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The COVID-19 crisis has accelerated the adoption of digital content and services, particularly in Italy, a country historically slower in embracing communication technologies (European Commission, 2023). Mobility restrictions have hastened the digitalization of daily life, including communication, entertainment, and utility services (Auditel & Censis, 2022). Older individuals, traditionally less digitally proficient, have faced challenges adapting to this rapid digitalization (Rolandi et al., 2020, NIHR, 2022). However, early evidence suggests that this digital acceleration may not be sufficient to bridge the digital divide, especially among older populations (Litchfield et al., 2021, Colombo et al., 2023). This paper explores the changes occurring in the relationship between older people and new technologies based on data provided by longitudinal qualitative research, which involved a panel of 40 over-65 residents in the Lodigiano region, the first red zone – affected by the pandemic and its restrictions – in Europe. This contribution aims to highlight how active seniors have experienced a transformation in their approach to technology from the onset of the pandemic (2020) to the present day. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and then imported into the NVivo application for content analysis. Grounded Theory (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) was utilized, involving several stages. The analysis also aimed to formulate ideal types for interpreting the diverse approaches to digital adoption among the older population. From the present study, it emerged that the rapid process of digitalization during the COVID-19 pandemic has not effectively bridged the digital divide, but rather widened it. The swift digitalization of public services highlights the challenges in ensuring inclusivity, especially for older individuals. While digitalization can benefit those with support networks, it further marginalizes isolated seniors. Policy-makers need to consider existing caregiver networks to promote digital inclusion among older individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on recent research insights (Airola, Rasi 2020), this study explores how ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies) use is incorporated into older adults' everyday life, thus contributing to shape ageing processes in remote areas. The research was set in a small mountain village located in central Italy, called Castel del Monte, which counts less than 500 resident citizens, for the most part older people. Carried on through one-month participant observation in January 2020 and 20 in-depth interviews with people over 65, the research broadly explores: RQ1: what does ageing in a remote mountain context mean? RQ2: how are digital technologies interwoven with ageing processes? RQ3: how are digital technologies incorporated into older adults' daily healthcare practices? Overall, ICTs were interpreted as an amplifier of the older adults' «space of possibilities for social action» (Tulle 2008). Our research results invite to overcome individualistic accounts of active ageing as the ICTs-favoured empowerment of older people, and to rather consider digital technologies as tools fitting into concrete landscapes of care (Milligan, Wiles 2010) which - especially in rural contexts - are often based on informal networks of care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]