Older adults' perspectives on personal and health information sharing in relation to the adoption of healthcare technology

Abstract

Aging society led to the increase in various services targeted for older adults, and healthcare service is included as a crucial element for better aging. Utilizing HIT is expected to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of preventive healthcare and chronic disease management for older adults. This study aims to explore factors influencing older adults’ willingness to share their personal and health information―a key aspect for adopting IT-based healthcare devices―with a focus on the subject of information and entity to share with. Study participants (n=170) and survey data were gathered through senior centers in Daejeon. Then a series of logistic regressions were used to estimate the association of demographic factors, self-rated health, and attitude towards technology with the willingness to share by the entity. Results showed that education level and age were primary factors influencing participants' willingness to share information. Higher education showed a negative effect on willingness to share, while older age did vice versa. Other factors including gender, self-rated health, living alone, and attitude towards technology had a different impact on entity and information subject. This study contributes to the profound understanding of older adults' privacy perception and suggests that designing of related policies should consider the heterogeneity in the aging population.