Digital Differences

Examines 2000-11 trends in Internet use, high-speed broadband access, methods of accessing the Internet, and online and mobile activities by gender, race/ethnicity, age, income, education, and disability status, as well as reasons for not going online

Benefits and Barriers: Women\u27s Access to Mobile Tech in Iran and the MENA Region

While the 17% gender gap in mobile internet use in the MENA region reveals that women have less access to the benefits of mobile money apps and other technology, 60% of women in the region do go online via mobile phones to make purchases, access credit, send money to family members, assist in their children’s education, receive government benefits, and engage in other activities that improve their lives. Barriers preventing women from mobile internet access, however, typically fall into three categories: lack of access, illiteracy and/or lack of digital skills, and safety concerns. The author participated in a panel presentation associated with the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, where the March 2023 topic focused on digital strategies for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. The panel, consisting of members of the Women’s Freedom Forum, a United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)-accredited NGO, included American women born in Iran who shared examples of the impact of digital technology on women in Iran and elsewhere

Business school techspectations Technology in the daily lives and educational experiences of business students

Business School Techspectations is the second in a series of reports based on research by the DCU Leadership, Innovation and Knowledge Research Centre (LInK) at DCU Business School. With its roots in an Irish business school, it is no surprise that LInK’s mission is to strengthen the competitiveness, productivity, innovation and entrepreneurial capacity of the Irish economy. Ireland’s next generation transformation will be enabled by information and communication technologies (ICT) and digital participation by members of Irish society. As a university research centre we have an important role to play in supporting education, industry and government to accelerate this transformation

Pre-Service Teachers' Internet Usage a Function of Demographic Factors: the Case of a Nigerian College of Education

With the overreaching acceptance of ICT in education and access to Internet occasioned by advancement in technology, this paper investigates pre-service teachers' use of Internet in a college of education. The study was a descriptive survey. Data was collected using a researcher designed instrument tagged “Student Internet Use Scale” (SIUS). The population comprised of all NCE pre-service teachers in Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education Owerri Nigeria. Findings show that mobile phones remains the most widely used mode of internet access with social networking, searching for information on school assignments, chatting forming the major reasons why they surf the net. Social networking is the major purpose for Internet use by female pre-service teachers while school related activities are of priority to males. The difference in purpose of internet use according to gender is however not statistically significant; similarly, there is no statically significant difference between male and female pre-service teachers in the frequency of Internet USAge. The result has far reaching implication for provision and use of Internet facilities to enhance teaching and learning in the College and colleges of education in Nigeria

The Demographics of Mobile News Habits Men, College Grads and the Young are more Engaged

In the growing realm of mobile news, men and the more highly educated emerge as more engaged news consumers, according to this new study by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism, in collaboration with The Economist Group. These findings parallel, for the most part, demographic patterns of general news consumption. But there are some important areas of difference between mobile and general news habits -- particularly among young people. While they are much lighter news consumers generally and have largely abandoned the print news product, young people get news on mobile devices to similar degrees as older users. And, when getting news through apps, young people say they prefer a print-like experience over one with high-tech or multi-media features.These are key findings of an analysis of mobile news habits across a variety of demographic groups. This report builds off an earlier PEJ and The Economist Group report, The Future of Mobile News, which found that half of U.S. adults now own mobile devices and a majority use them for news. Both reports are based on a survey of 9,513 U.S. adults conducted from June-August 2012 (including 4,638 mobile device owners). Men, especially young men, are heavier mobile news consumers than women. More than 40% of men get news daily on either their smartphone and/or tablet, compared with roughly 30% of women. On the tablet specifically, men check in for news more frequently and are more apt to read in-depth news articles and to watch news videos. Women, on the other hand, are more likely than men to use social networks as a way to get news

The Best (and Worst) of Mobile Connectivity

Mobile phone owners like the convenience and ease of connectivity, but rue that they can be interrupted more easily, have to pay the bills, and face bad connections.Some 85% of American adults now own a cell phone of some kind, and these devices mean many things to their owners: an always-available link to friends and family, a pocket computer, or a time-saving tool -- even an actual telephone. When asked to describe in their own words what they like most about owning a cell phone:17% of cell owners say the best thing about their phone is that it is convenient.12% like the ability to call or talk with others at any time.11% like that their cell phone can help them get assistance in an emergency.9% say that using the internet, email, or apps is the best thing about their mobile phone.8% cite the ability to connect with family

The impact of Internet-based specific activities on the perceptions of Internet addiction, quality of life, and excessive usage: a cross-sectional study

Introduction: Recent research has examined the context in which preference for specific online activities arises, leading researchers to suggest that excessive Internet users are engaged in specific activities rather than ‘generalized’ Internet use. The present study aimed to partially replicate and expand these findings by addressing four research questions regarding (i) participants' preferred online activities, (ii) possible expected changes in online behavior in light of hypothetical scenarios, (iii) perceived quality of life when access to Internet was not possible, and (iv) how participants with self-diagnosed Internet addiction relate to intensity and frequency of Internet use. Methods: A cross-sectional design was adopted using convenience and snowball sampling to recruit participants. A total of 1057 Internet users with ages ranging from 16 to 70 years (M age = 30 years, SD = 10.84) were recruited online via several English-speaking online forums. Results: Most participants indicated that their preferred activities were (i) accessing general information and news, (ii) social networking, and (iii) using e-mail and/or online chatting. Participants also reported that there would be a significant decrease of their Internet use if access to their preferred activities was restricted. The study also found that 51% of the total sample perceived themselves as being addicted to the Internet, while 14.1% reported that without the Internet their life would be improved. Conclusions: The context in which the Internet is used appears to determine the intensity and the lengths that individuals will go to use this tool. The implications of these findings are further discussed

28% of American Adults Use Mobile and Social Location-Based Services

Presents survey findings about uses of mobile or social location-based services to get directions or recommendations, check in to geosocial services, or use location-tagging on posts, by type of phone, gender, age, race/ethnicity, income, and education

Using mobile technology to engage sexual and gender minorities in clinical research.

IntroductionHistorical and current stigmatizing and discriminatory experiences drive sexual and gender minority (SGM) people away from health care and clinical research. Being medically underserved, they face numerous disparities that make them vulnerable to poor health outcomes. Effective methods to engage and recruit SGM people into clinical research studies are needed.ObjectivesTo promote health equity and understand SGM health needs, we sought to design an online, national, longitudinal cohort study entitled The PRIDE (Population Research in Identity and Disparities for Equality) Study that enabled SGM people to safely participate, provide demographic and health data, and generate SGM health-related research ideas.MethodsWe developed an iPhone mobile application ("app") to engage and recruit SGM people to The PRIDE Study-Phase 1. Participants completed demographic and health surveys and joined in asynchronous discussions about SGM health-related topics important to them for future study.ResultsThe PRIDE Study-Phase 1 consented 18,099 participants. Of them, 16,394 provided data. More than 98% identified as a sexual minority, and more than 15% identified as a gender minority. The sample was diverse in terms of sexual orientation, gender identity, age, race, ethnicity, geographic location, education, and individual income. Participants completed 24,022 surveys, provided 3,544 health topics important to them, and cast 60,522 votes indicating their opinion of a particular health topic.ConclusionsWe developed an iPhone app that recruited SGM adults and collected demographic and health data for a new national online cohort study. Digital engagement features empowered participants to become committed stakeholders in the research development process. We believe this is the first time that a mobile app has been used to specifically engage and recruit large numbers of an underrepresented population for clinical research. Similar approaches may be successful, convenient, and cost-effective at engaging and recruiting other vulnerable populations into clinical research studies

After Access – Challenges Facing Mobile-Only Internet Users in the Developing World

This study reports results of an ethnographic action research study, exploring mobile-centric internet use. Over the course of 13 weeks, eight women, each a member of a livelihoods collective in urban Cape Town, South Africa, received training to make use of the data (internet) features on the phones they already owned. None of the women had previous exposure to PCs or the internet. Activities focused on social networking, entertainment, information search, and, in particular, job searches. Results of the exercise reveal both the promise of, and barriers to, mobile internet use by a potentially large community of first-time, mobile- centric users. Discussion focuses on the importance of self- expression and identity management in the refinement of online and offline presences, and considers these forces relative to issues of gender and socioeconomic status