The Digital Divide in mHealth Services: Differences Across Age Segmentations

mHealth services have become a trend in assisting people to manage their own health, an area that has received attention from academia, practitioners, and mass populations. The benefits of mHealth services are obvious, especially regarding the management of chronic disease; however, these benefits are impeded if service receivers are not able to access the services due to the "digital divide" existence. The current study explores the digital divide phenomenon in the mHealth services context across age differences. By conducting focus group interviews among four different age groups, this study initially proposes two theoretical perspectives to understanding acceptance of mHealth services: the three factor framework and the social justice perspective. These perspectives give direction to future studies, and the results of the focus group interviews provide guidance to practitioners' promotion strategies.