Aging, Micro-entrepreneurship, and Digital Technology: Unraveling Barriers and Opportunities within the Informal Micro-enterprise Sectors from Thailand

Abstract

Although existing literature emphasizes digital technology adoption in later life for healthy aging and social well-being, it often overlooks the context of the swift demographic transition towards an aging workforce, which includes a substantial proportion of older adults actively engaged in informal micro-entrepreneurial activities. The extent to which aging intervenes in decision-making regarding the adoption or non-adoption of digital technologies in the informal micro-entrepreneurship context remains unclear, as do the distinctive barriers, particularly those triggered by aging, alongside opportunities that such adoption provides within this domain in minimizing aging-related limits. This qualitative study elucidates the aging-related determinants that influence older micro-entrepreneurs' adoption and non-adoption of digital technology within their entrepreneurial endeavors. Drawing upon semi-structured, in-depth interviews with older informal micro-entrepreneurs (aged 60-79) in Thailand, a data-intensive thematic analysis unveiled five major themes capturing participants’ barriers to adopting digital technology: ‘Refusal and resistance to change,’ ‘Low materialistic aspiration,’ ‘Digital preparedness disparity,’ ‘Digital multitasking-induced overstimulation,’ and ‘Digital paradoxical effects,’ and three major themes that captured dynamic emerging opportunities: ‘Optimizing spatial communication and stakeholder relationships,’ ‘Enhancing digital inclusion in entrepreneurial transactions,’ and ‘Fostering mobility in sourcing and customer growth.’ Each theme and associated sub-themes are discussed in turn, followed by an exploration of the study's implications for theory and practice.