Using technology to advance social health

Digital social networking is essentially limitless, but it requires an Internet connection, a device, and the ability to use the technology. This chapter addresses the following questions: To what extent do older adults take advantage of the Internet and social media for their social interactions?; Is it possible to reduce the epidemic of social isolation through these technologies?. It is organized as follows: It first reviews some facts about how older adults are adopting new technologies and the barriers that prevent their adoption. It then introduces new research areas which utilize modern technologies and have implications for combating the modern-day social isolation epidemic. Finally, the chapter discusses some cautions and research areas that need to be addressed before advocating digital socialization among older adults. The chapter also share some interesting discussion exchanges among members of the Gerontological Society of America posted in its open forum a few months ago.