Predictors of Digital Skills and their Impact on Active Aging and Subjective Health Status in Rural Older Adults in Korea: Cross-Sectional Study (Preprint)

BACKGROUND The Korean government announced several policies focusing on addressing the social issues arising from the digital divide among older adults. As digital literacy encompasses a range of skills from basic to advanced and is influenced by the surrounding environment, it is necessary to measure these competencies and identify the factors influencing them. OBJECTIVE This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the relationships between digital skills, active aging, and subjective health status and to identify predictors of active aging and subjective health status. METHODS Data were collected from February 13 to 24, 2023. A total of 422 participants were included in the final analysis. This study used an independent t-test, F-test, Pearson correlation analysis, and multiple linear regression to analyze the collected data. RESULTS In the multiple linear regression model with subjective health status as the dependent variable, age, education level, income, and communication were significant predictors. CONCLUSIONS The findings of this study indicate that digital skills in older adults are significantly associated with social activities and subjective health status. Conversely, digital addiction among older adults may lead to reduced social activity and adversely affect their subjective health. It is imperative that social workers recognize these cases and devise appropriate measures. With the growing utilization of digital devices among older adults, many obtain health information through online sources. Thus, health education focusing on discerning the reliability of information must be provided to older adults.