HARVEST — eHealth and Aging in Rural Areas: Transforming Everyday Life, Digital Competences, and Technology — is a collaborative European research project that analyses policies, practices, and learning processes, related to uses of eHealth technology among elderly people in rural areas in Finland, Italy and Sweden.
The project involves researchers from DIGSUM at Umeå University in Sweden, University of Lapland (Media Education Hub and Social Work), in Finland, and the Department of Communication and Performing Arts at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy.
Field research and policy analysis is carried out collaboratively in Finland, Italy, and Sweden to produce knowledge about digital landscapes of care: the cultural, ideological, geographical, organisational and virtual topography of eHealth in which old age rural users of eHealth are situated.
About HARVEST
Digital health and social care, so-called eHealth, is an emergent phenomenon which is portrayed as a way of managing societal challenges like demographic ageing, relocation from rural areas and increased demands for availability. But yet, there is a lack of research on the real impact and consequences of eHealth, especially in relation to old age users in rural areas.
In HARVEST, we are empirically and theoretically examining old age users' use and non-use of "virtual health rooms", virtual health and social service centres, digital care applications – care apps – and health and social care information online, in rural regions.
Using an ethnographic approach, we try to understand (a) the impact of ICTs in the everyday lives of older people; (b) the role of (rural) place; and (c) the relationship between technology and digital competences in relation to older people’s use of eHealth in three different countries: Finland, Italy, Sweden.
The final goal is to provide relevant information for policy-makers, to develop eHealth projects that go beyond a technocentric and deterministic approach and consider the real and cultural context of use of digital technologies among elderly.
HARVEST received funds under the JTC 2017 launched by JPI MYBL. JPI MYBL is supported by J-Age II. J-Age II is funded by Horizon2020, the EU Framework Program for Research and Innovation, under Grant Agreement no 643850, Joint Programming. Initiative (JPI)“More. Years, Better Lives".
Publications
Peer-reviewed scientific articles
Airola, E., & Rasi, P. (2020). Domestication of a robotic medication-dispensing service among older people in Finnish Lapland. Human technology, 16(2), 117–138. [full paper]
Airola, E., Rasi, P. & Outila, M. (2020). Older people as users and non-users of a video conferencing service for promoting social connectedness and well-being - A case study from Finnish Lapland. Educational Gerontology. [full paper]
Bonifacio F. (2021) The relationship between older adults and ICTs: a systematic review of qualitative studies. Studi di Sociologia (accepted, forthcoming in 2021).
Simone Carlo, Francesco Bonifacio, (2021) Ageing in rural Italy through digital media. Health and everyday life, in "Rassegna Italiana di Sociologia, Rivista trimestrale fondata da Camillo Pellizzi" 2/2021, pp. 459-486, doi: 10.1423/101852
Carlo, S., & Bonifacio, F. (2021). Elderly, ICTs and qualitative research: Some methodological reflections. Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics) . https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-78108-8_1
Carlo S. & Bonifacio F. (2020) “You Don’t Need Instagram, It’s for Young People”: Intergenerational Relationships and ICTs Learning Among Older Adults. In: Gao Q., Zhou J. (eds) Human Aspects of IT for the Aged Population. Technology and Society. HCII 2020. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 12209. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-50232-4_3
Carlo, S. & Rebelo, C. (2018) Technology: A Bridge or a Wall? The Inter(intra)generational Use of ICTs Among Italian Grandmothers. In: Zhou J., Salvendy G. (eds) Human Aspects of IT for the Aged Population. Acceptance, Communication and Participation. ITAP 2018. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 10926. Springer, Cham, pp. 446-464
Carlo S. & Sourbati M., (2020) Age and technology in digital inclusion policy: A study of Italy and the UK, ESSACHESS. Journal for Communication Studies, vol. 13, no. 2(26). 107-117 [full paper]
Colombo, F., Aroldi, P., & Carlo, S. (2018). "I use it correctly!": The use of ICTs among Italian grandmothers in a generational perspective. Human Technology. 14. 343-365. DOI 10.17011/ht/urn.201811224837.
Kvist, E. (2020). Home is where the care is – Independent ageing in eHealth policy. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Lindberg, Jens & Carlsson, Eric (2018). "Digitala vårdlandskap – kritiska reflektioner om e-hälsa i glesbygden". Socialmedicinsk Tidskrift, 95(1), 62-69. [full paper]
Outila, M., & Kiuru, H. (2020). “Picturephone in my home” – Actor-network theory and Foucauldian discourse analysis on northern Finnish older adults starting to use a video conferencing service. Journal of Technology in Human Services. DOI https://doi.org/10.1080/15228835.2020.1869670.
Rasi, P., & Airola, E. (2021). Ikäihmisten digitaalinen osaaminen ja sosiaaliset tukiverkostot eTerveyspalveluiden käyttäjinä [Older people’s digital competences and social support networks as users of eHealth services]. A book chapter proposal under review.
Rasi, P., & Airola, E. (2020). Health services and eHealth from the perspective of older rural residents of Finnish Lapland. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Rasi, P., Lindberg, J., & Airola, E. (2020). Old age service users' experiences of learning to use eHealth applications in sparsely populated health care settings in Swedish and Finnish Lapland. Educational Gerontology, published online November 24. https://doi.org/10.1080/03601277.2020.1851861
Valokivi, H., Carlo, S., Kvist, E., & Outila, M. (2020). Digital ageing in Europe - A comparative analysis of Italian, Finnish, and Swedish national policies on eHealth. Ageing & Society. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0144686X21000945
Presentations in scientific conferences
Airola, E. (2019). eTerveyspalveluiden käytön oppiminen ja käyttö ikäihmisten arjessa Lapin harvaan asutuilla alueilla. Presentation at FERA The Finnish Educational Research Association 2019 Conference on Education, November 21-22, Joensuu, Finland. [abstract] [slides]
Airola, E. (2020, in Finnish). eTerveyspalveluiden käytön oppiminen ikäihmisten arjessa: kirjallisuuskatsaus. Presentation at FERA The Finnish Educational Research Association 2019 Conference on Education, December 15.-16., University of Helsinki, online. [abstract]
Airola, E., Rasi, P. & Outila, M. (2019). Older people’s digital competences and willingness to use a video conferencing service to alleviate social isolation – A case study from Finnish Lapland. Presentation given at the NordMedia 2019 Conference, August 21-23, 2019, Malmö, Sweden. [abstract] [slides]
Airola, E., & Rasi, P. (2019). eHealth technologies, learning and digital competences: An ethnographic study of elderly users’ and non-users’ everyday lives in rural areas. MEC 2019 Media Education Conference, April 24-26, 2019, Salla, Finland. [abstract] [slides]
Carlo, S. (2019), "Internet a volte è un ponte, a volte è un muro". L'uso inter(intra) generazionale delle ICT, Presentation at Conference “SSI Sociologia, Cultura, Comunicazione”, Università di Bologna, 28-29 June, 2019
Carlo, S. & Bonifacio, F. (2019), “Instagram non ti serve, tanto è per noi ragazzi”: il ruolo delle relazioni intergenerazionali nell’apprendimento all’uso delle ICT tra gli anziani Presentation at SISCC Conference – Milan, 4-5 July 2019
Colombo, F. (2019), Something old in the new. Something new in the old. Elderly learning in the digital mediascape, Presentation at Mec – Media Education Conference, Salla, Finlanda
Rasi, P., Lindberg, J., & Airola, E. (2021). Older people as learners of eHealth applications in Swedish and Finnish Lapland. ESA RN01 Ageing in Europe Midterm Conference, (online conference), January 20-22, 2021, University of Jyväskylä, Finland.
Rasi, P., Lindberg, J., & Airola, E. (2020). Tapaustutkimus ikäihmisistä eTerveyspalveluiden käytön oppijoina Suomen ja Ruotsin Lapissa. Aikuiskasvatuksen tutkimuspäivät 2020 [The Finnish Society for Research on Adult Education Conference 2020], February 13-14, 2020, Rovaniemi, University of Lapland, Finland. [abstract]
Rasi, P. (2020). Ikääntyneet oppijat digitalisaation pyörteissä - kenen on vastuu? Keynote speech at the Aikuiskasvatuksen tutkimuspäivät 2020 [The Finnish Society for Research on Adult Education Conference 2020], 13.-14.2.2020, Rovaniemi, Finland.
Rasi, P. (2018). Miten ikäihmiset vastaanottavat ja oppivat käyttämään digitaalisia terveys- ja hyvinvointipalveluja? FERA The Finnish Educational Research Association 2018 Conference on Education, November 15-16, 2018, Tampere, Finland. [abstract] [slides]
Rasi, P. (2018). Maaseudun ikäihmisten digitaalinen osaaminen sosiaali- ja terveyspalvelujen asiakkaina. MEVI 2018 Finnish Association for Media and Communication Studies Conference, April 27-28, 2018, Jyväskylä, Finland. [abstract] [slides]
Invited talks and presentations to stakeholders
Airola, E., Rasi, P., & Outila, M. (2020). Tutkimustuloksia teknologiatuetuista terveyspalveluista [Research results from studies on technology-supported health services]. Webinar for HARVEST Finnish stakeholders, 17.11.2020.
Rasi, P. (2020). Senioreiden digiloikka - askelmerkit ja valmennus kohdillaan? [The digital leap of seniors – Are check marks and coaching in their right places?] Rovaniemi Association for Seniors, October 7th, Rovaniemi, Finland.
Rasi, P. (2020). Media education for older people. Invited webinar talk in the webinar series "Media Education in the Nordic Countries: Lessons Learned from the Neighbours", 23.9.2020, Nordicom and the Swedish Media Council.
Carlo, S. (2019), “Invecchiare online. Sfide e aspettative degli anziani digitali”, International Summer School “Visibilità e narrazioni dei processi di aging”, Università di Pavia, Pavia, Italy
Outila, M., Zechner M., & Skaffari P. (2019). Technology in terms of older adults’ everyday life? AgeSam-project’s workshop, May 13-15, 2019, Klaipeda, Lithuania.
Rasi, P. (2019). Use/non-use and learning of technology at old age. Presentation at the AgeSam - Transnational Meeting 3: Technology in older adults’ support and care. November 6-8, 2019, Rovaniemi, University of Lapland, Finland.
Rasi, P. (2018). eHealth and ageing in rural areas – Transforming everyday life, digital competences and technology. AEPA-Wel project’s final workshop “Changing Welfare and Advancing Elderly in the North”, August 30-31, 2018, Rovaniemi, Finland. [slides]
Other publications
Rasi, P. (2020). “Media education for older people”. Media & Learning, 22.9.2020. [link]
Carlo, S. & Bonifacio, F. (2019) “Tecnologie, ponte e muro nel dialogo tra generazioni”. Aggiornamenti Sociali, Ottobre 2019, pp 651-660. ISSN 0002-094X
Colombo, F. (2019) The Generational Role of Media and Social Memory: A Research Agenda, Comunicazioni Sociali - 2019 - 2. Generations, Time, and Media
Rasi, P. (2019). Toward lifelong media education. A column on the Global Cremit website of the Centre for Research into Media Education and Technology Literacy (CREMIT) at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan, Italy, 5.3.2019.
Rasi, P. (2019). Use/non-use and learning of technology at old age. AgeSam - Transnational meeting 3: Technology in older adults' support and care, November 7, 2019, Rovaniemi, Finland.