Beyond ownership: the critical role of digital literacy in shaping the impact of digital access on physical activity.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The rapid proliferation of digital technology is often assumed to automatically foster healthier lifestyles, yet its impact on physical activity (PA) remains inconsistent and poorly understood. Moving beyond the simplistic focus on access, this study proposes and tests a theoretically grounded moderated mediation framework. It posits that digital literacy is the pivotal mechanism through which access influences PA, and that this mediation process is fundamentally moderated by the urban-rural divide, a key structural inequalities in China.

Methods

Utilizing nationally representative data from the 2022 China Family Panel Studies (N = 18,251), we tested this framework using a counterfactual-based causal mediation analysis, complemented by instrumental variable

SUBMITTER: Li W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12832747 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature