Motivations for Facebook Use in Adults 65 and Older

Abstract

Social media sites have become powerful vehicles for social interaction, the dissemination of information, and the shaping of culture and public attitudes. No social media site has a greater reach than Facebook, particularly among older adults who have adopted the platform in growing numbers year after year. Previous research investigating the motivations for Facebook use among older adults often utilized measures normed on young adults, thus providing an incomplete picture of the older user experience. This qualitative study used a life course perspective to consider how one’s position in the life course might inform why and how older adults use Facebook. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 25 Facebook users, aged 65 and older (19 women, 6 men) who logged onto Facebook at least 5 times a week. Interviews were conducted between August 2022 and May 2023. Interviews included a life history, questions about Facebook use, and a “guided tour” of participants’ Facebook pages. An initial inductive thematic analysis revealed six motivations for using Facebook, including social connectedness, social support, information gathering, self-expression, work-related, and passing time. To establish whether these motivations were aligned with life course concepts, participant responses were re-analyzed for codes deduced from several well-known life course theories. Five of the six motivations found in the initial thematic analysis appeared to be related to aging themes. Responses suggested that Facebook’s design and structure support older adults in three ways: supporting weak social ties, supporting personal growth in later life, supporting storytelling. Limitations, future directions, and implications of using a life course perspective to inform theory, practice, and research are discussed. The use of a non-representative sample limited generalizability but highlighted the need to extend this research to more diverse samples. The study underscores the need to consider life course when determining whether Facebook or other social media tools could be used to promote meaningful aging.