The term “digital divide” refers to
the gap between individuals, households, businesses and geographic areas at different socio-economic levels with regard to both their opportunities to access information and communication technologies (ICTs) and to their use of the Internet for a wide variety of activities
.
What is the digital divide and why is it a problem?
The expression “digital divide” refers to
the existing gap between those who can use new digital technologies and those who can’t
. This is a key issue of today’s society, since it also provokes a distinction between those who can access certain information and those who are unable to do so.
What are examples of digital divide?
Causes and Examples of the Digital Divide
Factors such as
low literacy and income levels, geographical restrictions
, lack of motivation to use technology, lack of physical access to technology, and digital illiteracy contribute to the digital divide.
What is the digital divide and why is it important?
The term ‘digital divide’ is used
to cover a broad range of social differences in access to and use of digital equipment and services
, most notably personal com- puters, and the ability to access the internet in terms of both physical connection and facility of use.
What causes digital divide?
Instead, the divide persists today despite the mass marketing of electronic devices with Internet access. The causes can range from
the high price of the above-mentioned devices to the lack of knowledge about their use or the lack of infrastructure for their access
.
What are the three types of digital divide?
- Gender Divide. According to a 2013 report, the internet gender gap is striking especially in developing countries. …
- Social Divide. Internet access creates relationships and social circles among people with shared interests. …
- Universal Access Divide.
What are the 3 stages of digital divide?
- Stage 1: Economic Divide.
- Stage 2: Usability Divide.
- Stage 3: Empowerment Divide.
Is digital divide good or bad?
The digital divide has contributed to
differences in development levels
among states. The access to information in the developed world is much better as compared to the case in the underdeveloped world. … This parity has created an economic divide globally since information is critical in facilitating productivity.
How does digital divide affect people’s lives?
“Those who find themselves on the wrong side of the digital divide—including low-income people, those with less formal education, rural populations, the elderly and older workers, and minorities—suffer
further economic, social, health, and political disparities resulting from disconnection
,” Barton writes.
How can we prevent digital divide?
- an affordable, good-bandwidth Internet service.
- devices with Internet access to meet everyone’s needs.
- educational pathways to use the Internet and other digital technologies.
- a quality technical support.
What is the digital divide in education?
The digital divide in education is
the gap between those with sufficient knowledge of and access to technology and those without
, according to the ACT Center for Equity in Learning. To examine the divide requires looking at who can connect to what and how they do so.
Is digital divide a problem?
The digital divide
is not only an issue in developing countries
. Even in very wealthy countries, various communities face barriers to access, for economic, linguistic, and even generational reasons. Some organizations and even countries are trying to close the digital divide using free and open source software (FOSS).
What is the digital divide and how does it impact society?
The digital divide is
the gap between those who have access to technology, the internet and digital literacy training and those who do not
. It affects all generations – both rural and urban communities – as well as a wide variety of industries and sectors.
Who Benefits From digital divide?
Who benefits from the rapid rise of this issue on the international agenda? This article argues that the promotion of the digital divide as a policy issue benefits four major groups:
information capital, developing country governments, the development “industry,” and global civil society
.
What are the stages of digital divide?
In his article, he breaks the digital divide up into three stages:
the economic divide, the usability divide, and the empowerment divide
.
What are the levels of digital divide?
Taking into account the three levels of the digital divide, we explore 5 important barriers (
access, skills, motivation, emotions and utility
) that influence the type of use of digital technologies by young people.
