Abstract
The purpose of present study was to conduct an in-depth analysis of older adults usage of and attitudes toward product manuals. The goals were to better understand perspectives that may be generalized across different contexts, and diverse populations of older adults. Seventy older adults (N = 70) in Taiwan were interviewed to discuss their use of and attitudes about product manuals. The structure interviewed data provide a more in-depth view of the concerns of older adults, and personal strategies information about product manual usage. The results indicated that older adults read all or portion of the manual when the products are new to them. Older adults have certain needs on the product manual and present different attitudes from the manual usage experience. Negative attitudes (i.e., dislikes) outnumbered positive attitudes (i.e., likes) among a three product manual inventory. Our research elucidates the reasons behind older adults attitudes, and provides insight into older adults preference within product manuals. The design guidance and implication of the results are discussed.
