The older population is on the threshold of a boom. According to U.S. Census Bureau projections, a substantial increase in the number of older people will occur during the 2010 to 2030 period, after the first Baby Boomers turn 65 in 2011. The older population in 2030 is projected to be twice as large as in 2000, growing from 35 million to 72 million and representing
nearly 20 percent of the total U.S. population at the latter date. – “65+ in the United States: 2005″ by the United States Census Bureau

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In his 2002 article Jakob Nielsen’s Usability for Seniors said that seniors were the fastest growing segment of users of web users. As the above quote illustrates seniors are the fastest growing segment of the population. Even though the study by Nielsen was conducted in 2002 many of the same usability issues are common on sites.

I don’t think the issue of designing for an older generations is addressed enough. We are all going to age eventually. We will need reading glasses. We will lose our hearing. And to top it all off we might have cognitive issues as well. Maybe that’s why…people don’t want to think about it…sounds kind of depressing but only depending on how you frame it!

One point that I find interesting in Nielsen’s article is when he states that

Websites tend to be produced by young designers, who often assume that all users have perfect vision and motor control, and know everything about the Web. These assumptions rarely hold, even when the users are not seniors.

Young designers aren’t the only ones that make assumptions though but having taught younger designers I know how true his statement can be. I also have found that a lot of assumptions are made about what seniors are interested in doing with technology. The new population of seniors grew up with all the new gadgets and some aren’t afraid of technology. I don’t think all the rules that apply to how we develop strategy for the new crop of seniors…hmm..I don’t even like using that word. I just realized my dad is already considered a senior citizen!

A few issues that should be addressed when designing for seniors are

• Reduced visibility – therefore they need to be able to adjust the font size
• Hearing loss – if your site relies on sound or video make sure it can be close captioned
• Loss of fine motor skills
• Memory and learning impairment