously this isn't everyone, but it's a general trend. My grandparents despite living in Taiwan can barely speak Mandarin. Mainly speak Japanese or Taiwanese, go figure.

Has quite a bit to do with where / how we grow up especially with technology.

[Deleted]

I can understand old people being afraid of powerpoint..that kinda stuff scares me too.But most of the new stuff is rather simple...I think old people think too high of themselves,they're like ''I don't need that,cba to try''.

[Dezerte]

Children's brains are very malleable, and as we grow older our brains become less malleable. So children are more open to new things and have a easier time learning things.

[Deleted]

During Christmas I came to wonder about why it is that many people 45+ years of age have such a difficulty with technology?
At the same time, I could watch my sisters 2-year old daughter use an Android tablet without barely ever needing help.

Why is this so? Are childrens minds that radicly different and easier to teach new things?

children and teens have an easier time learning new stuff due to their head not already being full with learned stuff :>

my father is 56 and I have to help him with his computer, tv box and stuff like that from time to time. we laugh at it, but it's kind of a problem, since more and more stuff goes high-tech.

there's nothing he don't know about cars though.

[Porcell]

Don't worry, before long we'll have "high technology" old people. My parents are right around 60 and they are pretty in tune with technology. Hell, they have more computers in their house than I do. They both have a desktop in their respective offices, they both have a laptop for the livingroom (do to mostly work / ebay related stuff, my mom runs an ebay store), and then my dad also has his work laptop. The "Nintendo Generation" is right around the low-mid 30s now. I know my friends and I joke about sitting around the retirement home playing video games.

But mainly it's about what you've lived with your whole life. If you lived the first 50 years of your life without a computer, you aren't going to put a lot of effort into learning what to do. Hell, I work with some of these people, older engineers who stumble around in Excel. But young adults these days, given the mentality of technology, I can see them growing up and easily picking up all the new tech. You have 2 year olds playing with iPads, but you have 40 year olds just as easily playing with those iPads. In 20 years when "Electric Sheet Paper" or "Hologram Glasses" come out, I'm sure that 50 year old me will be all about that shit too.

[Deleted]

I think it might also be part of a lack of will in grown-ups. A lack of will that might be caused partly by ignorance of what it is they don't want to learn. Perhaps it's a generation thing too, maybe those that are older feel that it's just too detached from what they've grown up with.

---------- Post added 2012-12-30 at 11:11 AM ----------

Don't worry, before long we'll have "high technology" old people. My parents are right around 60 and they are pretty in tune with technology. Hell, they have more computers in their house than I do. They both have a desktop in their respective offices, they both have a laptop for the livingroom (do to mostly work / ebay related stuff, my mom runs an ebay store), and then my dad also has his work laptop. The "Nintendo Generation" is right around the low-mid 30s now. I know my friends and I joke about sitting around the retirement home playing video games.

But mainly it's about what you've lived with your whole life. If you lived the first 50 years of your life without a computer, you aren't going to put a lot of effort into learning what to do. Hell, I work with some of these people, older engineers who stumble around in Excel. But young adults these days, given the mentality of technology, I can see them growing up and easily picking up all the new tech. You have 2 year olds playing with iPads, but you have 40 year olds just as easily playing with those iPads. In 20 years when "Electric Sheet Paper" or "Hologram Glasses" come out, I'm sure that 50 year old me will be all about that shit too.

My almost 60 year old blind father has a great hand with technology. Perhaps mostly because technology is often a great help in his life and in making things more accessible to him. He has initiative and he's had me and my great interest in computers and technology as well. A week ago, I actually gave my old (but still great) PC to my parents for them to use.

[Deleted]

I think it might also be part of a lack of will in grown-ups. A lack of will that might be caused partly by ignorance of what it is they don't want to learn. Perhaps it's a generation thing too, maybe those that are older feel that it's just too detached from what they've grown up with.

Exactly this. My parent told me for years that they don't need anything like this etc and now, when they tryed they sit all the day infront of their own laptops...

[Deleted]

Children's brains are very malleable, and as we grow older our brains become less malleable. So children are more open to new things and have a easier time learning things.

I think it's more about most adults being stuck in their ways. We even see it on these forums a lot. Glorifying old forms of entertainment or technology and saying how it used to be better back in the day. I think it's not so much as they can't or have difficulty of learning new things but they just see it as useless or boring new toy that creates extra unneeded confusion for simple tasks.

It's like in one movie I saw where a senior preferred watching black and white TV and old shows and then hearing some people complain about them making so many of them 3d these days. On the other hand, when motivated they can learn new things just fine. For example my mom, she has never played any computer games other than solitaire and those small facebook ones. Then dad got her Diablo 3 for her birthday (long story:P) and now she actually plays it pretty well.

[Deleted]

I think it's more about most adults being stuck in their ways. We even see it on these forums a lot. Glorifying old forms of entertainment or technology and saying how it used to be better back in the day.

It is a mix. It definitly has to do with their brains being less malleable. But stubbornness plays a part aswell.

[Deleted]

It is a mix. It definitly has to do with their brains being less malleable. But stubbornness plays a part aswell.

Maybe .. but on the other hand, the brain doesn't fully develop before 25 or 30 which should mean learning becomes easier till then and then slowly harder when you get older. I just think children are given too much credit on that. It takes 2-3 year to barely be able to speak, then 2-3 more to be able to actually form sentences, understand most of what others are saying and maybe write down a few words. An adult can learn a completely new language in less than a year. If they have to completely live in the new language environment, it only takes a few months till they can understand most simple conversations and contribute as well.

Children just don't have anything old to cling to so they have to learn the new (if we teach them or show them the new thing first of course).

[Mifuyne]

Off topic - Is it bad that I recognize the sig artist... >.> then again I recognize a lot... =\ I have too much images......

I knew it, Remi-chan you pervert!

[Dezerte]

Maybe .. but on the other hand, the brain doesn't fully develop before 25 or 30 which should mean learning becomes easier till then and then slowly harder when you get older. I just think children are given too much credit on that. It takes 2-3 year to barely be able to speak, then 2-3 more to be able to actually form sentences, understand most of what others are saying and maybe write down a few words. An adult can learn a completely new language in less than a year. If they have to completely live in the new language environment, it only takes a few months till they can understand most simple conversations and contribute as well.

Children just don't have anything old to cling to so they have to learn the new (if we teach them or show them the new thing first of course).

Worth noting that the child learns to do something completely new to them, learning a language. And they do it without any sort of previous education, they just pick it up by themselves.

Perhaps this will illustrate my point a bit better: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/360326...rl-half-brain/

[Mazaxist]

I think they just dont want to learn because it takes time and effort. Like when i teach my mom to use computer, i show her the same stuff over and over but she forgets everytime. I just feel like she doesnt care about it much. also kids learn and adapt to things really fast because they are in the process of growing i guess. Like 8 year old kid can move to another country and learn to speak different language in less than 1 year without accent

[Deleted]

Kids learn faster because they don't understand or respect consequences. Kids will press a button first and see if the thing breaks after.
An adult will be reluctant to press anything they don't know what it does. It might be dangerous, it might explode and it might cost them money.
This fear of consequence is what holds adults back and the lack of fear is what makes kids so fast at learning.

Rational thinking is the only irrational thing to do when you're trying to learn something new. It holds you back and makes you afraid!

[Seme]

In fairness there has been some huge changes in computing in the last 25 years, so for people who were around before that it can be difficult to adapt. Even so I think attitude has a large part to play.

My father is in his early 60's and hates new technology he just has a reluctance to learn, any time I visit my folks I need to 'fix' his laptop when all he's done is place a file in the wrong folder. My mother on the other hand, in her late 50's adapts fine to new technologies, she has and uses a laptop, tablet, smartphone and a kindle.

Children are just sponges they absorb everything that they see and hear and I do mean everything, there's nothing like saying something to a 6 year old for her to say it back days later completely out of context

As Lizbeth above said; Everything is new to kids, they have no preconceptions therefore they can just pick something up and accept it.

[Jakexe]

Technology is a part of life for younger people so they don't need to put any effort into learning it, it's just something around them. I sit in the sweet spot where I grew up with computers but still remember not knowing what a computer is.

Although a personal analogy I think it fits the subject. My dad grew up when car maintenance was done yourself so when he taught me, it took longer than he expected and got frustrated that I just didn't learn everything straight away. The exact same thing happened in reverse when I taught him how to build a computer and utilise software, he took ages to learn things that seemed easy to me. When something is just a normal daily life activity it's just natural to learn how to do it.

[Deleted]

Somethimes, grown-ups are children when they discover some fancy new technology. My dad is over 50, and he still loves all the new techonogy that gets develloped.
Then again he's chief technician in a hospital, he gets to play with lazers n stuff xp

[Trassk]

children are, as said, more capable of learning new things they adults. The old saying 'you can't teach an old dog new tricks' applies here. Its something to do with cognitive development.
My 3 year old nephew is playing games on his dad's android phone, something I find both fascinating and a little disturbing that a kid can learn something that advanced so quick.