Older patients’ recall of online cancer information: Do ability and motivation matter more than chronological age?

This study proposes and tests a model to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the contribution of chronological age versus age-related ability and motivation factors in explaining recall of online cancer information among older patients (n = 197). Results revealed that recall is not a matter of chronological age per se, but rather a matter of ability and motivation. Age-related ability and motivation factors explained 37.9% of the variance in recall. Health literacy, involvement with the webpage, and satisfaction with the emotional support were positively associated with recall. Furthermore, recall was negatively related to frailty, anger, future time perspective, and perceived cognitive load. The findings pose relevant opportunities for tailoring interventions to improve online information provision for older cancer patients.