The Gerontologist Advance Access published December 30, 2013 The Gerontologist Cite journal as: The Gerontologist doi:10.1093/geront/gnt166
© The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: [email protected].
Patterns of Technology Use Among Older Adults With and Without Disabilities Nancy M. Gell, PhD, MPH,*,1 Dori E. Rosenberg, PhD, MPH,1,2 George Demiris, PhD,3,4 Andrea Z. LaCroix, PhD,1,5 and Kushang V. Patel, PhD, MPH6 Group Health Research Institute, Seattle, Washington. Department of Health Services, University of Washington School of Public Health, Seattle. 3 Biomedical Informatics and Medical Education, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle. 4 Biobehavioral Nursing and Health Systems, School of Nursing, University of Washington, Seattle. 5 Division of Public Health Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington. 6 Center for Pain Research on Impact, Measurement and Effectiveness, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle. *Address correspondence to Nancy M. Gell, PhD, MPH, Group Health Research Institute, 1730 Minor Ave Suite 1600, Seattle, WA 98101. E-mail: [email protected] Received July 29, 2013; Accepted November 26, 2013 Decision Editor: Rachel Pruchno, PhD
Purpose of the Study: The purpose of this study was to describe prevalence of technology use among adults ages 65 and older, particularly for those with disability and activity-limiting symptoms and impairments. Design and Methods: Data from the 2011 National Health and Aging Trends Study, a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling Medicare beneficiaries (N = 7,609), were analyzed. Analysis consisted of technology use (use of e-mail/text messages and the internet) by sociodemographic and health characteristics and prevalence ratios for technology usage by disability status. Results: Forty percent of older adults used e-mail or text messaging and 42.7% used the internet. Higher prevalence of technology use was associated with younger age, male sex, white race, higher education level, and being married (all p values
© The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: [email protected].
Patterns of Technology Use Among Older Adults With and Without Disabilities Nancy M. Gell, PhD, MPH,*,1 Dori E. Rosenberg, PhD, MPH,1,2 George Demiris, PhD,3,4 Andrea Z. LaCroix, PhD,1,5 and Kushang V. Patel, PhD, MPH6 Group Health Research Institute, Seattle, Washington. Department of Health Services, University of Washington School of Public Health, Seattle. 3 Biomedical Informatics and Medical Education, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle. 4 Biobehavioral Nursing and Health Systems, School of Nursing, University of Washington, Seattle. 5 Division of Public Health Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington. 6 Center for Pain Research on Impact, Measurement and Effectiveness, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle. *Address correspondence to Nancy M. Gell, PhD, MPH, Group Health Research Institute, 1730 Minor Ave Suite 1600, Seattle, WA 98101. E-mail: [email protected] Received July 29, 2013; Accepted November 26, 2013 Decision Editor: Rachel Pruchno, PhD
Purpose of the Study: The purpose of this study was to describe prevalence of technology use among adults ages 65 and older, particularly for those with disability and activity-limiting symptoms and impairments. Design and Methods: Data from the 2011 National Health and Aging Trends Study, a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling Medicare beneficiaries (N = 7,609), were analyzed. Analysis consisted of technology use (use of e-mail/text messages and the internet) by sociodemographic and health characteristics and prevalence ratios for technology usage by disability status. Results: Forty percent of older adults used e-mail or text messaging and 42.7% used the internet. Higher prevalence of technology use was associated with younger age, male sex, white race, higher education level, and being married (all p values
