Understanding differentiated internet use in older adults: A study of informational, social, and instrumental online activities

Abstract

Internet use is becoming increasingly important for the daily lives of older adults. Simultaneously, the range of online activities is also broadening. However, previous research in technology adoption mainly focuses on Internet use in general, and only few studies pay attention to various online activities that older adults engage in. Exploration of factors explaining specific online activities is still limited. To bridge this gap, we examined the role of socio-demographic characteristics and perceived behavioral control (PBC) in predicting informational, social, and instrumental online activities in a sample of 1222 participants (age 65+). Our results show that those who were younger, with higher education, and with higher PBC were more likely to perform all online activities, while men had higher odds than women of performing informational and instrumental but not social online activities. Cultural participation was a positive predictor for all online activities except online banking. For informational online activities, the effect of PBC was moderated such that it was weaker for those with higher education. Based on our empirical results, we contribute to the literature a nuanced understanding of older adults’ Internet use.