Signal The complex relationship between the digital divide, social capital, and mental health among older adults: a multi-method path decomposition

Summary

A study by Qiwei Feng, Ting Zhou, Changxi Chen and Xinbin Xia of the School of Humanities and Management, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, was published in Frontiers in Psychology (DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1670203) on September 5, 2025. It combined propensity score matching, panel fixed-effects models and generalized structural equation modeling on China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) data spanning 2016-2022, using a 2016-2020 panel of 18,553 observations and a 2022 cross-section of 4,290 individuals, all aged 60 and over. The direct total effect of the digital divide on depression was statistically null (ATT = 0.02, p > 0.1), masking two competing pathways: internet access itself showed a marginal protective effect on mental health (β = -0.052, p < 0.1), while lower digital literacy eroded bridging social capital (trust in strangers and interpersonal relationships), which in turn increased depression risk. The authors concluded that the digital divide functions as a double-edged sword, whose net effect depends on the interplay between direct technological benefits and indirect social costs. They called for digital inclusion policies to move beyond closing physical access gaps toward "empowering trust" via targeted digital literacy interventions. As of the search, the article had recorded 2,836 views and 2 citations on the Frontiers platform.