Minagawa Yuka, Saito Yasuhiko
Waseda Institute for Advanced Study, Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan.
Gerontology. 2014;60(6):539-47. doi: 10.1159/000363059. Epub 2014 Jun 19.
There has been increasing interest in the impact of information and communication technologies, such as the computer and Internet, on physical and mental health status, but relatively little is known about the health effects of using cell phones.
This study investigates how cell phone usage is associated with levels of depressive symptoms among Japanese men and women aged 65 years and older. We focus on social relationships, particularly intergenerational relationships between older parents and adult children, as a possible mediator in the association of cell phone use with late-life depressive symptoms. We therefore hypothesize that using cell phones contributes to the psychological well-being of older adults primarily through encouraging social relationships.
We used 4 waves of data from the Nihon University Japanese Longitudinal Study of Aging (2001-2009) to analyze the impact of cell phone use on depressive symptoms. RESULTS are based on ordinary least squares regression analyses.
Although the use of cell phones was related to lower levels of depressive symptoms among elderly Japanese people, controlling for sociodemographic characteristics and physical health conditions wiped out the effects for men. In contrast, the protective effects of using cell phones persisted among women, even net of all controls. Moreover, the impact of using cell phones was not explained by filial relationship measures, suggesting that cell phone use influences the mental health of older women independently of social engagement.
Among the many advantages brought about by recent technological developments, cell phones appear to be an important contributor to the psychological well-being of Japanese elders. Researchers and policy makers should prioritize access to new technologies for older adults.
计算机和互联网等信息通信技术对身心健康状况的影响已引发越来越多的关注，但关于使用手机对健康的影响却知之甚少。
本研究调查了65岁及以上日本男性和女性使用手机与抑郁症状水平之间的关联。我们将社会关系，特别是老年父母与成年子女之间的代际关系，视为手机使用与晚年抑郁症状关联中的一个可能中介因素。因此，我们假设使用手机主要通过促进社会关系来提升老年人的心理健康。
我们使用了日本大学日本老年纵向研究（2001 - 2009年）的4轮数据来分析手机使用对抑郁症状的影响。结果基于普通最小二乘法回归分析。
尽管使用手机与日本老年人较低水平的抑郁症状相关，但在控制了社会人口学特征和身体健康状况后，男性的这种影响消失了。相比之下，即使在所有控制因素之后，使用手机对女性的保护作用仍然存在。此外，孝顺关系指标并不能解释使用手机的影响，这表明使用手机对老年女性心理健康的影响独立于社会参与。
在近期技术发展带来的诸多优势中，手机似乎是日本老年人心理健康的一个重要贡献因素。研究人员和政策制定者应优先考虑让老年人获取新技术。
