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The increasing size of the elderly population has been described as a major challenge for Western eldercare. In light of such demographic changes, welfare technology has been presented as a solution. It has been claimed, in both international and Swedish government policy, that digital technologies can improve how care is given and received. However, there is limited knowledge about what happens to articulations of care when national goals filter down to municipal local level where the actual care is practised. The aim of this article is to analyse how care and welfare technology are described in municipal strategy documents, and to discuss potential consequences of such articulations for everyday eldercare. A critical policy analysis, building on theories about articulation, was conducted on a selection of 19 policy documents (N = 19) from 18 municipalities. The key analytical results show that care tends to be articulated as an organizational matter and that care is transferred into the future of older people’s lives, through self-care and prevention. Interdependence, frailty and alternatives when welfare technology fails to create independence, are not brought up in the documents. Overall, such rearticulations of care indicate a more disembodied eldercare in the future.

Hur beskriver kommunerna omsorg i sina styrdokument när de implementerar välfärdsteknik i äldreomsorgsverksamheter? Svaret är att de tycks prioritera verksamhetens behov före omsorgstagarens.

Welfare technology (WT) has been identified as a potential solution for challenges within eldercare, with policymakers emphasising its capacity to reduce reliance on care staff. Policy discussions surrounding WT also highlight other anticipated benefits, such as mitigating loneliness, facilitating increased social interaction between caregivers and care recipients, and promoting greater independence for the latter. These expectations are permeated by a techno-optimism. Needing care means being vulnerable, and care builds on relationship and interdependence. How older adults think about WT and its consequences for social aspects of care is important for a successful implementation. The individual perspective is relatively unknown. This study aims to investigate how potential users perceive WT and its consequences for feelings of loneliness, opportunities for social interaction in care settings, and levels of independence. To accomplish this, a questionnaire was administered to approximately 5000 individuals between the ages of 65 and 90 residing in Västerbotten. The findings suggest that the techno-optimism visible at the national level is not widely shared by older adults. A majority expressed skepticism regarding the potential of WT to positively influence social aspects of care, and most of the respondents believe that WT will contribute to increased feelings of loneliness. Furthermore, a majority did not perceive a need for various technologies in eldercare and expressed a preference for care provided by human caregivers rather than technology-based alternatives. These attitudes where not effected by age. The group of 65-year-olds that have grown up with technology and are more digital were as skeptical towards WT as the older age groups. We interpret these results to indicate that the inherent relational nature of care can make it unsuitable for direct replacement with technology. An increased expected frailty and vulnerability that follows from needing to receive care may mean that technology is an inappropriate solution.