WeChat Adoption among Older Adults and Urban-Rural Differences in China

At the intersection of social digitization and population aging, the challenge of older adults fitting into digital life is becoming more prominent. To understand how to help older adults adopt digital life, this study builds upon the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and developed the Digital Technology Motivation Interaction Model (DTMIM) to study the complex effects of autonomous motivation (perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived enjoyment), controlled motivation, and digital feedback on WeChat adoption among older adults, as well as the urban-rural differences. The results of the questionnaire survey and Fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) show that: First, no single construct is a necessary condition for a high (non-high) attitude toward using (ATU) or high (non-high) actual using (AU). Second, we identified two configurations that trigger high ATU including the autonomy-motivation type and digital feedback under motivational synergy, and three configurations that enable high AU including motivational synergy type, digital feedback under autonomous extrinsic motivation, and digital feedback under motivational synergy. Third, the configurations of high ATU and high AU show significant differences between urban and rural areas. Autonomy motivation plays a universal role in urban older adults’ WeChat adoption, while digital feedback is critical for rural older adults. The configuration analysis of DTMIM and urban-rural differences is not only an adaptive improvement of TAM but also provides new methods and perspectives for future research on the adoption of digital technology.