Making connections.

Original title: Verbinding maken; senioren en internet.

More and more older people are finding their way to the Internet. Many people aged over 50 who have only recently gone online say that a new world has opened up for them. By connecting to the Internet they have the feeling that they are also connecting to modern society. Yet there are also many 'non-liners' who choose not to use computers and the Internet. Some of them do so as a conscious choice or because they feel too old, others because their disabilities prevent them from doing so or because they have simply not got round to it.

Making connections reports on a wide-ranging study among older people who do not use the Internet, older people who have just begun using the Internet and older people who have been online for some time. The book, the result of a collaborative venture between SeniorWeb and the Netherlands Institute for Social Research/SCP, examines various reasons why senior citizens remain offline, but also looks at the motives of those who decide to start using the Internet. The digital skills and Internet use of various groups of older people are discussed, together with the problems and benefits they may encounter.