TY - JOUR
T1 - Internet use and online social support among same sex attracted individuals of different ages
AU - Baams, L.
AU - Jonas, K.J.
AU - Utz, S.
AU - Bos, H.M.W.
AU - van der Vuurst, L.
PY - 2011
Y1 - 2011
N2 - The current research addressed age differences in internet use among Same Sex Attracted (SSA) individuals. In general, online communities are found to be a source of social support, especially for minority group members. However, it is unclear whether younger and older SSA people differ in their use of these communities. The present research examined age differences in use of online communities, hypothesizing that young SSA people primarily use these for social interaction and support, whereas older SSA people use online communities to seek sexual contacts. Study 1 examined age differences in motives to start using these websites. Study 2 examined age differences in use of online profiles and online social support. Results of both studies confirmed our hypotheses. Younger compared to older SSA people are found to receive more online social support, whereas older SSA use the internet more for sexual purposes. Our findings provide first time evidence of the relation between sexual orientation, age and internet use. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
AB - The current research addressed age differences in internet use among Same Sex Attracted (SSA) individuals. In general, online communities are found to be a source of social support, especially for minority group members. However, it is unclear whether younger and older SSA people differ in their use of these communities. The present research examined age differences in use of online communities, hypothesizing that young SSA people primarily use these for social interaction and support, whereas older SSA people use online communities to seek sexual contacts. Study 1 examined age differences in motives to start using these websites. Study 2 examined age differences in use of online profiles and online social support. Results of both studies confirmed our hypotheses. Younger compared to older SSA people are found to receive more online social support, whereas older SSA use the internet more for sexual purposes. Our findings provide first time evidence of the relation between sexual orientation, age and internet use. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
U2 - 10.1016/j.chb.2011.04.002
DO - 10.1016/j.chb.2011.04.002
M3 - Article
VL - 27
SP - 1820
EP - 1827
JO - Computers in Human Behavior
JF - Computers in Human Behavior
SN - 0747-5632
IS - 5
ER -