Title

The Effect of Information Communication Technology Interventions on Reducing Social Isolation in the Elderly: A Systematic Review

Authors

Yi-Ru Regina Chen 1, Peter J Schulz 2

Author Affiliations

1 Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, HK

2 University of Lugano, Lugano, CH

Date of Publication

Jan 2016

Series/Report no.

Journal of Medical Internet Research, Vol. 18, Issue 1, p1-11

Key words

social isolation; elderly; ICT intervention

Abstract

Background: The aging of the population is an inexorable change that challenges governments and societies in every developed country. Based on clinical and empirical data, social isolation is found to be prevalent among elderly people, and it has negative consequences on the elderly’s psychological and physical health. Targeting social isolation has become a focus area for policy and practice. Evidence indicates that contemporary information and communication technologies (ICT) have the potential to prevent or reduce the social isolation of elderly people via various mechanisms.

Objective: This systematic review explored the effects of ICT interventions on reducing social isolation of the elderly.

Methods: Relevant electronic databases (PsycINFO, PubMed, MEDLINE, EBSCO, SSCI, Communication Studies: a SAGE Full-Text Collection, Communication & Mass Media Complete, Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Digital Library, and IEEE Xplore) were systematically searched using a unified strategy to identify quantitative and qualitative studies on the effectiveness of ICT-mediated social isolation interventions for elderly people published in English between 2002 and 2015. Narrative synthesis was performed to interpret the results of the identified studies, and their quality was also appraised.

Results: Twenty-five publications were included in the review. Four of them were evaluated as rigorous research. Most studies measured the effectiveness of ICT by measuring specific dimensions rather than social isolation in general. ICT use was consistently found to affect social support, social connectedness, and social isolation in general positively. The results for loneliness were inconclusive. Even though most were positive, some studies found a nonsignificant or negative impact. More importantly, the positive effect of ICT use on social connectedness and social support seemed to be short-term and did not last for more than six months after the intervention. The results for self-esteem and control over one’s life were consistent but generally nonsignificant. ICT was found to alleviate the elderly’s social isolation through four mechanisms: connecting to the outside world, gaining social support, engaging in activities of interests, and boosting self-confidence.

Conclusions: More well-designed studies that contain a minimum risk of research bias are needed to draw conclusions on the effectiveness of ICT interventions for elderly people in reducing their perceived social isolation as a multidimensional concept. The results of this review suggest that ICT could be an effective tool to tackle social isolation among the elderly. However, it is not suitable for every senior alike. Future research should identify who among elderly people can most benefit from ICT use in reducing social isolation. Research on other types of ICT (eg, mobile phone–based instant messaging apps) should be conducted to promote understanding and practice of ICT-based social-isolation interventions for elderly people.

주요 내용

그동안의 선행연구들은 노인들의 사회적 고립이 그들의 정신 및 신체적 건강에 부정적인 영향을 미친다는 사실을 밝혔다. 이에 따라 노인의 사회적 고립을 예방 및 감소시키는 것은 많은 국가에서 중요한 사회적 주제이자 정책 결정의 우선순위로 여겨진다. ICT 기술의 발달에 따라 노인의 사회적 고립을 감소시키기 위해 정보통신기술을 활용하는 것에 대한 여러 증거 기반 연구들이 그 효과성을 입증해왔다. 본 연구에서는 여러 논문들을 체계적으로 검토하여 ICT기술과 노인의 사회적 고립의 연관성을 파악하고자 했다. ICT 사용은 일반적으로 “사회적 지원”, “사회적 연결성” 및“사회적 고립”에 긍정적인 영향을 미치는 것으로 일관되게 밝혀졌다. 그러나 “외로움”에 대해서는 일관적인 결과가 나타나지 않았다. 또한, ICT 사용이“사회적 연결성”과 “사회적 지원”에 미치는 긍정적인 영향이 단기적인 것으로 보이며 개입 후 6개월 이상 지속되지 않았다고 보고되었다. 본 연구에서 선행 연구들을 검토한 결과 ICT가 노인들 사이의 사회적 고립을 해결하는 효과적인 도구가 될 수 있음을 시사하지만, 모든 노인에게 해당하는 것이 아니기에 대상을 명확히 하여 향후 연구가 진행될 것이 장려된다. 

ISSN

14388871

DOI

10.2196/jmir.4596