The "parallel double deprivation": how functional digital divides and gendered time constraints shape physical...

Rapid societal digitalization is reshaping health behaviors, yet the assumption that internet connectivity uniformly promotes physical activity overlooks the functional heterogeneity of internet use commonly described as the second-level digital divide. Furthermore, the time-related implications of digital engagement may vary across social groups, particularly where gendered inequalities in unpaid domestic labor persist. This study examines how different forms of digital engagement are associated with physical exercise participation in China and explores whether these associations are stratified by gender and place of residence.

Using nationally representative data from the 2022 China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) (N = 14,615), this study employed Probit, Ordered Logit, and Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) models to examine the associations between digital access, five functional dimensions of internet use-learning, socializing, consumption, entertainment, and work-and physical exercise outcomes. Oster's bounding method was used to assess the sensitivity of key estimates to potential unobserved selection. Gender- and residence-stratified analyses were conducted to examine heterogeneity.

General internet access was positively associated with physical exercise. Among internet users, however, different digital functions showed divergent associations. Digital learning was positively associated with exercise participation, whereas digital work was negatively associated with participation after other digital functions were jointly considered. Gender-stratified analyses indicated that the negative association between digital work and exercise was more pronounced among women. Among women, unpaid housework and digital work were both negatively associated with exercise participation, suggesting a pattern consistent with what we conceptualize as "Parallel Double Deprivation." In addition, digital entertainment was positively associated with exercise participation primarily among rural residents, indicating a possible spatially differentiated digital dividend.

The relationship between digital engagement and physical exercise depends not only on internet access but also on the functions for which digital technologies are used. The findings suggest that work-related digital engagement and unpaid domestic labor may jointly constrain women's health-promoting leisure time. Public health interventions should therefore pay closer attention to functional digital inequalities, gendered time constraints, and rural-urban differences in digital health opportunities.