Digital technology use and depressive symptoms among older adults in Korea: beneficial for those who have fewer social interactions?

Lee, Min-Ah; Ferraro, Kenneth F.; Kim, Giyeon

doi:10.1080/13607863.2020.1839863

Cited by 44 publications

(52 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…This result is in line with other findings suggesting that in-person communication is crucial for mental health in older adults, particularly for those who live alone (Fingerman et al, 2021). A related study showed that the use of digital communication was more beneficial for the mental health of older adults who used it infrequently than for those who used it frequently (Lee et al, 2020). Furthermore, another study found that the probability of having depressive symptoms steadily increased with age in older adults as the frequency of in-person, but not phone, written or e-mail contact, decreased (Teo et al, 2015).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Digital or In-Person: The Relationship Between Mode of Interpersonal Communication During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Mental Health in Older Adults From 27 Countries

Skałacka

Pajestka

2021

J Fam Nurs

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Social distancing has limited the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19), but also changed communication patterns. However, studies of how mental health in older adults relates to the usage of different modes of interpersonal communication are sparse. The aim of this study was to analyze how COVID-19-related changes in the frequencies of using different modes of communication (digital or in-person) have influenced mental health in older adults from 27 countries. Our study was based on part of Wave 8 of the SHARE data set, which focused on the living situation of older adults during the pandemic. Findings suggest that in-person communication benefited mental health in people aged ≥60 years more than digital communication. The older the person, the less beneficial digital communication was for their mental health, especially during interactions with their children. Our findings are useful for researchers and practitioners interested in technologically meditated interventions.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Digital or In-Person: The Relationship Between Mode of Interpersonal Communication During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Mental Health in Older Adults From 27 Countries

Skałacka

Pajestka

2021

J Fam Nurs

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“…This may be a means by which participants who engaged in such activity were able to prevent even higher levels of loneliness during social distancing, and in some cases were able to experience lower levels of loneliness. Thus, educating older adults to increase their digital literacy level and use of remote social interactions could be a really important tool for addressing issues such as loneliness [ 66 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Loneliness, Wellbeing, and Social Activity in Scottish Older Adults Resulting from Social Distancing during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Tomaz

Coffee

Ryde

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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This study examined the impact of social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic on loneliness, wellbeing, and social activity, including social support, in Scottish older adults. A mixed methods online survey was used to examine these factors during social distancing mid-lockdown, July 2020. Participants were asked to state whether loneliness, wellbeing, social activity, and social support had changed since pre-social distancing, and to provide details of strategies used to keep socially active. A total of 1429 adults (84% aged 60+ years) living in Scotland took part. The majority reported that social distancing regulations made them experience more loneliness and less social contact and support. Loneliness during lockdown was higher than reported norms for this age group before the pandemic. A larger social network, more social contact, and better perceived social support seemed to be protective against loneliness and poor wellbeing. Positive coping strategies reported included increasing online social contact with both existing social networks and reconnecting with previous networks, as well as increasing contact with neighbours and people in the community. This underlines the importance of addressing loneliness and social support in older adults but particularly during situations where risk of isolation is high.

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“…Although the event-contingent design has several advantages for our study, it is also prone to different kind of biases (e.g., related to memory, self-awareness, or self-presentational concerns). Previous research has shown that digital technology use is more beneficial for older adults with infrequent contact with friends or neighbors than for those with frequent contact (Lee et al, 2020). Our study is based on a volunteer sample recruited from advertisements and participant database at the university.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In cross-sectional data from a nationally representative sample of Korean older adults, higher numbers of digital activities were associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms. In addition, the association between digital technology use and depressive symptoms was stronger in older adults who reported less frequent remote contact with their social circle, suggesting that those more at risk of social isolation might benefit more from using digital technology (Lee et al, 2020). In sum, these findings suggest that the use of digital communication technologies may increase social connectedness and well-being in older adults, especially in those who may lack social interaction otherwise.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Daily social interactions and well-being in older adults: The role of interaction modality

Macdonald

Luo

Hülür

2021

Journal of Social and Personal Relationships

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Associations between social relationships and well-being are widely documented across the lifespan, including in older age. Older adults increasingly use digital communication technologies. In the present study, we examine the role of social interactions for older adults’ daily well-being with a focus on three interaction modalities (face-to-face, telephone, and digital). Specifically, we examine (a) whether people who are more socially active than others report higher levels of well-being and (b) how day-to-day fluctuations in the number of social interactions are associated with day-to-day fluctuations of well-being, separately by interaction modality. We use data from 115 participants (age: M = 72 years, SD = 5, range = 65–94; 40% women), who documented their social interactions over 21 days and reported their well-being each evening (including positive affect, negative affect, and loneliness). Taken together, our findings show that frequency of face-to-face interactions is more consistently related to well-being than telephone or digital interactions. At the between-person level, those who report more face-to-face social interactions than others across 21 days report higher levels of positive affect than others. At the within-person level, on days where participants report more face-to-face social interactions than their own average, they report higher positive affect, lower negative affect, and lower loneliness than usual. In addition, a higher number of digital interactions is associated with lower negative affect at the between-person level. In summary, our findings suggest that face-to-face social interactions are uniquely relevant to older adults’ daily well-being. We discuss implications of these findings for future research.

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Digital technology use and depressive symptoms among older adults in Korea: beneficial for those who have fewer social interactions?

Cited by 44 publications

References 28 publications

Digital or In-Person: The Relationship Between Mode of Interpersonal Communication During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Mental Health in Older Adults From 27 Countries

Digital or In-Person: The Relationship Between Mode of Interpersonal Communication During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Mental Health in Older Adults From 27 Countries

Loneliness, Wellbeing, and Social Activity in Scottish Older Adults Resulting from Social Distancing during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Daily social interactions and well-being in older adults: The role of interaction modality

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