Social networking site usage: A systematic review of its relationship with social isolation, loneliness, and depression among older adults

Diversity of purposes of use, time spent online, and depression among older Chinese Internet users

Objectives: Previous studies on the associations between Internet use and older people's depression have mostly focused on single types of online activities, especially online social engagement. The current study investigated the diversity of purposes of Internet use and its interaction with the time spent online in shaping older Chinese Internet users' depression.

Method: A sample of 974 Internet users aged 60 and above was adopted from the 2020 China Family Panel Studies wave. We adopted a latent class analysis (LCA) to explore the diverse purposes of internet usage.

Results: The participants were classified into three distinct types: socializers, basic users, and maximizers. Basic users and maximizers use the Internet for various purposes, despite different intensities; socializers use the Internet only to keep connected with families and friends. Compared with basic users and maximizers, a longer time spent online among socializers was significantly associated with a higher level of depression.

Conclusion: This study calls for a closer examination of online profiles among older Internet users; more attention should be paid to the potential harms of excessive Internet use for social reasons only among older adults. Practitioners should enhance older Internet users' digital literacy to maximize the wide-range benefits of Internet use and reduce potential health inequality.

Exploring the impact of information and communication technologies on loneliness and social isolation in community-dwelling older adults: a scoping review of reviews

BACKGROUND

Recognizing the escalating public health concerns of loneliness and social isolation in aging populations, this study seeks to comprehensively explore the potential of information and communication technology (ICT)-based interventions to address these issues among older adults. This scoping review of reviews aims to map and synthesize existing evidence on the effectiveness and scope of ICT interventions targeting loneliness and social isolation in community-dwelling older adults, elucidating types of technology, impacts, facilitators, barriers, and research gaps.

METHODS

Following the Joanna Briggs Institute framework, we systematically searched eight diverse databases identifying relevant published reviews. We included English-written, peer-reviewed reviews of all types, with no limits regarding time of publication about ICTs targeting loneliness and/or social isolation for community-dwelling older adults. Eligible reviews were analysed and summarized, offering a holistic narrative of the reported types of ICTs and their impact, the identified facilitators and barriers influencing the implementation and adoption of ICT interventions, and the research gaps identified in the literature.

RESULTS

The review included 39 publications published between 2012 and 2024, spanning systematic, scoping, and reviews of reviews. Various ICTs were reported, primarily social media virtual communities, followed by video-mediated friendly visits, conversational agents, social robots, exergames and online gameplay. Predominantly positive impacts on mitigating social isolation and loneliness were evident for these ICTs, although methodological diversity and contradictory findings complicated definite conclusions. Facilitators and barriers encompassed individual competencies, access and usage, and intervention design and implementation. Research gaps involved targeting specific subgroups, exploring innovative technologies, incorporating diverse study designs, improving research methodologies, and addressing usability and accessibility. Future research should focus on identifying elderly individuals who can benefit the most from ICT use, exploring novel technologies, using a wider range of study designs, and enhancing usability and accessibility considerations.

CONCLUSIONS

This review sheds light on the diverse range of ICTs, their impact, and the facilitators and barriers associated with their use. Future investigations should prioritize refining outcome measures, addressing gender differences, and enhancing the usability and accessibility of interventions. The involvement of older adults in the design process and the exploration of technological training interventions hold promise in overcoming barriers.

Associations of Depression/Anxiety with Technology Use, Discontinued Use, and Nonuse in Older Adults

OBJECTIVES

To examine correlates of the changes in technology use among older adults and the associations of depression/anxiety symptoms with technology use changes.

METHODS

We used the 2019-2021 U.S. National Health and Aging Trends Study (N = 3,063; age 70+). We fitted multinomial logistic regression models to examine: (1) correlates of never use and discontinued use versus use of email/texting and the internet during the 3-year study period; and (2) associations of past-month depression/anxiety symptoms in 2021 with use and discontinued use versus never use of email/texting and social network site (SNS).

RESULTS

The findings show age, socioeconomic, and health barriers to technology use. Email/texting and SNS use in 2021, compared to never use in all 3 years, was associated with a lower likelihood of moderate/severe depression/anxiety symptoms in 2021 (RRR = 0.54, 95% CI = 0.37-0.81 for email/texting use; RRR = 0.56, 95% CI = 0.33-0.97 for SNS use). Video calls with family/friends were not associated with depression/anxiety symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings expand the existing knowledge base regarding potential impact of technology use on mental health beyond the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

More concerted efforts are warranted to help older adults' technology uptake and continued use and to promote mental health benefits of technology use.

The relationship between social media use and psychosocial outcomes in older adults: A systematic review

OBJECTIVES

Social isolation and loneliness are prevalent in older adults and are detrimental to physical and mental health. Social media use has been shown to be effective in maintaining social connections and improving older adults' psychosocial outcomes. This study aimed to systematically review and synthesize current research on this topic.

DESIGN

Searches were conducted in November 2021 (and updated in October 2023) in PsycINFO, PubMed, and CINAHL. Inclusion criteria: (1) participants ≥ 65 years (mean, median, or minimum age) and (2) reported impact of social media use on psychosocial outcomes (including loneliness, depression, anxiety, social connectedness, wellbeing, life satisfaction, and quality of life). Quality appraisal tools were utilized, and results were synthesized using narrative synthesis.

RESULTS

Sixty-four papers met inclusion criteria, including cross-sectional (n = 38), observational longitudinal (n = 6), interventional (n = 9), mixed-methods (n = 4), and qualitative (n = 7) studies. Participant numbers ranged from 6 to 16,925. While associations between social media use and positive psychosocial outcomes were generally reported in cross-sectional studies, the impact of social media use over time from longitudinal studies was mixed and inconclusive.

CONCLUSIONS

While social media use is associated with positive psychosocial outcomes, casual conclusions cannot be drawn. Few longitudinal and randomized controlled trial studies existed, and these reported mixed findings. Large variations in study methodology including participants, measurement of social media use, and outcome measures contributed to the inconsistencies of findings. Addressing this heterogeneity through standardized approaches and more rigorous research may enhance understanding.

Mapping loneliness through comparative analysis of USA and India using social intelligence analysis

Loneliness, a widespread global public health concern, has far-reaching implications for mental and physical well-being, as well as economic productivity. It also increases the risk of life-threatening conditions. This study conducts a comparative analysis of loneliness in the USA and India using Twitter data, aiming to contribute to a global public health map on loneliness. Collecting 4.1 million tweets globally in October 2022 containing keywords like "lonely", "loneliness", and "alone", the analysis focuses on sentiment and psychosocial linguistic features. Utilizing the Valence Aware Dictionary for Sentiment Reasoning (VADER) for sentiment analysis, the study explores variations in loneliness dynamics across cities, revealing geographical distinctions in correlated topics. The tweets with negative sentiment were further analyzed for psychosocial linguistic features to find a meaningful correlation between loneliness and socioeconomic and emotional themes and factors. Results give detailed top correlated topics with loneliness for each city. The results showed that the dynamics of loneliness through the topics correlated vary across geographical locations. Social media data can be used to capture the dynamics of loneliness which can vary from one place to another depending on the socioeconomic and cultural norms and sociopolitical policies. Social media data to understand loneliness can also provide useful information and insight for public health and policymaking.

Psychological aspects of rehabilitation nutrition: A position paper by the Japanese Association of Rehabilitation Nutrition (secondary publication)

Psychological aspects of rehabilitation nutrition affect physical, cognitive, and social rehabilitation nutrition. When depression is recognized, not only pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy, but also non-pharmacological therapies such as exercise, nutrition, psychosocial, and other interventions can be expected to improve depression. Therefore, accurate diagnosis and intervention without overlooking depression is important. Psychological aspects of preventive rehabilitation nutrition is also important because depression can be partially prevented by appropriate exercise and nutritional management. Even in the absence of psychological negatives, increasing more psychological positives from a positive psychology perspective can be useful for both patients and healthcare professionals. Positive rehabilitation nutrition interventions can increase more psychological positives, such as well-being, through cognitive-behavioral therapy and mindfulness on their own, as well as through interventions on environmental factors. Consequently, physical, cognitive, and social positives are also expected to be enhanced.

Understanding Loneliness in Younger People: Review of the Opportunities and Challenges for Loneliness Interventions

Loneliness affects the quality of life of people all around the world. Loneliness is also shown to be directly associated with mental health issues and is often the cause of mental health problems. It is also shown to increase the risk of heart diseases and other physical illnesses. Loneliness is studied both from the social and medical sciences perspectives. There are also interventions on the basis of health informatics, information and communication technologies (ICTs), social media, and other technological solutions. In the literature, loneliness is studied from various angles and perspectives ranging from biological to socioeconomical and through anthropological understandings of technology. From the ICT and technological sides, there are multiple reviews studying the effectiveness of intervention strategies and solutions. However, there is a lack of a comprehensive review on loneliness that engulfs the psychological, social, and technological studies of loneliness. From the perspective of loneliness informatics (ie, the application of health informatics practices and tools), it is important to understand the psychological and biological basis of loneliness. When it comes to technological interventions to fight off loneliness, the majority of interventions focus on older people. While loneliness is highest among older people, theoretical and demographical studies of loneliness give a U-shaped distribution age-wise to loneliness; that is, younger people and older people are the demographics most affected by loneliness. But the strategies and interventions designed for older people cannot be directly applied to younger people. We present the dynamics of loneliness in younger people and also provide an overview of the technological interventions for loneliness in younger people. This paper presents an approach wherein the studies carried out from the perspectives of digital health and informatics are discussed in detail. A comprehensive overview of the understanding of loneliness and the study of the overall field of tools and strategies of loneliness informatics was carried out. The need to study loneliness in younger people is addressed and particular digital solutions and interventions developed for younger people are presented. This paper can be used to overcome the challenges of technological gaps in the studies and strategies developed for loneliness. The findings of this study show that the majority of interventions and reviews are focused on older people, with ICT-based and social media-based interventions showing promise for countering the effects of loneliness. There are new technologies, such as conversational agents and robots, which are tailored to the particular needs of younger people. This literature review suggests that the digital solutions developed to overcome loneliness can benefit people, and younger people in particular, more if they are made interactive in order to retain users.

Social Network Characteristics and Depressive Symptoms of Italian Public Health Medical Residents: The Public Health Residents' Anonymous Survey in Italy (PHRASI)

Despite the high impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on social interactions and healthcare workers' (HWs') mental health, few studies have investigated the association between social network characteristics and HWs' mental health, particularly during the pandemic. Therefore, we aimed to assess the associations between public health residents' (PHRs') social network characteristics and depression. We used data from the Public Health Residents' Anonymous Survey in Italy (PHRASI), a nationwide cross-sectional study. Social network characteristics were self-reported. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire. Linear and logistic models adjusted for age, sex, physical activity, and alcohol were used. A moderation analysis by sex was also performed. A total of 379 PHRs participated in the survey (58% females, median age of 30 years). More peer-to-peer (odds ratio OR = 0.62 (0.47-0.83)) and supervisor support (OR = 0.49 (0.36-0.68)), more social participation ((OR) = 0.36 95% CI (0.25-0.50)), and having a partner (OR = 0.49 (0.25-0.96)) were significantly associated with a lower risk of clinically relevant depressive symptoms. Work-to-private-life interference was significantly associated with a higher risk of clinically relevant depressive symptoms (OR = 1.77 (1.28-2.45)). Promoting a supportive work environment and social participation as well as reducing work-to-private life interference can contribute to reducing the high burden among PHRs.

Social Media Use and Depression in Older Adults: A Systematic Review

Social media has become an integral part of everyday life and revolutionized how older adults communicate and interact with others. The aim of the current review was to identify and synthesize quantitative studies addressing the potential relationship between social media use and depression in older adults. Medline, CINAHL, and PsycINFO databases were used to identify studies performed up to July 2020. Keywords identified were depression, social media use, and older adults. A nuanced relationship was revealed between social media use and depression in older adults. There were noted differences in the conceptualization of social media use. The reviewed studies lacked exploration of structural characteristics, examination of content, and quality of interactions in older adults' social media use. Health variables, social factors, and age cohort differences could influence the relationship between social media use and depression. Further studies are needed to enhance the understanding and explore the benefits and potential disadvantages of social media use in older adults. [Research in Gerontological Nursing, 16(2), 97-104.].

Psychological impact of COVID-19: A cross-lagged network analysis from the English Longitudinal Study of Aging COVID-19 database

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic and its subsequent health restrictions had an unprecedented impact on mental health, contributing to the emergence and reinforcement of various psychopathological symptoms. This complex interaction needs to be examined especially in a vulnerable population such as older adults.

Objective

In the present study we analyzed network structures of depressive symptoms, anxiety, and loneliness from the English Longitudinal Study of Aging COVID-19 Substudy over two waves (Months of June-July and November-December 2020).

Methods

For this purpose, we use measures of centrality (expected and bridge-expected influence) in addition to the Clique Percolation method to identify overlapping symptoms between communities. We also use directed networks to identify direct effects between variables at the longitudinal level.

Results

UK adults aged >50 participated, Wave 1: 5,797 (54% female) and Wave 2: 6,512 (56% female). Cross-sectional findings indicated that difficulty relaxing, anxious mood, and excessive worry symptoms were the strongest and similar measures of centrality (Expected Influence) in both waves, while depressive mood was the one that allowed interconnection between all networks (bridge expected influence). On the other hand, sadness and difficulty sleeping were symptoms that reflected the highest comorbidity among all variables during the first and second waves, respectively. Finally, at the longitudinal level, we found a clear predictive effect in the direction of the nervousness symptom, which was reinforced by depressive symptoms (difficulties in enjoying life) and loneliness (feeling of being excluded or cut off from others).

Conclusion

Our findings suggest that depressive, anxious, and loneliness symptoms were dynamically reinforced as a function of pandemic context in older adults in the UK.

The association between loneliness and sleep quality among older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

To systematically review studies and explore the association between loneliness and sleep quality among older adults.

METHODS

A comprehensive literature search was conducted in 8 databases from their inception to February 28, 2022. Studies that investigated the association between loneliness and sleep quality among older people were obtained. Comprehensive Meta-analysis was used to meta-analyze data in the included studies.

RESULTS

In total, 16 studies with 23,485 participants were included in this review, and 6 of these studies were included in the meta-analysis. The meta-analysis showed that older adults who were lonely were significantly more likely to suffer from low sleep quality than their counterparts without loneliness (pooled OR = 1.750, 95% CI: 1.511-2.026, p < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS

Loneliness is associated with poor sleep quality among older adults. Loneliness reduction measures should be considered as one of the essential elements in sleep management programs for older people with low sleep quality.

Active and passive social media use are differentially related to depressive symptoms in older adults

OBJECTIVES

Previous research on social media use (SMU) and mental health has focused on younger individuals. For example, in young adults active SMU (e.g. posting content) has been related to decreased depressive symptoms, whereas passive SMU (e.g. browsing content) has been related to increased depressive symptoms. These relationships have not yet been investigated in older adults, however, even though SMU and poor mental health are common.

METHODS

We collected data from adults aged 65 years and older, and categorized SMU into active and passive dimensions with a principal component analysis. Next, we conducted t-tests and logistic regressions to assess whether older adults' SMU was associated with depressive symptoms.

RESULTS

Our analysis revealed that active SMU was associated with increased odds for depressive symptoms, whereas passive SMU was associated with decreased odds for depressive symptoms.

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that the relationships between active and passive SMU and depressive symptoms in older adults are different from previous literature focusing on younger individuals. We theorize that these findings may be due to older adults' engaging in fewer social comparisons overall, and hence experiencing fewer negative feelings while passively viewing others' social media posts.

Barriers and facilitators of digital interventions use to reduce loneliness among older adults: a protocol for a qualitative systematic review

INTRODUCTION

Digital interventions are considered as a potential solution to loneliness in older adults. However, this type of intervention has had limited acceptance among older adults (aged ≥60 years). To ensure the use of digital interventions in older adults, possible barriers and facilitating factors should be better understood from the user's perspective. We aim to systematically examine the barriers and facilitators to the implementation of digital interventions designed to reduce loneliness in older adults by identifying, evaluating and synthesising qualitative studies.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

A comprehensive search of qualitative studies for barriers and facilitators for use of digital interventions will be conducted in the following databases: PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Embase, Scopus, Cochrane Library and Web of Science. Studies reported in English will be considered for this review. Grey literature will not be included. Two reviewers (HZ and XL) will independently screen the literatures, and any differences will be solved by turning to the third reviewer (JN). The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Qualitative Research Critical Appraisal Checklist will be used by two reviewers to independently assess the validity of the methods used. Relevant data about the populations, context, culture, geographical location, study methods and barriers and facilitators to the implementation of digital interventions will be extracted using the JBI standardised data extraction tool. JBI meta-aggregation methods will be implemented to synthesise the data, which will generate themes and categories based on the data. The final synthesis will establish confidence levels using the JBI ConQual approach.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

The protocol does not require ethical approval. The data are based on published scientific databases. The results will be disseminated through journal articles and scientific conference presentations (if feasible).

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER

CRD42022328609.