Pew study finds fitness tracking is linked to education and wealth

For some people, making a health resolution for the new year means turning to their Apple watch or Fitbit for assistance. For others, it means exercising their asses off only to hope that they’re maybe — just maybe — on track to meet their goals.

Turns out, there’s a very specific pattern behind who wears smartwatches and fitness trackers — and who doesn’t. 

A Pew Research Center study published Thursday finds that the use of those devices falls along socioeconomic lines.

After surveying 4,272 U.S. adults, Pew found that adults from wealthier households are more likely to say they regularly use smart watches or fitness trackers. Whereas 31 percent of adults from households that earn over $75,000 annually said they’re users of those devices, only 12 percent of those from households earning less than $30,000 said the same. 

Level of education factors in heavily, too. Adults who are college-educated are more likely to be fitness-tracking enthusiasts compared to those who aren’t — 27 percent versus 15 percent, respectively. Differences by gender, race, and ethnicity are more modest, however.

These results shouldn’t come as a surprise since the digital divide between income groups has been well-documented. Pew’s research, however, shows just how the use of smart watches and fitness wearables fits into that narrative. 

“Socioeconomic factors have long played a role in tech adoption — we see that to be the case with overall use of the internet, as well as adoption of home broadband or desktop computers,” Emily A. Vogels, a research associate at Pew, told Mashable. “These differences are in line with other research we’ve seen around early adopters of technology.”

Smart watches and fitness trackers today often feature functions like heart rate tracking, electrocardiogram, and fitness reminders. As these wearables increasingly intersect with preventative care, differences in their usage and adoption leave us wondering about its potential implications for healthcare access in the digital age.

Indeed, the socioeconomic disparities indicated in this study seem to fall in line with other patterns of healthcare inequalities. Individuals from low income and education backgrounds are not only less likely to be advised on their exercise habits, but they’re also less likely to receive evidence-based health intervention and care, according to a study by the Office of Minority Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 

Some researchers even draw on data from these devices for health research. While that makes non-users less vulnerable to the misuse of wearable-derived health data, it also excludes them from this health research. The question, then, becomes whether accessibility to smart watches and fitness trackers inform the diversity of health research, and what that means for the future of healthcare.

In any case, your smart watch and fitness tracker will continue to (hopefully) guide you through your health-related New Year’s resolutions.

That is, if you’re among the few people who actually own one.