The Digital Divide and the elderly : how urban and rural realities shape well-being and social inclusion in the Sardinian context

2025
journal article
article
dc.abstract.enThe Digital Grey Divide (DGD) is a phenomenon that refers to the digital inequality existing among the elderly in using digital tools. DGD could generate social exclusion and hinder elderly well-being because today many aspects of life are online. The objective of the research is to compare the urban and rural group to see if a digital divide is present and whether psychological and cognitive well-being can be predictors of usage. The research involved 100 elderly people (belonging to two different areas: one rural and one urban) aged 65 to 90 (M = 72.3; SD = 6.4) with intact cognitive functioning investigated by the MMSE test. A socio-anagraphic module to investigate digital use (DU), a questionnaire on cognitive reserve (CRIq), and a questionnaire investigating well-being (Ben-SSC) were administered. Results showed that the two groups differ in terms of access and use of digital tools (F = 28.34, p < 0.001), with the urban group reporting higher levels of access and use. Moreover, in the urban group, psychological well-being has an inverse relationship with digital, while in the rural group, the relationship between cognitive well-being and use is direct. Therefore, the study aims to highlight how even in developed countries there can be a digital divide (DD) given the risks of exclusion, particularly for the elderly population. For all these reasons, it is necessary to pursue interventions to achieve a higher level of digitalization and sustainable development among the population. Given the importance of this phenomenon, it is necessary to address the issue of DD in various spheres of life: political, social, economic and care.
dc.affiliationWydział Filozoficzny : Instytut Pedagogiki
dc.contributor.authorDiana, Maria Grazia
dc.contributor.authorMascia, Maria Lidia
dc.contributor.authorTomczyk, Łukasz - 462556
dc.contributor.authorPenna, Maria Pietronilla
dc.date.accessioned2025-03-21T12:02:30Z
dc.date.available2025-03-21T12:02:30Z
dc.date.createdat2025-02-22T18:14:16Zen
dc.date.issued2025
dc.date.openaccess0
dc.description.accesstimew momencie opublikowania
dc.description.number4
dc.description.versionostateczna wersja wydawcy
dc.description.volume17
dc.identifier.articleid1718
dc.identifier.doi10.3390/su17041718
dc.identifier.issn2071-1050
dc.identifier.urihttps://ruj.uj.edu.pl/handle/item/550553
dc.languageeng
dc.language.containereng
dc.rightsUdzielam licencji. Uznanie autorstwa 4.0 Międzynarodowa
dc.rights.licenceCC-BY
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode.pl
dc.share.typeotwarte czasopismo
dc.subject.plDigital Grey Divide
dc.subject.plwell-being
dc.subject.plcognitive reserve
dc.subject.pldigital exclusion
dc.subject.plpredictors of digital usage
dc.subject.plsustainability
dc.subtypeArticle
dc.titleThe Digital Divide and the elderly : how urban and rural realities shape well-being and social inclusion in the Sardinian context
dc.title.journalSustainability
dc.typeJournalArticle
dspace.entity.typePublicationen
dc.abstract.en
The Digital Grey Divide (DGD) is a phenomenon that refers to the digital inequality existing among the elderly in using digital tools. DGD could generate social exclusion and hinder elderly well-being because today many aspects of life are online. The objective of the research is to compare the urban and rural group to see if a digital divide is present and whether psychological and cognitive well-being can be predictors of usage. The research involved 100 elderly people (belonging to two different areas: one rural and one urban) aged 65 to 90 (M = 72.3; SD = 6.4) with intact cognitive functioning investigated by the MMSE test. A socio-anagraphic module to investigate digital use (DU), a questionnaire on cognitive reserve (CRIq), and a questionnaire investigating well-being (Ben-SSC) were administered. Results showed that the two groups differ in terms of access and use of digital tools (F = 28.34, p < 0.001), with the urban group reporting higher levels of access and use. Moreover, in the urban group, psychological well-being has an inverse relationship with digital, while in the rural group, the relationship between cognitive well-being and use is direct. Therefore, the study aims to highlight how even in developed countries there can be a digital divide (DD) given the risks of exclusion, particularly for the elderly population. For all these reasons, it is necessary to pursue interventions to achieve a higher level of digitalization and sustainable development among the population. Given the importance of this phenomenon, it is necessary to address the issue of DD in various spheres of life: political, social, economic and care.
dc.affiliation
Wydział Filozoficzny : Instytut Pedagogiki
dc.contributor.author
Diana, Maria Grazia
dc.contributor.author
Mascia, Maria Lidia
dc.contributor.author
Tomczyk, Łukasz - 462556
dc.contributor.author
Penna, Maria Pietronilla
dc.date.accessioned
2025-03-21T12:02:30Z
dc.date.available
2025-03-21T12:02:30Z
dc.date.createdaten
2025-02-22T18:14:16Z
dc.date.issued
2025
dc.date.openaccess
0
dc.description.accesstime
w momencie opublikowania
dc.description.number
4
dc.description.version
ostateczna wersja wydawcy
dc.description.volume
17
dc.identifier.articleid
1718
dc.identifier.doi
10.3390/su17041718
dc.identifier.issn
2071-1050
dc.identifier.uri
https://ruj.uj.edu.pl/handle/item/550553
dc.language
eng
dc.language.container
eng
dc.rights
Udzielam licencji. Uznanie autorstwa 4.0 Międzynarodowa
dc.rights.licence
CC-BY
dc.rights.uri
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode.pl
dc.share.type
otwarte czasopismo
dc.subject.pl
Digital Grey Divide
dc.subject.pl
well-being
dc.subject.pl
cognitive reserve
dc.subject.pl
digital exclusion
dc.subject.pl
predictors of digital usage
dc.subject.pl
sustainability
dc.subtype
Article
dc.title
The Digital Divide and the elderly : how urban and rural realities shape well-being and social inclusion in the Sardinian context
dc.title.journal
Sustainability
dc.type
JournalArticle
dspace.entity.typeen
Publication
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