Characteristics of Midlife Women Recruited Through Internet Communities/Groups

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore demographic characteristics of a specific online population, midlife women recruited through Internet communities (ICs) or groups, and to provide future direction for Internet research among midlife women. Using a feminist perspective, the study focused on ethnic variations in the characteristics of the midlife women. A total of 192 midlife women were recruited through ICs. The Internet survey included questions on sociodemographic characteristics and health/illness status. The data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings indicated that midlife women recruited through ICs tended to be Caucasian, young, married, and affluent. The findings also indicated significant ethnic differences in sociodemographic characteristics. The findings suggest that researchers need to consider that midlife women recruited from ICs tend to be a specific group of midlife women. Keywords Internet Communities; Midlife Women; Recruitment; Internet ResearchWith the recent changes in Internet use and dynamics, characteristics of Internet users have changed as well. For example, in terms of ethnic composition, recent studies indicated that Internet usage among Asian-Americans is greater than that of any other ethnic groups, and half of Hispanic Americans and 33% of African Americans are now Internet surfers. 1, 2 In terms of gender, women account for 52% of home Internet users. 2 Many researchers have posited that the Internet is providing a unique forum for marginalized groups including midlife women, to find a voice in the public sphere. 3, 4 Indeed, although the digital divide is still a concern in Internet interactions, the number of women on the Internet has dramatically increased in recent years.With the increasing number of women on the Internet, the number of studies of women on the Internet has increased recently. In the early stages of Internet use, studies reported that women had less experience with computers than men and that they were more likely than men to use computers only at work. 5 The studies also reported that women possessed less self-efficacy toward the computers, and had high levels of computer anxiety. 6 All these factors have been reported to lead to a gender gap in Internet use in the 1990s. 7Recent studies have also reported that women tend to have more negative attitudes toward computers and the Internet. 8 The studies also that women tend to visit websites to better understand issue complexities, 9 and that women tend to be more concerned about privacy and prefer to use the media to build social contacts. 10 In addition, it was reported that women tend to seek support through the Internet while men tend to seek information, 11 and that women tend to be more easily recruited to a study through the Internet compared with men. 11, 12 As

Physical Activity and Depressive Symptoms in Four Ethnic Groups of Midlife Women

“…The means of the five items were used as the level of acculturation (1 = exclusively own ethnic group to 5 = exclusively American ). Cronbach's alpha of these questions was .84, and the content validity was confirmed by several expert reviews (Im & Chee, 2005; Im et al, 2008). In this analysis, Cronbach's alpha for these questions was .96.…”

“…These questions were originally adopted from the Suinn-Lew Asian Self-Identity Acculturation Scale (SL-ASIA; (Suinn, Ahuna, & Khoom, 1992) and altered to measure the level of acculturation in various racial/ethnic groups. These were used in previous studies by the research team (Im & Chee, 2005; Im, Shin, & Chee, 2008). The means of the five items were used as the level of acculturation (1 = exclusively own ethnic group to 5 = exclusively American ).…”

Asian American Midlife Women's Attitudes Toward Physical Activity

“…These two settings were chosen because they have been reported to be effective research settings for studies among midlife women (Baehring, Schulze, Bornstein, & Scherbaum, 1997; Barrera, Glasgow, McKay, Boles, & Feil, 2002; Bowker & Liu, 2001; Im, Shin, & Chee, 2008). A total of 2,309 ICMWs and 4,421 ICEMs were approached for the larger study.…”

“A Waste of Time”: Hispanic Women's Attitudes Toward Physical Activity

“…The settings included both Internet communities for midlife women (ICMWs) and Internet communities for ethnic minorities (ICEMs) that have been reported to be effective research settings or medium for studies in midlife women (Barrera et al 2002; Im et al 2008a). We recruited the participants of the larger study through 2,309 ICMWs and 4,421 ICEMs that we contacted to announce the study.…”