Amber DeJohn, Ph.D., an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography at Florida State University, recently published a research paper titled “Mobility, ICT, and health: a built environment investigation of older Chinese migrants’ social isolation and loneliness” in BMC Public Health on February 7, 2025. The study examines how the ability to move through one’s community and the design of that community itself shapes feelings of loneliness and social isolation among older adult migrants. The following summary was written by Joseph Martinez (B.S. Political Science ‘25; M.S. in Planning ’26).
Dr. DeJohn’s research focuses on older Chinese migrants living in the Greater Toronto Area during the COVID-19 pandemic, a population that faced heavy challenges as lockdowns restricted the everyday movement that many older adults rely on for social connection. While much public health attention turned to digital tools like video calls as a solution to isolation, Dr. DeJohn’s research asks a more fundamental question: can technology really replace what we lose when we can no longer get into our communities?
“Being able to get around your community and feeling a sense of belonging is more important for reducing loneliness in older adults than socializing online,” DeJohn said. “An individual’s geography is key to understanding and supporting their health.”
To investigate this, Dr. DeJohn conducted a survey measuring community mobility, information and communication technology (ICT) use, loneliness, and health outcomes among older adults in the Greater Toronto Area. She then applied structural equation modeling (SEM), a statistical method that tests how multiple factors interact with and influence one another simultaneously, to examine how mobility, ICT use, and the built environment, such as the availability of transit, contributed to social isolation and health outcomes.
Dr. DeJohn found that while ICT use was associated with better physical health outcomes, greater community mobility was a more critical factor in reducing loneliness. Notably, neighborhoods with higher transit density supported better community mobility and were associated with lower reliance on digital communication, which suggests that when people can easily get around, they are less dependent on technology to stay connected. Physical access to community spaces proved more powerful than a phone or computer screen in keeping older adults from feeling alone.
These findings carry real implications for how cities are designed and how social programs are structured. Rather than focusing primarily on technology access, policymakers and urban planners should prioritize walkability, public transportation, and community spaces that allow older adults, especially those from migrant communities, to remain active participants in their neighborhoods.
Dr. DeJohn notes that further research should ensure that geography is built into studies of digital health interventions. “Geographies of access and socializing must be considered in studies of ICT interventions,” she said. “We show that a-spatial controls are not enough.”
This research has been presented at the Gerontological Society of America, the American Association of Geographers, and the International Medical Geography Symposium.
To read Dr. DeJohn’s full article, click here.
To learn more about FSU’s Department of Geography, visit geography.fsu.edu.