Older adults and online communities: recent findings, gaps and opportunities

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 200
Author(s):  
Ryan A. Ebardo ◽  
Merlin Teodosia C. Suarez
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Online Communities

How Can Online Communities Support Resilience Factors among Older Adults

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (14) ◽  
pp. 1342-1353 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mostafa Kamalpour ◽  
Jason Watson ◽  
Laurie Buys
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Resilience Factors

scholarly journals Understanding Why Older Adults With Type 2 Diabetes Join Diabetes Online Communities: Semantic Network Analyses (Preprint)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jakeem Amir Lewis ◽  
Perry M Gee ◽  
Chia-Ling Lynn Ho ◽  
Lisa M Soederberg Miller
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Online Community ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Well Being ◽  
General Information ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Chronic Health ◽  
Network Analyses

BACKGROUND As individuals age, chronic health difficulties may disrupt physical and social well-being. Individuals can turn to online communities to interact with similar peers, which may help buffer negative effects resulting from health difficulties. OBJECTIVE This study investigated the reasons that older adults join a diabetes online community to better understand the specific resources that are being sought. METHODS We used semantic network analyses to categorize the reasons participants provided for joining a community during the sign-up process. RESULTS The most frequent reasons for joining were to seek information about their health condition, to help with self-management of health difficulties, for feelings of informational and social support, and for having a community with whom to share. Women were more likely to go online for sharing and companionship as well as for information and social support reasons, whereas men were more likely to go online for general information and self-management reasons. CONCLUSIONS This study shows the reasons older adults seek to join a diabetes online community: for increased information and support regarding chronic health difficulties. Practitioners may want to consider ways to promote access to online communities among their older patients as a source of health information and a resource to provide a sense of community.

scholarly journals Understanding Why Older Adults With Type 2 Diabetes Join Diabetes Online Communities: Semantic Network Analyses

JMIR Aging ◽  
10.2196/10649 ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. e10649 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jakeem Amir Lewis ◽  
Perry M Gee ◽  
Chia-Ling Lynn Ho ◽  
Lisa M Soederberg Miller
Keyword(s):  
Type 2 Diabetes ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Network Analyses

scholarly journals Peer-to-Peer Health Communication in Older Adults’ Online Communities: Protocol for a Qualitative Netnographic Study and Co-Design Approach (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Thomas Lawless ◽  
Mandy Archibald ◽  
Maria Alejandra Pinero de Plaza ◽  
Phoebe Drioli-Phillips ◽  
Alison Kitson
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Online Community ◽  
Self Care ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Management Support ◽  
Specific Health

BACKGROUND Online communities provide an environment in which people with similar health concerns can interact and access content that can support the self-management of long-term conditions (LTCs). Recently, the importance of online social networks as sources of health information and social support has been brought into focus with the emergence and widespread societal impacts of COVID-19. Although online communities exist for older adults, little is known about the specific health and self-care topics that older people discuss in such environments and how these relate to users’ support needs and outcomes. A better understanding of users’ needs and peer-to-peer communication in these communities is necessary to inform the design of information and communication technology (ICT) interventions that are relevant to older people and their peer supporters. OBJECTIVE This study aims to use a two-phase, web-based ethnographic (netnography) and co-design approach to explore specific health care and self-care topics that older adults discuss in a UK-based online community and how peer supporters respond to these queries with informational and/or social support and engage with stakeholders to define the needs and requirements for new ICT-based interventions capable of reducing social isolation and facilitating LTC self-management support. METHODS The first phase of the research will involve a qualitative netnographic analysis of posts in discussion forums in a publicly accessible online community. The second phase will involve co-design workshops with health care consumers (ie, older adults and carers) and service providers to determine the needs and requirements for new ICT-based interventions and digital innovations. Constructivist grounded theory will be used in the first phase; in the second phase, the co-design workshops will be audiorecorded and analyzed thematically. RESULTS This research project is in progress. Permission was obtained from the website administrator to use materials from the social media forum; data collection for the first phase began in April 2020. The second phase of the study is expected to begin in late 2020. This study is due to be completed by the end of 2021. CONCLUSIONS This study is the first, to the best of our knowledge, to combine qualitative netnography with an iterative co-design framework to specify the needs and requirements for new ICT-based interventions. The findings from this study will inform the next phase of the multiphase knowledge translation project and will provide insights into the potential of online peer health communities to reduce social isolation and facilitate chronic illness self-management support and self-care. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT PRR1-10.2196/19834

scholarly journals Peer-to-Peer Health Communication in Older Adults’ Online Communities: Protocol for a Qualitative Netnographic Study and Co-Design Approach

10.2196/19834 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. e19834
Author(s):  
Michael Thomas Lawless ◽  
Mandy Archibald ◽  
Maria Alejandra Pinero de Plaza ◽  
Phoebe Drioli-Phillips ◽  
Alison Kitson
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Online Community ◽  
Self Care ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Management Support ◽  
Specific Health

Background Online communities provide an environment in which people with similar health concerns can interact and access content that can support the self-management of long-term conditions (LTCs). Recently, the importance of online social networks as sources of health information and social support has been brought into focus with the emergence and widespread societal impacts of COVID-19. Although online communities exist for older adults, little is known about the specific health and self-care topics that older people discuss in such environments and how these relate to users’ support needs and outcomes. A better understanding of users’ needs and peer-to-peer communication in these communities is necessary to inform the design of information and communication technology (ICT) interventions that are relevant to older people and their peer supporters. Objective This study aims to use a two-phase, web-based ethnographic (netnography) and co-design approach to explore specific health care and self-care topics that older adults discuss in a UK-based online community and how peer supporters respond to these queries with informational and/or social support and engage with stakeholders to define the needs and requirements for new ICT-based interventions capable of reducing social isolation and facilitating LTC self-management support. Methods The first phase of the research will involve a qualitative netnographic analysis of posts in discussion forums in a publicly accessible online community. The second phase will involve co-design workshops with health care consumers (ie, older adults and carers) and service providers to determine the needs and requirements for new ICT-based interventions and digital innovations. Constructivist grounded theory will be used in the first phase; in the second phase, the co-design workshops will be audiorecorded and analyzed thematically. Results This research project is in progress. Permission was obtained from the website administrator to use materials from the social media forum; data collection for the first phase began in April 2020. The second phase of the study is expected to begin in late 2020. This study is due to be completed by the end of 2021. Conclusions This study is the first, to the best of our knowledge, to combine qualitative netnography with an iterative co-design framework to specify the needs and requirements for new ICT-based interventions. The findings from this study will inform the next phase of the multiphase knowledge translation project and will provide insights into the potential of online peer health communities to reduce social isolation and facilitate chronic illness self-management support and self-care. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) PRR1-10.2196/19834

scholarly journals Online Communities As A Resource In Older Adults’ Tourism

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Galit Nimrod
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Health Insurance ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Information Exchange ◽  
Online Forums ◽  
Online Ethnography ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Practical Information

Previous research found that tourism is a subject commonly discussed in seniors’ online communities. The present study aimed to explore tourism-related contents in these communities and to discover specific age-related themes. The study applied an online ethnography (Netnography) approach, and was based on a full year’s data from 14 leading seniors’ online communities. The final database included 3,425 posts. Contents were divided into three main categories: ‘Practical information exchange’, ‘Search for contacts’, and ‘Travel stories’. Specific age-related themes referred to retirement, seniors’ tours, health insurance concerns, and special rates for elders. Results indicate that online communities serve as a resource in older adults’ tourism both before and after traveling. Dedicated to seniors, they also provide a sphere for expressing age-related issues, which are probably less discussed in other online forums.

Cognitive control constrains memory attributions

2019 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colleen M. Kelley ◽  
Larry L. Jacoby
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Cognitive Control

Abstract Cognitive control constrains retrieval processing and so restricts what comes to mind as input to the attribution system. We review evidence that older adults, patients with Alzheimer's disease, and people with traumatic brain injury exert less cognitive control during retrieval, and so are susceptible to memory misattributions in the form of dramatic levels of false remembering.

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