Year: 2021
Type: article
Abstract: Qualitative studies have found that the use of Information and Communication Technologies is related to an enhanced quality of life for older adults, as these technologies might act as a medium to access social capital regardless of geographical distance. In order to quantitatively study the association between older people’s characteristics and the likelihood of having a network of close friends offline and online, we use data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe and data from Facebook. Using a novel approach to analyze aggregated and anonymous Facebook data within a regression framework, we show that the associations between having close friends and age, sex, and being a parent are the same offline and online. Migrants who use internet are less likely to have close friends offline, but migrants who are Facebook users are more likely to have close friends online, suggesting that digital relationships may compensate for the potential lack of offline close friendships among older migrants.
Language: English
Subfield: Demography
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $2,780
Awards: Multinational Advancement of Research Infrastructures on Ageing, G1178032220, G1237079599, G1299585435, G1330667123, G1428006373, G1565542540, G1608581485, G1708035608, G1750703574, G1778268290, G1781191216, G1820526844, G2343781458, G24207250, G2465118858, G2881429984, G288447808, G3166864496, G323020161, G3440788226, G3457581384, G3654244103, G3687180791, G3906179026, G4096536797, G4165969582, RAND Center for the Study of Aging, Upgrading the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe – preparatory phase, G4545110052, G4569152855, G4847675667, G5021238699, G503278667, G504669776, G5207492846, G5618942462, G598697797, G6053673296, G6055688980, G6476390097, G6678519423, G6767647029, G6969501727, Synergies for Europe's Research Infrastructures in the Social Sciences, G751768989, DEVELOPING AN ISRAELI VERSION OF THE HRS/SHARE PROJECT, G7664789006, G8072554765, Longitudinal Enhancement and Access imProvement of the SHARE infrastructure, G8875743412, G8957671751, G9000113159, Understanding and Improving Healthcare Decision-Making and Outcomes for People Living with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias, Health and Retirement Study: Yrs 35-40, G92007749, G93458789, G938892667, G939349750
OpenAlex ID: W3094451677