Providing Tech Support as Care Work Among Care Workers in Assisted Living Facilities: Qualitative Interview Study

TL;DR

This study explores how care workers in assisted living facilities help older adults use technology and the challenges they face in doing so.

Contribution

The study provides new insights into care workers' experiences and the emotional and physical labor involved in providing tech support to older adults.

Findings

Care workers frequently assist residents with technology use as part of their job.

Providing tech support adds to care workers' workload and requires emotional and physical labor.

There is a need for systemic support to recognize and assist care workers in this growing responsibility.

Abstract

Technology can enhance the quality of life and social engagement for older adults; yet, many require assistance to use it effectively. In assisted living facilities, care workers play a crucial role in supporting residents’ use of technology. However, little research has examined the experiences and challenges of care workers in this context.

In this study, we examine the perspectives and experiences of care workers in supporting older residents with technology.

We conducted semistructured interviews with 20 professional care workers in the United States, with an average of 4.9 years of experience working in assisted living facilities.

The findings indicate that participants regularly provided technology support to their residents, while their perspectives on and acceptance of this technology support role varied. For many, this responsibility placed additional demands on their existing workload, requiring both explicit and nuanced physical and emotional labor input.

These findings underscore the need for greater recognition and systemic support for care workers as they increasingly take on the responsibility of facilitating technology use in residential care settings.