Participatory approaches with older adults in technology and innovation research: a scoping review of reviews

Compared to other age groups, older adults are often marginalized in the design processes of digital technologies leading to digital and social exclusion. While these aspects have been discussed in several reviews, an overarching perspective on how older adults are involved in participatory approaches (PA) in technology and innovation development is currently missing. This scoping review of reviews provides an overarching view on the narratives, trends, and gaps in PA in different fields of innovation and proposes future research and practice directions.

The study followed the Arksey and O'Malley's protocol for scoping reviews and the PRISMA-ScR checklist as the reporting guideline. Seven databases were screened for studies with a thematic focus on older adults, applying PA in technology and technology-related innovation, and published between 2014 and 2024. Twenty-two reviews were included.

PA with older adults have seemingly evolved over the years with an increased focus on values, equity, empowerment, power-sharing, and mutual learning. Nevertheless, deficit narratives on aging and ageism still constrain meaningful participation. A "participation gap" persists in which: terminology remains inconsistent; older adults are predominantly assigned roles of informants or testers rather than co-designers or equal partners; methods are mainly data-extractive; marginalized subgroups remain systematically underrepresented; and the technology scope remains predominantly care-centric.

Identified gaps highlight the need for standardizing meaningful participation by creating a seal of quality for participatory approaches, improved reporting, and stronger inclusion of underrepresented populations and life domains of older persons.