Digital Aging: Examining Factors Influencing eHealth Adoption Among Older Adults in Singapore

Project's Details

Title: Digital Aging - Examining Factors Influencing eHealth Adoption Among Older Adults in Singapore

Funded by: CFPR Faculty Development

Amount: S$10,000

PI: Assistant Professor Jiang Shaohai, Department of Communications and New Media, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, NUS

Project duration: 1 December 2019 to 30 September 2021

Abstract

Singapore’s healthcare system is facing the increasing challenge of the nation’s aging population. It is important to adapt healthcare services to this growing segment of society in Singapore. The Internet may provide a viable avenue for the elderly to obtain health information and receive healthcare services. However, eHealth is still novel among the Singaporean aging population. Thus, this study aims to investigate (1) what eHealth functions (e.g., using the Internet to look for health information, buy medicine or vitamins, look for a health care provider, communicate with a doctor, make medical appointment, track health care changes and cost, download health-related mobile apps, and monitor personal health) older adults in Singapore are currently using, and (2) what motivating factors (e.g., social support: emotional, informational, tangible support), and inhibiting factors (e.g., digital divide: mental access, material access, skill access, and user access) may influence their eHealth adoption. This project will use a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design. The first phase is conducting a quantitative survey, and the second phase is performing an in-depth interview. The earlier survey data will provide a general understanding of the research problem, while the interviews will refine and explain those statistical results by exploring participants’ views in more depth.