title: The digital health divide: evaluating online health information access and use among older adults.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Innovations in health information technology (HIT) provide opportunities to reduce health care spending, improve quality of care, and improve health outcomes for older adults. However, concerns relating to older adults' limited access and use of HIT, including use of the Internet for health information, fuel the digital health divide debate. This study evaluated the potential digital health divide in relation to characteristic and belief differences between older adult users and nonusers of online health information sources.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional survey design was conducted using a random sample of older adults. A total of 225 older adults (age range = 50-92 years, M = 68.9 years, SD = 10.4) participated in the study.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seventy-six percent of all respondents had Internet access. Users and nonusers of online health information differed significantly on age (M = 66.29 vs. M = 71.13), education, and previous experience with the health care system. Users and nonusers of online health information also differed significantly on Internet and technology access, however, a large percentage of nonusers had Internet access (56.3%), desktop computers (55.9%), and laptop computers or netbooks (43.2%). Users of online health information had higher mean scores on the Computer Self-Efficacy Measure than nonusers, t(159) = -7.29, p < .0001.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study found significant differences between older adult users and nonusers of online health information. Findings suggest strategies for reducing this divide and implications for health education programs to promote HIT use among older adults.
authors.affiliation: University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA mandiha@uw.edu.
authors.forename: Amanda K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Hall
authors.affiliation: University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Jay M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Bernhardt
authors.affiliation: University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.
authors.forename: Virginia
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Dodd
authors.affiliation: University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.
authors.forename: Morgan W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Vollrath
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001292:Attitude to Computers; D054626:Consumer Health Information / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012737:Sex Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
keywords: consumer health information; e-health; health information technology; older adults; self-efficacy