In an age where search engines can even offer life advice, where should the wisdom of the elderly go? We will look at how to bridge the generation gap and use the wisdom of the elderly in modern society.
There is an African proverb that says, “When an old man dies, a library burns down. This proverb means that an old man is like a library, a repository of wisdom, because he has accumulated a wealth of experience and life lessons over a long lifetime. In the past, elders played an important role in passing on the wisdom of life accumulated over a long period of time to future generations, and in giving advice and counsel to others. Elders were respected by their children, grandchildren, and other people around them. This cultural value has been passed down from generation to generation, and the elderly have been positioned at the center of the family and community as a milestone that passes on wisdom and provides direction in life.
Today, however, the elderly are not as socially recognized as they once were. When I was in high school, I volunteered at a nursing home near my home. I participated in a project to write autobiographies for the elderly and had the opportunity to share stories about their lives. Many people said that they were isolated from their families, left alone in their homes without anyone to talk to, and ended up in nursing homes. This experience made them realize that the elderly are no longer considered important members of society. These problems are not only about personal isolation, but also about structural changes in society as a whole.
By 2025, the proportion of South Korea’s elderly population aged 65 and over will be 20.6%, and it is increasing every year. In addition, the fact that South Korea has the highest suicide rate among OECD member countries is a clear example of the seriousness of the problem of the marginalization of the elderly. These statistics are not just numbers; they clearly show that the elderly are being marginalized by society. What is the origin of this phenomenon? What has caused the elderly to lose their place and social status?
These changes are closely related to the rapid development of digital technology, as well as social and economic factors such as the development of nuclear families and urbanization. In particular, the advent of search engines has been an important factor in fundamentally breaking and accelerating the communication gap between the elderly and young and middle-aged people.
Search engines first became part of our daily lives in the 1990s. In 1993, the World Wide Web, known for its addresses beginning with www, was introduced, making it possible to collect and search documents online. After that, large portal sites such as Google and Yandex were opened, and Internet users began to flock to these sites. In particular, services such as Quora and Reddit are designed to allow Internet users to post questions publicly and for other users to provide answers. Sites like wikiHow have become places where people can offer advice on a variety of topics, including writing, overcoming Internet addiction, and raising pets, in multiple languages around the world, including Spanish, English, and Korean.
Thus, the range of topics covered in the online world is expanding, and people can now find answers to all their concerns and questions online, from interpersonal relationships to career issues. Now, people are not only looking for information, but also for answers to their innermost questions, including life advice, counseling, and emotional empathy. As a result, search engines have replaced the role of advisor that older people used to play.
Why have modern people turned to search engines? This is due to the circumstances and lifestyles of modern people. First, modern people do not have the time to talk to people in person for advice or guidance. Therefore, they want immediate answers to their questions and want to get answers in the shortest possible time. In addition, modern people want to minimize their consumption and feel financially burdened by having to spend money on food and transportation to meet in person.
Online search engines meet these needs of modern people. One of the advantages of online search engines is that you can get a variety of answers and advice from an unlimited number of people. This allows you to look at the problem from a broader perspective than if you were to get advice from a single older person. It is also important that new advice and answers can be obtained at any time. With the universalization of the Internet, the answers you want can be obtained in a short period of time, and there is almost no time or financial cost other than the electrical energy required to use the Internet.
So, in a situation where search engines are replacing the role of the elderly, how can the connection between the elderly and society be restored? First, there is a way to promote communication through direct contact between the elderly and the rest of society. This can be done through volunteer work, which not only provides a physical encounter, but also gives the elderly an opportunity to pass on their experience and wisdom to future generations. For example, mentoring programs between the elderly and young people can be implemented, or activities such as autobiography writing can be organized so that the elderly can record and share their lives. In this way, the elderly can feel that they are still needed by society and can pass on their values to future generations.
There is also a way to promote communication with the elderly by using the online environment familiar to modern people. A system is being developed in which an elderly answer assistant responds to questions or concerns posted by someone on an online site. Of course, this requires training in the use of smartphones and computers for the elderly. It is important to provide educational opportunities for the elderly who are digitally illiterate to access the digital world. The elderly response assistant system thus established will be able to promote communication between the young and the old while taking advantage of the speed and convenience of the online world.
Such a system does not only serve to facilitate communication. Through online response assistant activities, the elderly can continue to use language, strengthen their cognitive abilities, and help prevent dementia. Most importantly, they can share valuable life wisdom and lessons, and overcome loneliness caused by a lack of communication. This will also be an opportunity for the young and middle-aged to respect the elderly and rethink their lives. A change in the perception of the elderly can bring about major changes in society as a whole.
Of course, some people may argue that it is difficult to give advice that is appropriate for each other because the times experienced by the elderly and the present times experienced by young adults are different. However, human life has its own meaning and value regardless of time. Jack Ma, the founder of Alibaba, said, “Listening to someone’s life story is like reading a book. Since our lives are finite and the number of experiences we can have is limited, it is very valuable to indirectly experience the lives of the elderly and learn from their lessons. It is like borrowing a book from the library of the elderly and reading it.
As many libraries have been neglected due to the phenomenon of the marginalization of the elderly, the online elderly response assistant system can be the first step in efforts to save the burning library. This is not only about restoring the social role of the elderly, but also about laying the foundation for all generations to communicate, learn, and grow together. If society as a whole embraces this change and strives to promote communication and understanding between generations, we will be able to fully utilize the wisdom of the elderly.
