Understanding the information practice of elderly people in social welfare access: a perspective of policy information reach

Purpose This study aims to reveal the information practice of elderly people in the context of social welfare access and to examine how they seek, use and share information from the perspective of policy information reach. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative research was adopted with data triangulation. First, two cities and three venue types were selected as research sites. Second, 24 elderly participants (aged 60 years and above) were recruited, with data collected through 17 one-to-one interviews, 2 focus group interviews and 3 observations. Third, thematic analysis was applied to data until theoretical saturation. Findings This study identified the elderly's policy information needs and available information sources and elaborated their behaviors of policy information acquiring, using and sharing. A theoretical model for their information practice in social welfare access was further developed, indicating that their welfare needs drive policy information practice, and available information sources and reachable information channels determine the extent of their welfare policy utilization. Originality/value This study addressed the previously under-explored area of elderly people's information practice in social welfare access, and not only enriched information practice theory through a targeted theoretical model for this scenario but also advanced research on government information delivery through a new theoretical perspective of policy information reach.