Between stereotypes and patronizing attitudes: Adaptation strategies by young and old social media users

This paper is a part of a broader study that investigates media ideologies and idioms of practice as experienced by older adults and teens, with focus on the reciprocal ageist representations that emerge from narrations of ‘other people’s’ digital media usage practices. In exploring such dimensions, we integrate two perspectives: 1) we consider media ideologies and idioms of practice (Gershon, 2010) to understand how users perceive and negotiate the affordances and constraints of digital platforms (Norman, 2013); and 2) we reflect on the age-related stereotypes that become evident when (old and young) people talk about the practices and normativities that surround digital platforms. More specifically, we explore the complex process of negotiation by which individuals arrive at their own meanings and related usage norms and practices for digital platforms (Vincent & Haddon, 2017). As discussed elsewhere, in contemporary media ecologies users build their own understanding of what is appropriate for their communicative goals (Madianou & Miller, 2013; Fernández-Ardèvol, Sawchuk & Grenier, 2017), rooted in the ways they perceive and negotiate technical affordances and constraints. Digital media environments not only can be considered ‘generational contexts’ (Colombo & Fortunati, 2011) but also constitute arenas where different generations interact with different media ideologies and usage practices. In intergenerational interactions, intergroup discrimination (Tajfel, 1970) and ageism (Ayalon & Tesch-Römer, 2018) are often at stake. We conducted 8 focus groups (4 with teenagers, 4 with people aged 65 or older) in two southern European cities (Rome and Barcelona). As a stimulus, we offered a set of everyday life scenarios, asking respondents how they would act in different situations (such as birthday greetings, quickly gathering a piece of information, arguments, etc.), without explicitly mentioning, at first, any specific platform. We transcribed and jointly analyzed the interviews using thematic analysis (Guest, MacQueen & Namey, 2011). Several ideas emerged from the analysis. Participants from both age groups had developed ‘their own way’ of using digital platforms. This ‘way’ was typically considered the (sole) legitimate way and was distinguished from the ways of other age cohorts. On the one hand, young participants often presented a patronizing attitude toward older people, who, in their opinion, lacked the skills to properly use digital platforms. On the other hand, older participants adopted an ethical stance towards young people’s digital practices, and judged their ‘manners’ in respect to broader socio-cultural considerations. While ageist stereotypes were prevalent in the focus group discussions, participants also mentioned forms of ‘adaptation’: for practical or relational reasons, they adapted their usage practices, tone of voice, and communication style to what they perceived as another age cohorts’ usage style and practices. After briefly contextualizing our broader research project, this paper focuses on these forms of ‘adaptation’ that were described by both old and young participants. Older participants seemed to be driven by the practical aspects of relationships management. More specifically, they seemed to implement the affordance that Fox and McEwan (2017) call ‘conversation control’. They managed their digital interactions with younger people by sending a message instead of calling—which was their preferred way of interacting— and then waited for the answer. This adaptation strategy also reflected a common understanding of age-based differences in scheduling: the idea that younger people have a busier life than older people. In a 67-years old women’s words: [RG67f]: I realize that they (young people) really have more commitments (than us). I am retired, I am always doing nothing. Let's say I have more free time than younger people [...]. And so, I adapted to this thing (sending messages). As for those who are my age, I prefer to call them if I want to speak with them. Then, there's my favorite niece: I had to send her a WhatsApp […]. I know she’s young, so I said: "Well, let's wish her (happy birthday (?) ) as they usually do, otherwise I might bother her […]”. As it happens with my son, I'm now adapting: when I need something, I send him a message […]. Especially with younger people, that's how it works. This adaptation process among older adults was sometimes seen as inevitable, as contemporary communication practices were thought part of a general trend of cultural change driven by youths: “For God's sake, we have to adapt” [RE69f]. On their side, teen participants reported adaptation strategies that included calling instead of sending messages and communicating in more formal ways with older people. On the one hand, they related such choices to different family roles, as a matter of good manners. [RT17m]: You also must know how to recognize, well, the person on the other side. For example, with my grandfather, (who is) a general,[...] I must also use the right words [...]: "Grandpa, good morning, sorry for disturbing you, I would need this..." On the other hand, the teenagers adapted to what they perceived as older adults’ digital incompetence for instance by “letting go”, in selected situations, when they received so-called “silly messages” (with regard to both form and content), as if their older relatives required a special sort of “tolerance”. Even within these adaptation strategies, ageist stereotypes and misrepresentations were at stake. For instance, teenage participants pointed out that sometimes older adults adapted their digital practices in the “wrong way,” based on mistaken ideas or stereotypes about youth: “in order to make contact with young people, [adults/older people] think that that’s what young people do (i.e., using emojis), while it is not so” [RP16f]. In broader terms, our findings on intergenerational, digital adaptation strategies contribute understanding on the ways that different age groups negotiate the meanings and usages of digital platforms in respect to what they know and think about generational ‘others’.