Abstract
The article examines the relationship between the Internet use and leisure activities amongst Finnish seniors. Traditionally, the young have been the most active users of the Internet and other information and communication technologies (ICTs). In recent years, however, older age groups have increasingly become more interested in ICT, yet a significant proportion of Finnish seniors rarely log on. Using data from a nationally representative survey (N = 542) conducted in the summer of 2010, we explored the connection between the frequent Internet use and general leisure activity. The basic socio-demographic variables were controlled in the analysis. The findings indicate that the active Internet use in old age has a strong positive correlation with the number of different leisure activities amongst Finnish seniors. As most European societies continue to age, it is clear that future research should focus on the implications and the role the Internet and other new ICTs will play in the everyday life amongst the ageing citizens.
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Acknowledgments
The authors wish to thank the anonymous referee and Editor Hans-Werner Wahl for useful comments on an earlier version of the manuscript. Data collection and completion of this article was supported in part by Grants from the Finnish Foundation for Economic Education (decision 30094), the Finnish Cultural Foundation, The Varsinais-Suomi Regional Fund and Turku University Foundation.
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Näsi, M., Räsänen, P. & Sarpila, O. ICT activity in later life: Internet use and leisure activities amongst senior citizens in Finland. Eur J Ageing 9, 169–176 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-011-0210-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-011-0210-8