Research Note—Social Interactions and the “Digital Divide”: Explaining Variations in Internet Use

Abstract

Given the increasingly important role of the Internet in education, healthcare, and other essential services, it is important that we develop an understanding of the “digital divide.” Despite the widespread diffusion of the Web and related technologies, pockets remain where the Internet is used sparingly, if at all. There are large geographic variations, as well as variations across ethnic and racial lines. Prior research suggests that individual, household, and regional differences are responsible for this disparity. We argue for an alternative explanation: Individual choice is subject to social influence (“peer effects”) that emanates from geographic proximity; this influence is the cause of the excess variation. We test this assertion with empirical analysis of a data set compiled from a number of sources. We find, first, that widespread Internet use among people who live in proximity has a direct effect on an individual's propensity to go online. Using data on residential segregation, we test the proposition that the Internet usage patterns of people who live in more ethnically isolated regions will more closely resemble usage patterns of their ethnic group. Finally, we examine the moderating impact of housing density and directly measured social interactions on the relationship between Internet use and peer effects. Results are consistent across analyses and provide strong evidence of peer effects, suggesting that individual Internet use is influenced by local patterns of usage. Implications for public policy and the diffusion of the Internet are discussed.

Internet Use and Online Activities in U.S. States: Geographic Disparities and Socio-economic Influences

“…Over the years, a number of studies [1,2,4,21,27] have examined various aspects of ICT adoption, diffusion, and access. A number of these studies have focused on examining socioeconomic influences on adoption and access for a particular form of ICT, for example, the internet [1,4,28], broadband [8,22], while a few [2,20] have focused on computer adoption in the household along with an array of ICT access.…”

“…Some of this academic research has relied on the U.S. Census Bureau's Consumer Population Survey (CPS) data on computer and internet use [1], NTIA and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) datasets [8], survey data from Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life project [28]. In some instances, researchers have employed surveys to collect data on ICT access [4].…”

“…The model's independent factors are divided by categories -demographic, economic, education, infrastructure, affordability, innovation, societal openness, and social capital, all of which have been important in prior research [1][2][3][4][5][19][20][21]. Each category's inclusion in the conceptual model is based on prior research.…”

“…The concept, originally developed in sociological research [24], has been occasionally included in US digital divide studies and proven to be a significant factor associated with internet access [1,4,21]. Therefore, social capital is posited to be associated with enhanced internet use.…”

Bowling alone but tweeting together: the evolution of human interaction in the social networking era

“…First, we provide theoretical research with a logical framework for analyzing the relationship between web-mediated communication, the evolution of human interaction and the accumulation of social capital. Second, the analysis is also related to the literature on the digital divide (Goldfarb and Prince 2008;Agarwal et al 2009;Drouard 2010). If the adoption of the SN strategy can support happiness through engagement in social activities, then Internet users could increase their subjective well-being compared to non-users, especially when the pressure on time increases.…”