The potential benefits of enabling elderly people to access the internet include enhanced social inclusion, reductions in loneliness, increased confidence and fulfilment, maintenance of independence and associated positive health outcomes. This briefing presents some of the academic literature and research that inform practice in this area. These come from Social Policy, in which projects to address loneliness in old age are currently centred around the idea of befriending, as well as Computer Science and Psychology, which theorise Human Computer Interaction and research the relationship between internet use and social engagement. The briefing uses findings from these areas to identify the approaches to address digital inclusion that are likely to be most successful. Key obstacles and challenges are also identified. The briefing highlights that projects that empower elderly people to engage actively with society through the internet are those most likely to be effective in reducing loneliness and increasing life fulfilment. Internet training for elderly people needs to be ongoing, person-centred and provided within reciprocal relationships that enable recipients to give something back, rather than being positioned as passive recipients of help. A key challenge is finding ways to empower elderly people in independent social engagement through the internet, while also protecting them from risk.
