Enhancing Older Adults’ Motivation for Social Interaction: Exploring Design Principles of Social Media Mobile Applications Through a Self-Determination Theory (SDT) Approach

This study, grounded in Self-Determination Theory (SDT) [7, 15, 16], aimed to examine the barriers and challenges faced by older adults when using social media mobile applications, focusing on autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Using a mixed-methods approach, the study incorporated observations (n = 33), surveys (n = 33), and semi-structured interviews (n = 4) to assess three popular social media applications in the Chinese market: WeChat, QQ, and Douyin. These applications were evaluated across five features: “Senior” or “Easy” mode, sending text messages, sending voice messages, initiating voice calls, and initiating video calls. By integrating Self-Determination Theory (SDT) principles with research findings, seven primary design principles have been proposed for social media mobile applications tailored to older adults, aiming to enhance their social engagement and motivation.