FD Column by Laura van Geest: 'Make People More Resilient, Start in the Digital World'

Article

05/06/26

Dutch people overestimate their digital skills and, under stressful circumstances, actually require extra support. Therefore, governments and companies must make digital systems more accessible and incorporate more human contact, writes Laura van Geest in her column in the Financieele Dagblad. The column appears online on Friday (behind login) and in the physical newspaper on Saturday.

Dutch people like to pat themselves on the back. At least, that's what we think. We have a highly educated workforce, are digitally literate, and are quite independent-minded. The advertising jingle ‘15 million people’ (followed by ‘on that very small piece of earth, you don't write the laws for it, you leave them to their own devices’) didn't become a number one hit for nothing.

Reality is, as is often the case, more nuanced. The current population of over 18 million people in the Netherlands dislikes being patronized, but they do expect help in times of need. And that need can arise quite quickly.

Overestimation

We are quite good at overestimating ourselves. One in five people who claim to possess the necessary digital skills simultaneously turns out to be unable to independently perform simple, common tasks such as filing an online complaint. And one in five digitally skilled Dutch people still does not act in a secure manner . Quite a point of attention, given the massive increase in cybercrime.

Additionally, the capacity to take action – the so-called 'doing capacity' – drops significantly during times of stress. Such as during a divorce or the death of a loved one. And note: contrary to what you might expect, 24% of theoretically educated people score low on doing capacity, compared to only 16% of practically educated people. Furthermore, other activities are so rare that you hardly gain any routine: you retire only once, and you buy a house only a few times in your life.

Of course, there are also people who are not entirely up to the increasingly complex society. For one in six Dutch people basic security is not a given . And this concerns not only money, but also physical and mental health, networks, and skills to participate in modern society.

Stricter Regulation

How can we counter this? A digital society does not become simpler on its own. Financial education makes people smarter in their thinking, but not in their actions. AI tools can solve problems, but also certainly exacerbate them. All those finfluencers on social media exist thanks to our human weaknesses. They are masters of temptation. The European Commission's proposals for stricter and clearer rules to supplement and replace the current fragmented regulations – such as the future Digital Fairness Act (DFA) – may offer some relief here.

High tech, high touch – technological progress and human contact – is the ambition, but reality too often feels like low tech, no touch. We have all certainly had the 'pleasure' of being 'helped' by a chatbot when contacting a company's customer service. Fine for simple standard questions, but a frustrating matter for everything else. Fortunately, there are also good examples, such as when a loved one passes away. From the Social Insurance Bank (SVB) to pension funds, from banks to insurers, the information obtained is relatively manageable and, alongside digital interaction, human interaction is also possible. Exactly what you hope for during life events .

Blind Spot

Examples from practice show what people can handle and where the system can offer protection. Policymakers certainly do not have bad intentions, but a blind spot is quickly born within one's own bubble. By only looking at simple statistics and the common denominator, you miss the problems under the radar or on the fringes.

People in execution often have a better view of what works, but are overshadowed in planning by theoretically oriented policymakers at headquarters. Centering execution agencies in the nationwide 'Capable Government' project, aimed at a more efficient, effective, and compact government, could be a step forward, for example. The Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) also wants to make progress in this area. Think of qualitative research (via focus groups) to get a better picture of the human behind the statistics.

Better Foundation

For people in a vulnerable position, raising the basic level is an option. A decent and predictable income, so that a complex safety net of allowances and benefits is no longer needed for a minimum standard of living. In short, we think we can handle ourselves, but in practice, we all find ourselves in a vulnerable position at some point. Digital solutions can help, especially with the individualistic Dutch person. But then they must be designed intelligently and while maintaining human contact. Otherwise, we will go from the frying pan into the fire.

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