The Relationship Between Real-life Social Support and Internet Addiction Among the Elderly in China

Overview

Journal Front Public Health

Specialty Public Health

Date 2022 Sep 12

PMID 36091503

Authors

Yu Jia

Tianyuan Liu

Yang Yang

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Internet addiction among the elderly is a novel issue in many countries. However, extant research about excessive use of the Internet is focusing on adolescents and younger adults. There are few studies to explore the topic of the elderly's Internet addiction. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between real-life social support and Internet addiction among older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. This article adopted a self-reported questionnaire internet links to collect data. A total of 303 valid samples about Internet addiction for the elderly were obtained in China. The results suggested that real-life social support is significantly and negatively related to Internet addiction among the aged. Moreover, the findings revealed that real-life social support could mitigate Internet addiction by increasing the levels of hopefulness and decreasing the feeling of loneliness. We expect that this study can enrich the understanding of the problematic Internet usage within older populations. Finally, the contributions, practical significance, and limitations of this study were discussed.

Citing Articles

Effects and Mechanisms of TikTok Use on Self-Rated Health of Older Adults in China During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Mediation Analysis.

Luo Y, Yu H, Kuang Y Healthcare (Basel). 2024; 12(22).

PMID: 39595411 PMC: 11593369. DOI: 10.3390/healthcare12222209.

Perceived Overload on Short Video Platforms and Its Influence on Mental Health Among the Elderly: A Moderated Mediation Model.

Wen X, Zhou Y, Li Y, Li X, Qu P Psychol Res Behav Manag. 2024; 17:2347-2362.

PMID: 38882234 PMC: 11179651. DOI: 10.2147/PRBM.S459426.

Risks and protection: a qualitative study on the factors for internet addiction among elderly residents in Southwest China communities.

Wang D, Liu X, Chen K, Gu C, Zhao H, Zhang Y BMC Public Health. 2024; 24(1):531.

PMID: 38378524 PMC: 10880227. DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-17980-6.

Conflict with children, psychological depression, and problematic internet use among Chinese older adults: The moderating effect of sociability and living situation.

Liu T, Jia Y, Yang Y, Chen Q Digit Health. 2023; 9:20552076231216417.

PMID: 38033520 PMC: 10687979. DOI: 10.1177/20552076231216417.

Understanding older adults' smartphone addiction in the digital age: empirical evidence from China.

Xu Y, Zeng K, Dong L, Zheng X, Si Y Front Public Health. 2023; 11:1136494.

PMID: 37483945 PMC: 10360404. DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1136494.

References

Zhang K, Kim K, Silverstein N, Song Q, Burr J . Social Media Communication and Loneliness Among Older Adults: The Mediating Roles of Social Support and Social Contact. Gerontologist. 2020; 61(6):888-896. DOI: 10.1093/geront/gnaa197. View

Yuan W, Jiang M, Gong S . How to Improve the Cognitive Health of Middle-Aged and Elderly People: Evidence From China Family Panel Studies. Front Public Health. 2022; 10:799255. PMC: 8855359. DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.799255. View

Victor C, Bowling A . A longitudinal analysis of loneliness among older people in Great Britain. J Psychol. 2012; 146(3):313-31. DOI: 10.1080/00223980.2011.609572. View

Kuss D, Griffiths M . Online social networking and addiction--a review of the psychological literature. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2011; 8(9):3528-52. PMC: 3194102. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph8093528. View

Pearlin L . The sociological study of stress. J Health Soc Behav. 1989; 30(3):241-56. View

Hajek A, Konig H . Social Isolation and Loneliness of Older Adults in Times of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Can Use of Online Social Media Sites and Video Chats Assist in Mitigating Social Isolation and Loneliness?. Gerontology. 2020; 67(1):121-124. PMC: 7801987. DOI: 10.1159/000512793. View

Baron R, Kenny D . The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. J Pers Soc Psychol. 1986; 51(6):1173-82. DOI: 10.1037//0022-3514.51.6.1173. View

Tiikkainen P, Heikkinen R . Associations between loneliness, depressive symptoms and perceived togetherness in older people. Aging Ment Health. 2005; 9(6):526-34. DOI: 10.1080/13607860500193138. View

Kothgassner O, Goreis A, Kafka J, Kaufmann M, Atteneder K, Beutl L . Virtual social support buffers stress response: An experimental comparison of real-life and virtual support prior to a social stressor. J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry. 2018; 63:57-65. DOI: 10.1016/j.jbtep.2018.11.003. View

10.

Xie L, Pinto J, Zhong B . Building community resilience on social media to help recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Comput Human Behav. 2022; 134:107294. PMC: 8994552. DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2022.107294. View

11.

Li G, Han C, Liu P . Does Internet Use Affect Medical Decisions among Older Adults in China? Evidence from CHARLS. Healthcare (Basel). 2022; 10(1). PMC: 8775657. DOI: 10.3390/healthcare10010060. View

12.

Karababa A . The Moderating Role of Hope in the Relationship Between Maladaptive Perfectionism and Anxiety Among Early Adolescents. J Genet Psychol. 2020; 181(2-3):159-170. DOI: 10.1080/00221325.2020.1745745. View

13.

Hays R, DiMatteo M . A short-form measure of loneliness. J Pers Assess. 1987; 51(1):69-81. DOI: 10.1207/s15327752jpa5101_6. View

14.

Mak K, Lai C, Ko C, Chou C, Kim D, Watanabe H . Psychometric properties of the Revised Chen Internet Addiction Scale (CIAS-R) in Chinese adolescents. J Abnorm Child Psychol. 2014; 42(7):1237-45. DOI: 10.1007/s10802-014-9851-3. View

15.

Saleh Manijeh H, Rostami M, Ahmadboukani S . Development of the Coronavirus Anxiety Model in the Elderly: Based on Hope and Health-Related Quality of Life With the Mediating Role of Perceived Social Support. Gerontol Geriatr Med. 2021; 7:23337214211048324. PMC: 8489747. DOI: 10.1177/23337214211048324. View

16.

Ozbek M, Karas H . Associations of depressive symptoms and perceived social support with addictive use of social media among elderly people in Turkey. Psychogeriatrics. 2021; 22(1):29-37. DOI: 10.1111/psyg.12770. View

17.

Doolittle B, Farrell M . The Association Between Spirituality and Depression in an Urban Clinic. Prim Care Companion J Clin Psychiatry. 2004; 6(3):114-118. PMC: 474734. DOI: 10.4088/pcc.v06n0302. View

18.

Ditzen B, Heinrichs M . Psychobiology of social support: the social dimension of stress buffering. Restor Neurol Neurosci. 2013; 32(1):149-62. DOI: 10.3233/RNN-139008. View

19.

Ong A, Uchino B, Wethington E . Loneliness and Health in Older Adults: A Mini-Review and Synthesis. Gerontology. 2015; 62(4):443-9. PMC: 6162046. DOI: 10.1159/000441651. View

20.

Bolger N, Zuckerman A, Kessler R . Invisible support and adjustment to stress. J Pers Soc Psychol. 2001; 79(6):953-61. DOI: 10.1037//0022-3514.79.6.953. View