Three decades after the World Wide Web took the world by storm, smartphone ownership, access to and use of the Internet, and broadband adoption has grown on an enormous scale for Americans across the hierarchy of classes. However, despite the large-scale assimilation of technology into society and the narrowing of the digital divide, differences between access and use of technology still persist between a variety of Americans.
What is the Digital Divide?
According to WhatIs.com, a digital make over and divide ‘is a term that refers to the gap between demographics and regions that have access to modern information and communications technology, and those that don’t or have restricted access. This technology can include the telephone, television, personal computers and the Internet.’
Previously, the term only referred to the gap between people who had access to information through tv, radios and the telephone and those who did not. But over the years, as technology has advanced, it has broadened to include the gap between those with internet access, specifically high-speed broadband and those who do not.
However, it is not that simple. Despite having some degree of access to digital information and communication technologies, lower-income groups still face constraints in terms of lower-performance computers and slow, unreliable internet connections.
Moreover, pinpointing and quantifying the gap has become more difficult as the internet is accessed and used via a multitude of mediums, such as basic laptops and desktops to other devices such iPods, iPads, video game consoles, smartphones and tables.
Therefore, the notion of a digital divide is much more complex than it seems, because it doesn’t raise only the question of access, but also of who connects using what and how. Ajit Pai, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission sums it up “[as the gap between] those who can use cutting-edge communications services and those who cannot.”
The digital divide can be examined in terms of three main groups: social class, age and urban-rural areas. These groups also point to the reasons why such a divide exists, which are mainly income inequality, lack of infrastructure and a generation gap.
The Stats and the Evidence – Social Class
According to a research survey conducted by Pew Research Centre in 2019, lower-income Americans have visibly lower levels of technology adoption. This is because adoption and use of technology requires funding. While technology itself is expensive, it is also expensive to maintain it.
The following are the statistics for people who have access to smartphones:
- Lower Tier Class: 71%
- Middle Tier Class: 85%
- Higher Tier Class: 97%
The following are the statistics for people who have access to laptop computers or desktops:
- Lower Tier Class: 54%
- Middle Tier Class: 83%
- Higher Tier Class: 94%
The following are the statistics for people who have access to home broadband:
- Lower Tier Class: 56%
- Middle Tier Class: 81%
- Higher Tier Class: 94%
The following are the statistics for people who have access to tablets:
- Lower Tier Class: 36%
- Middle Tier Class: 55%
- Higher Tier Class: 70%
The following are the statistics for people who have access to all of the above:
- Lower Tier Class: 18%
- Middle Tier Class: 39%
- Higher Tier Class: 64%
According to this research, roughly 3 in 10 adults with an income below $30k per year do not have a smartphone. In the same tier, more than 4 in ten do not have broadband services at home or a desktop computer. Most of the Americans in the lower-income tier do not own a tablet. In comparison, access to all technologies across the board is prevalent in the higher-income tier, earning $100k or above per year.
Americans with a higher income usually possess multiple devices that put them on the grid. Rough two-thirds of high-wage earners have broadband services at home, a smart phone, a laptop or a desktop computer as well as a tablet in comparison to a measly 18% of low-wage earners.
Since 2013, the number of lower-income Americans that rely on smartphones for online access has doubled, rising from 12% in 2013 to 26% in 2019. This is because they have limited options for access to the internet which governs all aspects of live today, whether it’s relegated to the public sphere or the private sphere. This implies that 26% of the adults in the lower-income group are ‘smartphone-dependent’ users which means that they do not have broadband at home but own a smartphone. In comparison, a mere 5% of high-wage earners fall into this category.
The Stats and the Evidence – Age
According to research, households with persons 65 and above lag behind households headed by younger people in internet use as well as desktop or laptop ownership.
In 2015, only 65% households headed by people aged 65 and above used a laptop or owned it. In comparison, nearly 85% of homes headed by people under the age of 44 owned and used desktop or laptop computers.
The possession and use of handheld computers such as tablets were far more spread out by age. Only 47% of houses under leadership of 65 years and above used any variation of a handheld device. Whereas a whopping 90% of households under people aged 44 or less had a handheld device.
In the same vein, merely 62% of houses under the leadership of 65 years and above had a broadband connection. Whereas nearly 62% of households under people aged 44 or less had a working broadband connection.
However, as nature’s trajectory goes, it is expected that the gap will narrow to almost nothing the younger, tech savvy generation enters the older age demographic.
The Stats and the Evidence – Urban vs Rural
One of the biggest and widest gaps in internet and computer use is between urban and rural areas. The gap is not only prevalent, it is growing with increasing innovations in technology such as social media and the smartphone.
While rural Americans have made strides in the adoption of digital technology, the gap still persists in terms of smartphone ownership and broadband access at home.
According to research conducted by the Pew Research Centre in the beginning of 2019, nearly 63% of rural Americans claim to have a working broadband internet connection at home. This is a definitive increase from a measly 35% reported back in 2007. Now, rural Americans are 12% less likely than other Americans to have broadband access at home.
It is widely accepted that the use of mobile oriented technology has risen amongst rural Americans, with a steep increase in ownership of smartphones and tablets. In comparison, there have only been meagre improvements in terms of laptop computers and desktop. Rural Americans still remain less likely than urban Americans to own these devices.
Moreover, rural Americans are less likely than urban Americans to have access to a variety of services and mediums that allow them to get on the grid. A mere number of three in 10 adults hailing from rural areas report ownership of laptops, smartphone, broadband access and a table computer in comparison to 43% of adults from urban areas that own all the aforementioned mediums of access.
Rural Americans also go online far less, 76% of rural adults used internet on a daily basis in comparison to 83% hailing from urban areas. 15% of the rural adults also report that they do not go online, while only 9% claim so in urban areas.
The FCC Chairman states, “If you live in rural America, there’s a better than a 1-in-4 chance that you lack access to fixed high-speed broadband at home, compared to a 1-in-50 probability in our cities.”
In addition to income inequality, the divide persists because many parts of rural America do not have the infrastructure needed for high-speed broadband internet.
The Impact of the Digital Divide
The dependency on smartphones of lower-income groups means that they turn to smaller screens for tasks that are usually delegate to larger screens. For example, lower-income users usually turn to their smartphones to apply and look for jobs. It is inconvenient and inefficient, to do so. Moreover, due to the divide, new classes have emerged: those with access to the internet and those who don’t have it.
The internet acts a reservoir of information for students. Many school-based activities require the use of the internet to help make the process smoother. Access to and availability of ICT allows students to polish their research and practice skills that are needed for academic success. Disparity in online access has created a ‘homework gap’ between students that have access to a highspeed internet at home and those who don’t. The gap implies that students without access tend to perform far more poorly than students who don’t. This places them at a disadvantage borne out of their social class.
Approaching the Digital Divide
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai stated, “Since my first day as Chairman of the FCC, my number one priority has been closing the digital divide and bringing the benefits of the Internet age to all Americans.”
He has introduced a number of initiatives to bridge the gap, such as adopting a mobility fund framework which will allow the incorporation of 4G in rural areas and initiating policies to incorporate wireless and wireline networks.
