School of Management, Xi'an Polytechnic University, Xi'an 710048, China.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Aug 4;19(15):9576. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19159576.
Under the overlapping interaction of digitization and aging, the number of elderly Internet users has increased yearly. However, the impact of Internet use on the social networks of the elderly is still unclear.
In this study, we utilize the methods of ordinary least square regression (OLS), propensity score matching (PSM), instrumental variable (IV), and Bootstrap-mediated effect analysis methods using data from the Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS) to analyze the impact of Internet use on the social networks of the elderly and examine the mediating effect of social participation.
A total of 1363 validated respondents aged 60 or above were included to explore the relationship between Internet use, social networks, and social participation among the elderly in China.
The results show that Internet use positively and significantly impacts the social networks of the elderly. Compared to the elderly who do not use the Internet, the elderly who use the Internet have a larger social network size, more significant social network heterogeneity, and higher social network upper reachability. The mediated analysis shows that social participation plays a positive mediating role in the influence of Internet use on the social networks of the elderly. That is, Internet use will benefit the social network of the elderly by improving the level of their social participation. Besides, there also exists heterogeneity in the effect of Internet use on social networks among the elderly with different genders, ages, and places of residence.
Internet use benefits the social network of the elderly, and social participation partially mediates the relationship between Internet use and the social network of the elderly. These findings have implications for formulating public policies aimed at active aging; it is necessary to bridge the "digital divide" and promote the digital integration of the elderly. Let more older adults benefit from Internet use, thus improving the social network and quality of life of the elderly.
在数字化和老龄化的相互交织影响下，老年网民数量逐年增加。然而，互联网使用对老年人社会网络的影响仍不清楚。
本研究利用普通最小二乘法回归（OLS）、倾向得分匹配（PSM）、工具变量（IV）以及使用中国综合社会调查（CGSS）数据的 Bootstrap 中介效应分析方法，分析了互联网使用对老年人社会网络的影响，并检验了社会参与的中介效应。
共有 1363 名年龄在 60 岁及以上的有效受访者被纳入研究，以探讨中国老年人互联网使用、社会网络和社会参与之间的关系。
研究结果表明，互联网使用对老年人的社会网络具有积极且显著的影响。与不使用互联网的老年人相比，使用互联网的老年人的社会网络规模更大，社会网络异质性更显著，社会网络可达性更高。中介分析表明，社会参与在互联网使用对老年人社会网络的影响中发挥了积极的中介作用。也就是说，互联网使用通过提高老年人的社会参与水平，有利于其社会网络的发展。此外，互联网使用对不同性别、年龄和居住地点的老年人的社会网络的影响存在异质性。
互联网使用有利于老年人的社会网络，社会参与在一定程度上中介了互联网使用与老年人社会网络之间的关系。这些发现对制定旨在积极老龄化的公共政策具有启示意义；有必要弥合“数字鸿沟”，促进老年人的数字融合。让更多的老年人受益于互联网使用，从而改善老年人的社会网络和生活质量。
