A key component of social work ethics is social justice and equitable access to resources. Increasingly, this includes access to technology. This study addresses issues related to the ‘digital divide’ by testing a peer tutor model (Technology and Aging Project, TAP2) to teach adults aged 60 and older how to use information and communication technologies (ICTs) such as email, the internet, online chat rooms and discussion groups, internet-based support groups, and voice technology and webcams. Participants from the control group of a previous programme, TAP1 (N=19) participated in a six-month computer training programme. Six participants who had successfully completed the TAP1 training were selected to be peer tutors. Data were collected from tutors and learners at baseline, three months, six months and nine months (three months after the end of training). The current study reports on learner outcomes only. Measures include computer, social support, and mental health-related outcomes. Learners reported a significant and consistent increase over time in their confidence completing certain computer-related tasks and their overall use of ICTs. Mental health and social support outcomes did not change. Overall, the peer tutor model appeared to be at least as effective as the previous staff-directed model.

Several studies have documented the health-related benefits of older adults' use of computer technology, but before they can be realised, older individuals must be positively inclined and confident in their ability to engage in computer-based environments. To facilitate the assessment of computer technology attitudes, one aim of the longitudinal study reported in this article was to test and refine a new 22-item measure of computer technology attitudes designed specifically for older adults, as none such were available. Another aim was to replicate, on a much larger scale, the successful findings of a preliminary study that tested a computer technology training programme for older adults. Ninety-six older men and women, mainly from non-European-American backgrounds, were randomly assigned to the waitlist/control or the experimental group. The same six-week, one-on-one training was administered to the control subjects at the completion of their post-test. The revised (17-item) version of the Older Adults' Computer Technology Attitudes Scale (OACTAS) showed strong reliability: the results of a factor analysis were robust, and two analyses of covariance demonstrated that the training programme induced significant changes in attitudes and self-efficacy. Such results encourage the recruitment of older persons into training programmes aimed at increasing computer technology attitudes and self-efficacy.