We adopt a lifecourse approach to compare subjective well-being effects of web-based digital technologies using UK Understanding Society panel data, 2019-2022. The pervasiveness of digital technology is evident in usage across generational cohorts, although older adults remain less digitally engaged. Ordinal logit, ANCOVA and multinomial logit estimations reveal passively looking at social media and streaming video have negative well-being effects, but less so among Digital Natives for whom these activities are normalised. Gaming has a well-being maintenance effect among Digital Natives (life, leisure, income satisfaction), tentative positive effect (life) for Generation-X, but consistent negative health effects across generational cohorts. Findings support well-being benefits of actively posting on social media (Digital Natives and Generation-X (income, health), older adults (life, leisure)), online purchasing (Digital Natives and Generation-X (leisure, income)) and streaming music (Generation-X (life), older adults (life, leisure)). Findings emphasise importance of use drivers, relative normalisation and user characteristics to well-being impacts.

Co-authors

Dr Sarah Buglass, Nottingham Trent University