Avoidance, Procrastination and Breach of Trust in Digital Banking - Problems, Evidences, and Reasons for Certain Elderly User Groups

This study sheds light on how trust and user experience influence the acceptance of digital banking services among older customers. While self-service solutions and online banking are increasingly replacing traditional branch contact, older users often feel disadvantaged by uncertainties and a lack of personal support. A six-year ethnographic study in Austrian bank branches, taking into account the dimensions of ability, benevolence and integrity, found that, in addition to functional aspects, subjective factors such as a sense of security, clear communication and personal support are crucial to reducing access barriers. The aim of the research is to identify which factors need to be considered in order to design digital services that emotionally and technically empower older customers, thus avoiding digital exclusion, increasing the acceptance of modern banking technologies and building up trust in modern banking technologies.