Digital engagement in the silver economy

BackgroundPopulation aging and accelerating digitalization increase the relevance of the silver economy, as country-level patterns of digital engagement among older age groups shape inclusion in markets and services.MethodsThis study examines the country-level association between productive digital engagement among people aged 55–74 and two macroeconomic outcomes (GDP per capita and GNI per capita) across European countries plus Iceland and Norway, using OECD ICT Access and Usage by Households and Individuals indicators. Independent variables measure the national prevalence of purpose-specific online activities (online purchasing, online course participation, use of online ICT services, social networking, and health information search), a skills barrier (lack of skills for submitting online forms), and a digital infrastructure proxy (fixed broadband subscriptions). A multivariate linear regression model is estimated, and multicollinearity is assessed.ResultsThe models explain a substantial share of cross-country variation in GDP per capita (R2 ≈ 0.65) and GNI per capita (R2 ≈ 0.73). Countries with higher shares of people aged 55–74 engaging in online purchasing tend to exhibit higher GDP and GNI per capita; online purchasing remains a strong positive correlate in both specifications. In contrast, the association of online course participation varies by outcome measure. Health information search and social networking show negative partial associations in both models, while general internet-intensity indicators (rare/daily use) add limited explanatory power due to multicollinearity.Conclusion/implicationsCross-country differences in GDP per capita align more closely with the country-level prevalence of transactional and skill-building digital activities among people aged 55–74 than with internet-use frequency alone. Because the analysis is observational and based on national aggregates, the findings indicate associations at the country level and should not be interpreted as causal or as individual-level relationships.