Cross-sectional analysis finds socioeconomic and psychological factors affect digital health use in elderly individuals, suggesting areas for targeted interventions.
This paper investigates the prevalence and predictors of digital health use among elderly individuals in West Bengal. A cross-sectional survey was conducted on a sample of 450 participants aged 60 and above. The overall prevalence of digital health use among the elderly population in West Bengal was found to be 38.9%. The result of the Structural Equation Model (SEM) shows that digital health engagement is not only directly influenced by Socioeconomic Status (SES) (β = 0.38, p < 0.001) and Perceived Barriers (β = -0.42, p < 0.001) but is also indirectly affected by several demographic factors. The model highlighted that age and gender do not have a significant direct effect on engagement. But the effect of age and gender is strongly mediated by Perceived Barriers. Moreover, a higher level of educational qualification and residing in an urban area positively influence the socio-economic status of elderlies and reduce the impact of perceived barriers. These findings highlight that the moderately low prevalence of digital health use is not merely a matter of access but is associated with social, economic, and psychological factors. The study provides a foundation for caregivers and policymakers to design targeted interventions that focus on building digital literacy and mitigating psychological barriers to promote equitable access to digital health for the elderly in West Bengal.
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Arshad et al. (2026) studied this question.
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