Optimising Adult Digital Learning Strategies in an Intensively Digitalising Society

Abstract

The article addresses the effective digital learning problem for adults under radical uncertainty conditions, accelerated digitalisation, and increasing demands for individual adaptation in the digital society. The study relevance  is grounded in the fact that for the so-called "digital immigrants" generation, engaging with new digital environments is frequently accompanied by technostress, cognitive overload, and a subjective control diminished sense. The aim of the article is to provide a theoretical foundation and empirical validation of effective digital learning strategies for adults, taking into account psychophysiological responses to digital novelty. The research methods included literature and psychophysiological experiment theoretical analysis using EEG monitoring, as well as latent profile, variance, regression, and mediation analyses. The study identified contemporary approaches to adult digital learning, namely andragogy, self-directed learning, microlearning, technology tutoring, and digital competence development. The significance of digital as the successful adaptation primary predictor of successful adaptation to new digital environments was empirically demonstrated. In accordance with four types of psychophysiological adaptation in adults and the stress-inducing factors associated with digital environments, the appropriateness of differentiated learning strategies was substantiated. A categorical approach to digital learning is proposed, understood as a shift from mastering individual applications to acquiring the functional digital environments groups logic; this approach contributes to reducing digital anxiety, enhancing digital subjectivity, and fostering the autonomy of the adult user. Strategic recommendations for effective digital learning among adults are provided.