Paper Type

Complete

Abstract

Public administration, when offering services, increasingly relies on electronic documents, or e-documents. Yet older adults may face e-inclusion barriers not only due to access limitations but mostly due to insufficient trust in digital artifacts. This exploratory study investigates predictors of trust in e-documents among digitally active seniors in Poland who have largely overcome first-level digital divides. Survey data from 153 seniors attending the University of the Third Age were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Behavioral (e-government use), technological (trust in technology), institutional (trust in government), and ideological (Competitive Jungle orientation) predictors were examined. The model reveals theoretically consistent directional patterns. Trust in technology, trust in government, and ideological orientation show positive effects, whereas e-government use exhibits minimal explanatory power. The findings indicate that artifact-level trust constitutes a distinct dimension of e-inclusion, extending digital e-government research by integrating socio-psychological predictors among seniors.

Paper Number

1477

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Aug 15th, 12:00 AM

Trust in E-Documents among Digitally Active Seniors: An Exploratory Study

Public administration, when offering services, increasingly relies on electronic documents, or e-documents. Yet older adults may face e-inclusion barriers not only due to access limitations but mostly due to insufficient trust in digital artifacts. This exploratory study investigates predictors of trust in e-documents among digitally active seniors in Poland who have largely overcome first-level digital divides. Survey data from 153 seniors attending the University of the Third Age were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Behavioral (e-government use), technological (trust in technology), institutional (trust in government), and ideological (Competitive Jungle orientation) predictors were examined. The model reveals theoretically consistent directional patterns. Trust in technology, trust in government, and ideological orientation show positive effects, whereas e-government use exhibits minimal explanatory power. The findings indicate that artifact-level trust constitutes a distinct dimension of e-inclusion, extending digital e-government research by integrating socio-psychological predictors among seniors.