The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has exposed older adults to health and social risks. This study examined the perceptions of community-dwelling older adults regarding how COVID-19 restricted their daily lives. Six focus-group interviews were conducted with 24 participants (mean age, 78.2 ± 5.5 years) living in urban and rural areas in Japan. Then, a qualitative inductive content analysis was performed. Six themes were generated: “fear of infection and public, watchful eyes,” “consistency in daily personal life,” “pain from reducing my social life,” “readiness to endure a restricted life,” “awareness of positive changes in myself,” and “concern for a languishing society.” There was no change that would make their lives untenable, and they continued their daily personal lives at a minimum level. However, their social lives were reduced, which over the long term can lead to a lost sense of purpose in life. This was reported as an adverse factor in the development of other diseases and functional decline in previous studies. While there is no doubt that infection prevention is important, supporting older adults in engaging in activities that provide a sense of purpose in life could contribute to their present and future overall health including mental health.

This study aimed to verify the effectiveness of an application (app) in establishing social connectedness among unacquainted older men, as well as improving their physical health. The nine participants were men aged 65 and older in the subarctic zone of Hokkaido, Japan. A mix of quantitative and qualitative methods were adopted as the study design. A questionnaire survey was completed before and after the intervention, and a semi-structured interview was conducted after the intervention. An app-installed smartphone was loaned to the participants, which allowed them to share pictures, voice recordings, and their step count. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, and qualitative data were analyzed using qualitative descriptive analysis to generate categories. The average age of the participants was 77.7 years. The relationship between participants who were interacting for the first time through the app advanced as their understanding of each other’s personalities deepened. The average step count during the third and fourth months was significantly higher than in the first two months. By using the app, older men were able to build relationships with one another. In addition, visualizing the number of steps on the app was effective in improving the number of steps.

Background: In today’s digital society, the acquisition of parenting information through online platforms such as social networking sites (SNSs) has become widespread. Amid the mix of online and offline information sources, there is a need to discover effective information-seeking methods for solving parenting problems. Objective: This study aimed to identify patterns of information use among parents of young children in the digital age and elucidate the characteristics of these patterns through a comparative analysis of parental social support and self-efficacy. Methods: An internet-based survey was administered to fathers and mothers of children aged 0-3 years. Convenience sampling, facilitated by an internet-based survey company, was adopted, and data from 227 fathers and 206 mothers were analyzed. The survey included questions on personal characteristics, frequency of use of different sources of parenting information (websites, SNSs, parenting apps, family, friends, and professionals), availability of parental social support, and parental self-efficacy. The Partitioning Around Medoids (PAM) clustering algorithm was used to identify patterns in parenting information use. Results: A total of 4 clusters were identified: multisource gatherers (n=161), offline-centric gatherers (n=105), online-centric gatherers (n=86), and minimal information gatherers (n=68). The availability of parental social support was perceived to be relatively higher among multisource and offline-centric gatherers compared with online-centric and minimal information gatherers. Parental self-efficacy was highest among multisource gatherers, followed by offline-centric and online-centric gatherers, and lowest among minimal information gatherers. Conclusions: This study contributes to the evidence that online information can effectively complement offline information in addressing parenting challenges, although its ability to fully replace offline sources remains limited. Parenting support professionals are encouraged to understand parents’ current information use strategies and actively foster their social relationships, helping them to adopt more diverse and comprehensive approaches to information use.

In digital societies, the use of smart devices to solve childcare problems has become commonplace. Mothers are influenced both positively and negatively by smart devices used to resolve childcare concerns. Focusing on parental self-efficacy, this study identified the factors associated with relief and anxiety caused by the use of smart devices to eliminate parenting concerns among mothers with infants. A random sampling cross-sectional survey was administered to 257 Japanese mothers with infants aged 6–11 months. Structural equation modeling was used to explain the relief and anxiety caused by their use of smart devices in terms of maternal demographics, parental self-efficacy, smart-device dependence, and confidence in their ability to discriminate information. Mothers with high parental self-efficacy experienced increased relief and reduced anxiety by using smart devices to address concerns about child-rearing practices. Mothers who were highly dependent on smart devices felt more secure with their use of smart devices. Homemakers and highly educated mothers who used smart devices because of concerns regarding child health and development experienced more anxiety. Parenting professionals need to recognize the effectiveness of smart devices as a tool to relieve anxiety in parenting and provide additional support for parents to improve their parenting self-efficacy.

Aims: To explore the value of social activities and the prerequisites for continuous participation among rural older adults based on their experiences. Design: Qualitative, descriptive design. Methods: Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 older adults from voluntary community salons in a rural area in Japan. Participants were selected through purposeful sampling. Data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. The consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ) checklist were used. Results: Four values of social activities were identified: "Mutual benefit connectedness," "Preventing arid coping with aging," "Making life brilliant 'now'," arid "Building a safety net." Three prerequisites for activities were identified: "Do not overreach," "Do not infringe on personal territory," and "Do not go against community norms." Social activities provide rural older adults with reciprocity ties, coping with aging, enhanced daily lives, and a social safety net. Continued participation in rural social activities requires adherence to cultural norms and moderation of relationship distances. Community and public health nurses are expected to promote social activities that incorporate these values and adhere to these prerequisites.