The use of e-government services and the Internet: The role of socio-demographic,economic and geographical predictors

This article explores the use of e-government services from the perspective of digital divides. First, it aims to find out which socio-demographic, economic and geographical factors predict the use of e-government services. Second, the article aims to show whether these factors moderate the way in which the time spent on the Internet is associated with the use of e-government services. The article is based on survey data (N=612) collected in Finland in May–June 2011 and is analysed by using a logistic regression modelling. Results show that gender and income moderate the link between the Internet and e-government service use. The more that women use the Internet, the more they use the government's electronic services. However, among men, the use of e-services does not increase similarly with the use of the Internet. Regarding income indicators, results imply that e-service use increases with Internet use but only among the respondents with low income levels. Additionally, the article shows that education, children, income and the size of the place of residence have major effects on the use of the government's e-services. Lastly, the empirical results are briefly discussed in relation to the digital divide discussion and some policy implications are presented.     

Evolution and determinants of digital divide in Brazil (2005–2013)

During the last decades, the widespread growth of information and communication technologies (ICT) has posed incentives to broaden the participation of individuals in social, political and economic dimensions of life. However, utilization of ICT also involves access to technology and infrastructure, and acquisition of skills to deal with innovations and, thus, digital literacy is, primarily, a complementary good. The digital divide expresses inequalities in access and utilization of ICT among individuals and populations in different countries. The study adopts inequalities indexes of Internet access and mobile phone ownership to measure use of ICT goods, accounting for the digital divide in Brazil. The inequality indexes are also split according to main determinants using four nationally representative survey data from 2005 to 2013. Results indicate that the digital divide among individuals is decreasing quite fast among Brazilians over time. However, there is room for policies of mass access to ICT goods based on mobile Internet broadband access. In addition, digital illiteracy, evaluated by lack of education, is one of the main determinants of the digital divide in the country, especially among elderly individuals.     

Internet diffusion in sub-Saharan Africa: A cross-country analysis

In this paper, the notions of digital inequality and digital divide have been employed to describe two levels of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) access. On the one hand is the inequality of access to the cluster of technology measured by Internet use and on the other are the confluence of skills and other resources that differentiate countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Using cross-country data, hypotheses are tested within a simultaneous equation system. The paper confirms the vital importance of telecommunications infrastructure represented by the high correlation of telephone density with Internet irrespective of per capita income level of the country.     

Beyond access: A relational and resource-based model of household Internet adoption in isolated communities

Isolated rural communities face specific challenges associated with their geographical context in the digital inclusion process. Thus, based on a relational and resource-based model as well as diffusion research, this study explored personal, positional factors, as well as material and social resources of household Internet connection in remote communities that received infrastructure access for the first time between 2010 and 2011 in Chile. A face-to-face representative survey conducted in 22 communities revealed that, among personal variables, age and innovative personality played a role in household Internet adoption. Material resources such as income and transport connectivity were also relevant. However, social resources were among the most significant predictors. That is, the presence of children in the household and larger social networks were associated with greater chances of Internet connection.     

The end justifies the definition: The manifold outlooks on the digital divide and their practical usefulness for policy-making

Based on the theory of the diffusion of innovations through social networks, the article discusses the main approaches researchers have taken to conceptualize the digital divide. The result is a common framework that addresses the questions of who (e.g. divide between individuals, countries, etc.), with which kinds of characteristics (e.g. income, geography, age, etc.), connects how (mere access or effective adoption), to what (e.g. phones, Internet, digital TV, etc.). Different constellations in these four variables lead to a combinatorial array of choices to define the digital divide. This vast collection of theoretically justifiable definitions is contrasted with the question of how the digital divide is defined in practice by policy makers. The cases of the United States, South Korea, and Chile are used to show that many diverse actors with dissimilar goals are involved in confronting the digital divide. Each of them takes a different outlook on the challenge. This leads to the question if this heterogeneity is harmful and if countries that count with a coherent national strategy and common outlook on digital development do better than others. It is shown that the effect of a coherent vision is secondary to tailor-made sector-specific efforts. On the contrary, a one-size-fits-all outlook on a multifaceted challenge might rather be harmful. This leads to the conclusion that it is neither theoretically feasible, nor empirically justifiable to aim for one single definition of the digital divide. The digital divide is best defined in terms of a desired impact. Since those are diverse, so are the definitions of the challenge. The best that can be done is to come up with a comprehensive theoretical framework that allows for the systematic classification of different definitions, such as the one presented in this article.     

Closing the rural broadband gap: Promoting adoption of the Internet in rural America

Even as geographic disparities in high speed Internet access narrow, an urban–rural broadband gap persists, pointing to the importance of individual differences in motivations to adopt broadband as the key to closing the gap. Diffusion of innovation is reconceptualized through contemporary perspectives of the digital divide and social cognitive theory and tested on a survey sample drawn from four rural communities. Path analysis was used to examine the factors that cause broadband Internet service adoption in rural communities. Prior experience with the Internet, the expected outcomes of broadband usage, direct personal experience with broadband, and self-efficacy had direct effects on broadband intentions. Age and income, but not education or ethnicity, also had direct impacts. Efforts that promote the personal benefits of broadband and advanced ICT literacy skills among Internet users are recommended.     

Does computer penetration increase farmers’ income? An empirical study from China

The diffusion and adoption of modern information technology provide new chance for China to close urban-rural income gap. This paper uses China's provincial panel data from 2002 to 2013 to investigate the effect of computer penetration on rural residents' income. A public program aiming to connect every village with broadband Internet and other rural facilities provides plausibly exogenous variation in rural residents' availability and adoption of the broadband Internet, which is used to explore the instrument variable for rural computer penetration. The results show that rural computer penetration tends to increase rural residents' income over time, but the average effect remains limited. The dynamic panel threshold effects model, which allows for both the threshold variable and other covariates to be endogenous, is further used to explore the constraints of the income-increase effect of rural computer penetration. It shows that the effect is at least doubled over the average effect estimated from instrument variables method, once the digital divide causes are removed. Our findings have important implications for the government to increase rural residents' income and reduce urban-rural income gap by encouraging rural computer usage and removing the digital divide.     

Creating a national strategy for Internet development in Chile

A growing body of literature points to the importance of both economic and non-economic factors in reducing the digital divide. This paper examines Chile as a successful case where changes in government policies dramatically increased Internet access from about 2% of the population in 1998 to 23.8% in 2002. After reviewing the literature, the paper examines the debates in Chile over Internet development, tracing how public opinion was able to influence government policies, and how in turn, government policies increased Internet access. Specific policies include lowering telephone rates, connecting the various national networks, creating public access centers, and passing e-commerce legislation.     

The digital vicious cycle: Links between social disadvantage and digital exclusion in rural areas

The Internet confers benefits on its users in a variety of ways, ranging from simple information acquisition and purchasing goods and services, to interacting with a range of individuals and groups in the wider processes of governance. Rural citizens stand to gain more than most, relatively, since the use of the Internet reduces, if not removes, former barriers (particularly that of distance) to such interaction. To that extent, the shrinking of the ‘digital divide’ (and particularly the increased availability of broadband Internet in the countryside) is very welcome. However, there is a danger that non-users of the Internet are disenfranchised by such developments, and these include some of the most disadvantaged and vulnerable sectors of rural populations. There is thus a risk that, as the Internet increasingly becomes regarded as the default communication medium, a minority becomes progressively disadvantaged, first in relative and then in absolute terms. This paper explores the links between digital exclusion and social exclusion in a rural context, to identify the likely consequences of this ‘digital vicious cycle’, and to consider the options for ameliorating these consequences.     

Online job search in the Spanish labor market

Using data from the Spanish survey on equipment and use of ICTs in households for the period 2007–2011, we study the decision of Spanish jobseekers to search for a job online, and explore potential differences between unemployed and employed workers. Since only those jobseekers that have accessed the Internet can perform an online job search, we use bivariate probit selection models to correct for potential selection bias. Our results show that Internet Spanish jobseekers tend to be younger, better educated, more Internet-savvy, and live in urban areas compared to those that only use traditional search channels. However, we find that employment-to-employment and unemployment-to-employment transitions differ by gender, nationality, household income, and time aggregate factors. We find evidence of a digital divide in adoption and usage by age and educational attainment. These findings suggest that policy makers and human resources managers should take into account these disparities in Internet usage to guide their public programs and recruiting strategies.     

Evolution of the internet gender gaps in Spain and effects of the Covid-19 pandemic

There is a widely accepted belief in new technologies that the digital divide in using a service will disappear as the service reaches an advanced level of maturity. The work presented here shows that this idea is debatable. Data from Spain, a country where daily internet users are 75.9 percent of the population, prove that the gender gap still exists. The paper explores if this gap can be entirely explained by the socioeconomic differences between men and women. We build a micro panel model and incorporate a set of socioeconomic variables (age, education, income, employment status, digital skills, and resident population) that allow us to isolate the effects of gender on the decision to become a daily Internet user. The results conclude that the Internet gap is a phenomenon with a specific gender component. Other things being equal a woman negatively affects the probability of using the Internet. Applying a similar model to 15 Internet services, we obtain that gender is always significant to explain the likelihood of being a user of each service. However, in some services (7 out of 15), the effect is favorable to women, and for other services (8), the gender effect favors men. The work concludes by analyzing the impact of the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic on the use of Internet services, paying particular attention to its possible implications for the gender gap.     

Disparities in ICT adoption: A multidimensional approach to study the cross-country digital divide

This paper presents a cross-country study on the determinants of information and communication technology (ICT) diffusion using multivariate analysis techniques to capture the relative and multidimensional character of digital divide. Using canonical correlation analysis, the differences detected between groups of countries both in terms of ICT patterns and in terms of the factors explaining each are compared. The results provide the ability to distinguish between different patterns of ICT adoption that can be explained primarily by variables associated with differences in development levels. In countries registering higher levels of ICT adoption, the digitalization pattern is explained by GDP, service sector, education, and governmental effectiveness. In contrast, in developing countries, population age and urban population are positively associated with the ICT adoption, while Internet costs impact negatively. The results might be useful in finding and implementing the most suitable telecommunication and development policies for each case.     

Analysis of fixed broadband access and use in Thailand: Drivers and barriers

The aim of this paper is to analyze the demand for fixed broadband in Thailand. Data were obtained from a national survey in 2010 by the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) of Thailand. The bivariate probit model was employed to examine empirically whether accessibility to fixed telephony infrastructure, socio-economic variables and the area of residence have a systematic link to fixed broadband access in the first stage, and then, specific usage, provided access exists, is estimated. Results of this study show that the variables, together with their potential impact, are as follows: fixed infrastructure, income, gender, level of education, age of consumer and residential area. The impact of these factors varies from service to service (i.e. video download, social network, searching and e-mail). The implications for the NBTC are to encourage competition through the infrastructure and to permit more competition in infrastructure development. This could stimulate the growth of fixed broadband access and use. At the same time, the government could also implement policies to encourage more access and usage, for example income subsidization and training program.     

The use of ICTs and income distribution in Brazil: A machine learning explanation using SHAP values

This study explores the complex relationship between information and communication technologies (ICTs) and socioeconomic characteristics. We employ a cutting-edge explainable machine learning approach, known as SHAP values, to interpret an XGBoost and neural network model, as well as benchmark traditional econometric methods. The application of machine learning algorithms combined with the SHAP methodology reveals complex nonlinear relationships in the data and important insights to guide tailored policy-making. Our results suggest that there is an interaction between education and ICTs that contributes to income prediction. Furthermore, level of education and age are found to be positively associated with income, while gender presents a negative relationship; that is, women earn less than men on average. This study highlights the need for more efficient public policies to fight gender inequality in Brazil. It is also important to introduce policies that promote quality education and the teaching of skills related to technology and digitalization to prepare individuals for changes in the job market and avoid the digital divide and increasing social inequality.     

The European digital single market strategy: Local indicators of spatial association 2011–2016

This paper describes the space-time dynamics of the European digital divide. The frequencies of internet and E-commerce use are considered, along with a broad range of indicators associated with the European digital single market strategy. This paper aims to investigate the spatial structure underlying these aggregate outcome indicators. An exploratory spatial data analysis is conducted in a sample of 209 regions using Eurostat data. Strong evidence for both global and local spatial autocorrelation is found for the years 2011–2016. Consistently, a North-South polarization scheme is identified with little statistical significance in the centre of Europe. This contrasts with the high income cluster found in central Europe, while low values for digital indices and income are co-located more consistently in the South, but also in the North-East. Highlights from the specific results include: areas surrounding London as a dynamic high value cluster in E-commerce, Italy to conduct few cross-border purchases, France as a consistent adopter of E-governance, and broadband rates in general to closely reflect online activities.     

Multivariate and geospatial analysis of technology utilization in US counties

We examine geographic patterns and socio-economic and social capital correlates of the adoption and utilization of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in 3,108 counties of the United States. Access and use of ICTs are found to vary significantly among counties in metropolitan, micropolitan, and rural parts of the country. Clusters of high, moderate, and low ICT utilization counties are characterized by geodemographic and socio-economic attributes. Regression findings indicate that young dependency ratio, college education, working age population, and race and ethnic variables are major correlates of ICT use. We analyze and explain novel findings on associations of income, ethnicity, and social capital variables with ICT usage in light of the technology-use landscape in the US. Spatial bias and large sample size fallacy issues are addressed and policy recommendations to remediate the digital divide in US counties are provided.     

Race,ethnicity, and telecommunications policy issues of access and representation: Centering communities of color and their concerns

This paper examines how and why activist groups representing marginalized communities of color are increasingly engaging in communications technology policy issues, particularly in relation to issues of digital access and representation. It explores three distinct but related case studies to disentangle the issues and concerns of a range of communities of color, and the challenges and opportunities for their advocates in navigating the highly technical communications technology policy arena: the first case study, which centers on the NAACP's original opposition to net neutrality, reveals the primacy of issues surrounding the “digital divide” to populations of color, and the difficulties of engaging in technical conversations surrounding Internet governance when issues of access persist. Meanwhile, the second case reviews the campaign by Free Press to promote set-top box liberalization as an issue of representation and diversity to both policymakers and citizens. The final case, which examines the work of the Tribal International Carrier to build an alternative internet service network for Native populations, highlights the precarity which organizations must strategically navigate in order to mitigate the influence of both the state and large corporations over Internet policy issues in order to both serve and represent their constituents. In all, this paper presents and extends upon a novel approach to communications policy research, foregrounding the need to integrate critical race frameworks and, relatedly, to center the breadth, depth, and lived experiences of communities of color, which can therein facilitate more inclusive digital media and communication environments and policy structures.     

Determinants of mobile phone ownership in Nigeria

Mobile phones are recognized as a primary platform for mitigating the digital divide and increasing economic growth, and the same appears to be true for Nigeria, the largest economy in Africa. Since 2012, mobile phone penetration has shown nearly linear growth, reaching 83% in 2016. However, this statistic falls to only 46% after correcting for ownership of multiple SIM cards and sharing of mobile phones among multiple users. The determinants of mobile phone ownership in Nigeria are poorly understood, which hinders research that could inform policies capable of increasing mobile phone penetration and eliminating the digital divide. To begin to fill this research gap, we have analyzed socio-economic factors related to mobile phone ownership in the country. We used a logit model and the latest national-level Datafirst ICT dataset (2012) about mobile phone adoption from 1552 individuals. The sample was stratified, clustered, and probability-weighted to make it representative of the situation at the national level. The results suggest that factors such as geographic location and income may not strongly influence mobile phone ownership, in contrast to what was previously thought. Instead, the strongest factors appeared to be education level, informal work, social engagement, type of electricity supply and employment status. Our analysis suggests that to increase mobile phone ownership and close the digital divide, policy makers should target younger adults, provide training in digital literacy specifically for mobile phone use, invest in electricity supply infrastructure, and develop content and applications in non-English languages. These findings may contribute to understanding mobile phone distribution in Nigeria as well as inform implementation of the country's ICT Roadmap 2017–2020 and Vision 2020.     

Amazon Mechanical Turk and the commodification of labour

Crowd employment platforms enable firms to source labour and expertise by leveraging Internet technology. Rather than offshoring jobs to low‐cost geographies, functions once performed by internal employees can be outsourced to an undefined pool of digital labour using a virtual network. This enables firms to shift costs and offload risk as they access a flexible, scalable workforce that sits outside the traditional boundaries of labour laws and regulations. The micro‐tasks of ‘clickwork’ are tedious, repetitive and poorly paid, with remuneration often well below minimum wage. This article will present an analysis of one of the most popular crowdsourcing sites—Mechanical Turk—to illuminate how Amazon's platform enables an array of companies to access digital labour at low cost and without any of the associated social protection or moral obligation.