When Tech Doesn’t Age Well

The latest issue of re:think, the thought leadership magazine from NCWIT, brings together researchers and tech professionals with a diverse range of backgrounds and perspectives to explore the topic of age in the tech industry. In this article, NCWIT Social Science Program Manager Timothy Faiella discusses several ways ageism can impact both tech professionals and the companies they work for.

Explore more articles like this at ncwit.org/rethink.

We’ve all seen depictions of older people struggling to grasp new technologies. These images are pervasive in our culture. In fact, as I sit down to write this, there’s an ad on television where a thirtysomething woman walks through a store while talking on speakerphone, imitating an older person. As it happens, this ad appeared in the midst of a show in which an older character refuses a mobile phone gifted to her by a grandson because she doesn’t want to invest the time to learn how to use it. And, this point isn’t lost on me either: in both instances, women were featured, as women are often perceived as being less technically savvy.

We’re supposed to find humor in all of this because we know that it’s older folks who are presumed inept when it comes to tech — when, in fact, the relationship between age and technology is much more complex and multifaceted.

Ageism not only affects how tech is marketed, but also how it is developed and adopted. On the flip side, technology can play a role both in perpetuating and/or disrupting ageism. No doubt, age bias is ingrained in the technical workforce, particularly for women. But, by understanding historical and current contexts, we can mitigate the barriers that prevent older people from contributing to technological innovations that would benefit us all.

What is ageism?

Ageism is discrimination against a person based on their age. These biases are most often held toward elderly or middle-aged people, but it can also be true that these biases affect youth. NCWIT uses intersectional approaches to increase the meaningful and influential participation of women and girls in computing, recognizing that one’s social location―oftentimes shaped by race, class, gender, and other dimensions of who we are―creates multiple, interconnected identities and distinct experiences. Age is one of these intersections. It’s important to investigate how it interacts with the other social identities, and how these intersections might lead to greater barriers, fewer opportunities, and more hostile work environments.

As a nation, we are getting older. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control, in 2018, the life expectancy at birth was 78.7 years. That number has risen steadily over the past hundred years (in 1900, life expectancy at birth was 47.3 years). Census data shows that the average household is shrinking (from 3.3 people in 1960 to 2.53 people in 2020). Families are growing vertically and shrinking horizontally.

In the United States, aging is viewed primarily as a process of decline. We’re perceived to lose skills, mobility, and brain power. It’s assumed that older people are less able to assimilate new information. While work experience is often valued, this seems to be less true of the tech workforce, where older employees’ skills are often considered obsolete and older employees are often relegated to less-influential projects. Bias against older workers costs the U.S. economy an estimated $850 billion annually. About 57 percent can be attributed to involuntary retirement. The impact on women is particularly severe — one-third of that total lost GDP is from women being forced to retire sooner than they would prefer, due to age discrimination. And, these dynamics are moving in the wrong direction. By 2050, that number is projected to climb to almost $4 trillion.

To make matters worse, a recent AARP survey found that nearly half of older workers concerned about job security worry that their age will impair their ability to find a new job, with women slightly more concerned than men. Among the most vulnerable, those who believe they could lose their job within the year, 61 percent believe their age would be a factor.

Ageism and the tech workforce

Because of its rate of change, tech is commonly considered a realm of youth — products are developed by, used by, and marketed toward young people. Including older workers in this process is particularly important because it helps ensure that the needs of aging populations are considered and met.

Age can become a technical divide. Though often willing and able to learn, older people are presumed to be unfamiliar with new technologies. Ignoring the physical and psychological processes associated with aging in the development of new technologies makes many products and systems less accessible to older people, creating opportunity gaps, especially when these technologies are required for further employment. By addressing the structural and interpersonal barriers outlined here and including older people on teams that are diverse across age and other identity categories, there is an opportunity to develop new products and systems that better meet the needs of the full spectrum of end-users, enabling us all to lead fuller lives.

Assistive technologies can minimize the need for physical labor, supplement our hearing and vision with the use of sensors, provide flexibility by creating opportunities for remote work, etc. But these things will only happen if the needs of older people are considered when technologies are developed. While policies like the Age Discrimination Act of 1978 seek to prevent inequality based on a person’s age, older workers continue to be marginalized, and in male-dominated fields like computing, women are particularly vulnerable, as older women are perceived more negatively than older men.

There’s no evidence that older employees are less productive than younger employees. While older people might require more time to master new skills, research shows that they are willing and capable of doing so. And yet, training opportunities are rarely made available to older workers, leaving them ill-equipped for these emerging opportunities. As the rate of technological change and the demand for technically adept workers increase, all workers — including older people — will need training, and designing programs specifically for older workers might be an effective way to grow the pool of technical talent.

How can ageism impact younger workers?

While we’re more familiar with discrimination directed at older people, young people can also experience ageism in the workplace. Young women in particular face significant barriers to opportunities, especially in male-dominated fields like computing. And, the lucky few who successfully navigate that gauntlet have no guarantee that older colleagues will take them seriously. Their ideas might be dismissed. The projects that they’re assigned to might not carry the same prestige as those assigned to men with similar skills and experience. Women are often directed toward administrative roles. These experiences lead to lower retention rates for women. More than half (56 percent) of women in technical occupations leave their organizations in the middle of their careers. And in the high-tech sector, the quit rate is more than twice as high for women (41 percent) as it is for men (17 percent). While women are more likely to be the primary caregivers for their families, research suggests that they are not, for the most part, leaving tech careers because of family concerns. Evidence points to workplace conditions, a lack of access to key creative roles, and a sense of feeling stalled in one’s career as some of the most significant factors contributing to women’s attrition from the tech field.

What Can We Do?

• Review your job ads and recruitment materials (and your own beliefs) for subtle bias. Sometimes the language and images we use have unintended consequences. Do any of the criteria reflect typical assumptions about the “kind of person” you think usually does this job? Do you list “perks” about your workplace environment that might subtly indicate that some potential applicants won’t feel welcome (e.g., free beer, foosball friendly, or nerf-filled)? Do the images reflect a diverse range of people in terms of age, gender, race, and so on? Expand or modify these descriptions and images as needed to include a range of people and preferences. Be careful about language used in everyday conversation as well. By becoming aware of our unconscious biases and interrupting bias in the workplace, we’ll create a welcoming environment that allows all employees to flourish.
• Make accommodations for flexible work schedules. Older workers often cite flexibility as an important factor in their employment decisions. The first step toward an effective flexible workplace is for managers to create an environment where employees feel they can discuss available work-life options without being stigmatized. This is particularly true for older workers.
• Review task assignment processes. Task assignment is a key area where bias emerges, exacerbating workplace inequity. As a result, older (and younger) employees can have fewer opportunities to creatively contribute, learn, innovate, and shine. Such patterns can also lead to low job satisfaction and higher quit rates for these employees. Research shows that diverse teams are especially creative and productive.
• Encourage training, mentorship, and sponsorship opportunities for older employees. By providing opportunities for learning and growth as an employee, older employees can apply their experiences to new problems and work with younger colleagues toward innovative solutions.

Tim Faiella is the Social Science Program Manager with the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT) at the University of Colorado Boulder. His career spans social science research, creative writing, and publishing. Tim’s research focuses on media analysis using both content and systems approaches, social issues related to behavioral health, and storytelling in support of social change initiatives. He has an MA in Sociology and an MFA in Creative Writing.

View the complete second issue of re:think, and subscribe to find out when additional articles become available, at www.ncwit.org/rethink.