New Dimension on Quality of Life Differences among Older Adults: A Comparative Analysis of Digital Consumption in Urban and Rural Areas of China

Zhizheng Zhang (), Wentao Wei, Tianlu Zhu, Ming Zhou and Yajun Li ()
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Zhizheng Zhang: School of Design Arts and Media, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China
Wentao Wei: School of Design Arts and Media, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China
Tianlu Zhu: School of Design Arts and Media, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China
Ming Zhou: School of Design Arts and Media, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China
Yajun Li: School of Design Arts and Media, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 22, 1-23

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to compare the variability in quality of life in the area of digital consumption among older adults in urban and rural China during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study proposed a low-cost mixed research method, and the methodology used a quantitative study of a large regional sample combined with a qualitative study of a small regional sample. Data for the large-scale area sample were obtained from the China family panel study (CFPS) dataset, and data for the small-scale regional sample were obtained from Nanjing, China. The quantitative analysis of the large-scale regional sample used the least squares regression analysis (OSL) and propensity score matching (PSM). The qualitative analysis of the small-scale regional sample used the selection optimization and compensation (SOC) model. The findings show that economic income is a direct driver of digital consumption. Digital consumption had a significant positive relationship with the quality of life for urban and rural older adults. In addition, the study established the semantic network relationships of the coping strategies of digital consumption of older adults and their drivers. Finally, the theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed in the context of other related studies.

Keywords: digital consumption; quality of life; older adults; urban and rural differences; COVID-19 pandemic (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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