Older Adults' Internet Use and Depressive Symptoms By Gender: Findings from 2015 National Health and Aging Trends Study

Introduction. A recent report by the Pew Research Center has shown that 67% of adults aged 65 and older use the Internet, compared to 90% of all adults. Despite this gap, digital technology use among older adults is steadily increasing, with internet usage rates among more affluent and educated seniors equaling those of the general population. In general, older men use the internet at higher rates than older women, but older women are more likely to use social networking sites (SNS). Many psychosocial benefits of internet-based activities like email or SNS use have been reported for older adults, including reduced levels of depression, reduced loneliness, and increased social engagement, social support, and life satisfaction. While older adults are more likely than ever to use the Internet in their daily lives, little is known about how Internet access and use for different purposes is associated with depressive symptoms among older men and women.

Data and Methods. Using data from the 2015 National Health and Aging Trends Study (N=6,380), the current study examined how Internet access and use for different purposes are associated with depressive symptoms by gender. Weighted multinomial logistic regression analysis was performed. The main independent variables included Internet access and use for different purposes (i.e., SNS, email/texting, instrumental purposes, health matters). Using the Patient Health Questionnaire 2, depressive symptoms were categorized into three groups: severe, mild, and none.

Results. Men were more likely to access the Internet (p < .01) and use it for instrumental purposes and health matters than women (both at p < .001). Women were more likely than men to use SNS (p< .001). No gender difference was identified for emailing or texting. SNS use was positively associated with being screened for mild and severe depression, whereas emailing or texting was negatively associated with severe depression only for men. Internet use for health matters was negatively associated with being screened for severe depression only for women.

Discussion. As older adults become more technologically proficient, digital technology use could influence mental health in both positive and negative ways by transforming lifestyles. Since Internet use differs across genders in both rate and type of service used, the potential mental health benefits of Internet use may not be equally distributed across gender lines.  Intervention strategies to benefit older men’s and women’s mental health using digital technology will be discussed.