Predictors of Older Adults' Technology Use and Its Relationship to Depressive Symptoms and Well-being
Open accessAbstract
OBJECTIVE: To extend the empirical evidence regarding the predictors of older adults' use of information and communications technology (ICT) and to further examine its relationship to depressive symptoms and well-being. METHOD: This cross-sectional study utilized a sample of community-dwelling older adults from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (N = 6,443). Structural equation modeling was used to estimate the effects of predictor variables on ICT use and the effects of use on depressive symptoms and well-being. Tests of moderation by demographic characteristics and level of ICT use were also performed. RESULTS: Socioeconomic status (SES), age, and cognitive function accounted for approximately 60% of the variance in ICT use. SES was a stronger predictor for Blacks/African Americans, whereas cognitive function was a stronger predictor for Whites. ICT use was unrelated to depressive symptoms or well-being. However, it acted as a moderator, such that limitations in activities of daily living (ADLs) was a stronger predictor of depressive symptoms for high ICT users, whereas ill-health was a stronger predictor for non/limited users. DISCUSSION: Findings do not support the claim that ICT use directly enhances mental health or well-being among older adults although it may protect against depressive symptoms for individuals coping with health conditions other than ADL impairments.
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Racial minority older adults have historically had lower rates of using the Internet due to barriers of cost and access, despite their interest in using the Internet.
“Racial minority older adults have historically had lower rates of using the Internet due to barriers of cost and access, despite their interest in using the Internet [28, 30].”
From "It's Kind of Like Code-Switching": Black Older Adults' Experiences with a Voice Assistant for Health Information Seeking (2022) · cites this paper as [30]
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- Authors
- Elliot, A. J., Mooney, C. J., Douthit, K. Z., & Lynch, M. F.
- Affiliations
- University of Rochester (US)
- Venue
- The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2013-12-04
- Volume
- 69
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 667-677
- ISSN
- 1079-5014 (ISSN-L)
- 1758-5368
- PMC
- PMC4158393
- OpenAlex
- W2118470409
- Cited by
- 191
- References
- 11
- Citations by year
- 2026: 10 · 2025: 29 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 33 · 2021: 20 · 2020: 20 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 10 · 2015: 11 · 2014: 1
- FWCI
- 19.99
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- The Journals of Gerontology Series B (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- HighWire Press Open Archive (submittedVersion)
- UR Research (University of Rochester) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute on Aging (U01AG032947)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Demography › Technology Use by Older Adults
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Aging, Health, and Disability
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology › Aging and Gerontology Research
- Keywords
- older adults, ICT use, depressive symptoms, well-being, socioeconomic status, cognitive function, activities of daily living, racial differences, health problems, mental health
- MeSH terms
- Activities of Daily Living, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Aging, Black or African American, Clinical Trials as Topic, Cross-Sectional Studies, Depression, Female, Forecasting, Health Status, Humans, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Social Welfare, United States, Internet, Black People, Text Messaging
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