Uses and Gratifications Sought From Mobile Phone Use and Loneliness Among Japanese Middle-aged and Older Adults
Year: 2018
Type: conference-abstract
Abstract: This study examines how the purposes for which mobile phones are used affects loneliness of middle-aged and older adults and whether face-to-face social interaction plays a mediating role in this relationship. Data were drawn from a national probability sample of 1,575 Japanese middle-aged and older adults. OLS regression and mediation analysis was used to test study hypotheses. Using a mobile phone for sociability purposes was associated with decreased loneliness and using it for the purposes of passing time was associated with higher levels of loneliness. Face-to-face social interaction was found to significantly mediate the relationships between sociability, reassurance, passing time, instrumentality and loneliness. Whether mobile phone usage supports or undermines the mental health of midlife and older adults may depend partly on the purposes for which the mobile phones are being used, and these effects seem to be operating through actual face-to-face social interactions.
Source: Innovation in Aging
Authors: Y Wang, C Matz-Costa, J Miller, D Carr, F Kohlbacher
Institutions: Boston College, Florida State University
Language: English
Subfield: Demography
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,977
OpenAlex ID: W2900017214