Beyond digital access: domains and breadths of everyday digital technology engagement and associations with cognition...

This study identified latent domains and usage-breadth patterns of everyday digital technology (EDT) engagement among older adults and examined their concurrent and prospective associations with cognition.

The analytic sample comprised 2,910 adults aged ≥65 who completed the 2020 Leave-Behind Questionnaire of the Health and Retirement Study. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses identified latent domains across 31 digital activities, and latent class analysis (LCA) identified subgroups differing in engagement breadth. Structural equation models and class-based models examined associations with concurrent (2020) and prospective (2022) cognition, adjusting for prior cognition (2018) and other covariates.

Four domains-information access, routine tools, social engagement, and logistic tasks-were identified and confirmed. The domains were intercorrelated and loaded on a second-order general factor, reflecting a graded propensity toward digital engagement. LCA distinguished low-, moderate-, and broad-use groups, with engagement broadening in a patterned way in which the more demanding logistic tasks were endorsed least often, even among moderately engaged users. The general EDT factor, selected domain factors, engagement breadth, and digital gaming were positively associated with concurrent cognition, but none prospectively predicted cognition after adjustment for prior cognition.

EDT engagement is best understood as a graded propensity that varies primarily in breadth. Its concurrent associations, absent prospective prediction over a two-year interval, are more consistent with cognitive status shaping EDT engagement than with short-term cognitive benefits of EDT engagement. These findings caution against strong claims that digital engagement preserves cognition, while supporting older adults' digital participation may remain valuable on other grounds.