Digitally Deprived Children in Europe

Springer Science and Business Media LLC - Tập 16 - Trang 1315-1339 - 2023
Sara Ayllón1, Halla Holmarsdottir2, Samuel Lado3
1Department of Economics, EQUALITAS & IZA, University of Girona, Girona, Spain
2Department of Primary and Secondary Teacher Education, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway
3Department of Economics, University of Girona, Girona, Spain

Tóm tắt

The COVID-19 pandemic has completely changed the need for internet connectivity and technological devices across the population, but especially among school-aged children. For a large proportion of pupils, access to a connected computer nowadays makes the difference between being able to keep up with their educational development and falling badly behind. This paper provides a detailed account of the digitally deprived children in Europe, according to the latest available wave of the European Union – Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC). We find that 5.4% of school-aged children in Europe are digitally deprived and that differences are large across countries. Children that cohabit with low-educated parents, in poverty or in severe material deprivation are those most affected.

Tài liệu tham khảo

Chen, W. (2013). The implications of social capital for the digital divides in America. The Information Society, 29(1), 13–25. Chinn, M. D., & Fairlie R. (2004). The determinants of the global digital divide: A cross-country analysis of computer and internet penetration. Working Paper 10686, National Bureau of Economic Research. DiMaggio, P., Hargittai, E., Celeste, C., & Shafer, S. (2004). Digital inequality: From unequal access to differentiated use. In K. M. Neckerman (Ed.), Social inequality (pp. 255–400). Russell Sage Foundation. DiMaggio, P., & Hargittai, E. (2001). From the ‘digital divide’ to ‘digital inequality’: Studying internet use as penetration increases. Working Papers 47, Princeton University, School of Public and International Affairs, Center for Arts and Cultural Policy Studies. Ellis, W. E., Dumas, T. M., & Forbes, L. M. (2020). Physically isolated but socially connected: Psychological adjustment and stress among adolescents during the initial COVID-19 crisis. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science / Revue canadienne des sciences du comportement, 52(3), 177–187. Eurostat. (2020). Methodological guidelines and description of EU-SILC target variables. Technical report, European Commission. Ezpeleta, L., Navarro, J. B., de la Osa, N., Trepat, E., & Penelo, E. (2020). Life conditions during COVID-19 lockdown and mental health in Spanish adolescents. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(19), 7327. Fraillon, J., Ainley, J., Schulz, W., Friedman, T., & Duckworth, D. (2020). Preparing for Life in a Digital World: IEA International Computer and Information Literacy Study 2018 International Report. Springer. GESIS. (2022). EU-SILC. Retrieved May 10, 2022, from https://www.gesis.org/en/missy/metadata/EU-SILC/ Gibson, A., Bardach, S. H., & Pope, N. D. (2020). COVID-19 and the digital divide: Will social workers help bridge the gap? Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 63(6–7), 671–673. Gordo, B. (2003). Overcoming digital deprivation. ITSociety, 1(5), 166–180. Guallar Artal, S., Humburg, M., & Koseleci, B. (2021). Education after the pandemic. Retrieved July 5, 2022, from https://www.eib.org/en/essays/covid-19-digital-education Guio, A. C., Gordon, D., & Marlier, E. (2012). Measuring material deprivation in the EU: Indicators for the whole population and child-specific indicators. Eurostat Methodologies and Working Papers, Publications Office of the European Union, Eurostat. Guio, A. C., Gordon, D., Najera, H., & Pomati, M. (2017). Revising the EU material deprivation variables. Statistical Working Papers, Publications Office of the European Union, Eurostat. Gunkel, D. J. (2003). Second thoughts: Toward a critique of the digital divide. New Media & Society, 5(4), 499–522. Haddon, L., Cino, D., Doyle, M. A., Livingstone, S., Mascheroni, G., & Stoilova, M. (2020). Children’s and young people’s digital skills: A systematic evidence review. Zenodo. Hargittai, E. (2002). Second-level digital divide: Differences in people’s online skills. First Monday, 7(4). https://firstmonday.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/942 Harris, C., Straker, L., & Pollock, C. (2017). A socioeconomic related ‘digital divide’ exists in how, not if, young people use computers. PLoS ONE, 12(3), e0175011. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0175011 Helsper, E. (2021). The Digital Disconnect: The social causes and consequences of digital inequalities. Sage. Hilbert, M. (2011). The end justifies the definition: The manifold outlooks on the digital divide and their practical usefulness for policy-making. Telecommunications Policy, 35(8), 715–736. International Telecommunication Union (ITU). (2022). Digital inclusion of all. Retrieved July 6, 2022, from https://www.itu.int/en/mediacentre/backgrounders/Pages/digital-inclusion-of-all.aspx Jackson, L. A., Zhao, Y., Kolenic, A., Fitzgerald, H. E., Harold, R., & von Eye, A. (2008). Race, gender, and information technology use: The new digital divide. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 11, 437–442. James, J. (2008). The digital divide across all citizens of the world: A new concept. Social Indicators Research, 89, 275–282. Judge, S., Puckett, K., & Bell, S. M. (2006). Closing the digital divide: Update from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study. The Journal of Educational Research, 100(1), 52–60. Katz, J., & Aspden, P. (1997). Motivations for and barriers to internet usage: Results of a national public opinion survey. Internet Research, 7(3), 170–188. Kuc-Czarnecka, M. (2020). COVID-19 and digital deprivation in Poland. Oeconomia Copernicana, 11, 415–431. Kufel, T. (2020). ARIMA-based forecasting of the dynamics of confirmed Covid-19 cases for selected European countries. Equilibrium: Quarterly Journal of Economics and Economic Policy, 15(2), 181–204. Livingstone, S., Bober, M., & Helsper, E. (2005). Inequalities and the digital divide in children and young people’s internet use: Findings from the UK Children Go Online project. London School of Economics and Political Science. Livingstone, S., & Helsper, E. (2007). Gradations in digital inclusion: Children, young people and the digital divide. New Media & Society, 9(4), 671–696. Longley, P. A., & Singleton, A. D. (2009). Linking social deprivation and digital exclusion in England. Urban Studies, 46(7), 1275–1298. Mack, J., & Lansley, S. (1985). Poor Britain. Routledge. Maiti, D., & Awasthi, A. (2020). ICT exposure and the level of wellbeing and progress: A cross country analysis. Social Indicators Research, 147, 311–343. Marlier, E., Atkinson, A., Cantillon, B., & Nolan, B. (2007). The EU and Social Inclusion: Facing the challenges. Policy Press. Martins van Jaarsveld, G. (2020). The effects of COVID-19 among the elderly population: A case for closing the digital divide. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 11, 577427. Metherell, T. E., Ghai, S., McCormick, E. M., Ford, T. J., & Orben, A. (2021). Digital exclusion predicts worse mental health among adolescents during COVID-19. MedRxiv, 21266853. https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.11.25.21266853v1 National Telecommunications and Information Administration. (1999). Falling through the net: Defining the digital divide. Retrieved January 13, 2021, from https://www.ntia.doc.gov/legacy/ntiahome/fttn99/contents.html OECD. (2000). Schooling for tomorrow: Learning to bridge the digital divide. OECD Publishing. OECD. (2001b). Information and communication technologies and rural development. OECD Publishing. OECD (2001a). Understanding the digital divide. OECD Digital Economy Papers, no. 49. Pacione, M. (2009). Urban geography: A global perspective. Routledge. Paus-Hasebrink, I., Kulterer, J., & Sinner, P. (2019). Social inequality, childhood and the media. In I. Paus-Hasebrink, J. Kulterer, & P. Sinner (Eds.), Social inequality, childhood and the media (pp. 11–43). Palgrave Macmillan. Robinson, L., Schulz, J., Blank, G., Ragnedda, M., Ono, H., Hogan, B., Mesch, G. S., Cotton, S. R., Kretchmer, S. B., Hale, T. M., Drabowicz, T., Yan, P., Wellman, B., Harper, M. G., Quan-Haase, A., Dunn, H. S., Casilli, A. A., Tubaro, P., Carvath, R., Chen, W., Wiest, J. B., Dodel, M., Stern, M. J., Ball, C., Huang, K. T., & Khilnani, A. (2020). Digital inequalities 2.0: Legacy inequalities in the information age. First Monday, 25(7). https://journals.uic.edu/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/10842 Rodicio-García, M. L., Ríos-de Deus, M. P., Mosquera-González, M. J., & Penado, M. (2020). The digital divide in Spanish students in the face of the COVID- 19 crisis. Revista Internacional de Educación para la Justicia Social, 9(3), 103–125. Ronchi, E., & Robinson, L. (2019). Educating 21st century children: Emotional well-being in the digital age. OECD Publishing. Sanz, E., & Turlea, G. (2012). Downloading inclusion: A statistical analysis of young people’s digital communication inequalities. The European Journal of Social Science Research, 25(3), 337–353. Scheerder, A., van Deursen, A., & van Dijk, J. (2017). Determinants of Internet skills, uses and outcomes: A systematic review of the second- and third-level digital divide. Telematics and Informatics, 34(8), 1607–1624. Seifer, A. (2020). The digital exclusion of older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 63(6–7), 674–676. Selwyn, N. (2004). Reconsidering political and popular understandings of the digital divide. New Media & Society, 6(3), 341–362. Shamrova, D., & Lampe, J. (2020). Understanding patterns of child material deprivation in five regions of the world: A children’s rights perspective. Children and Youth Services Review, 108, 1–15. Stelitano, L., Doan, S., Woo, A., Diliberti, M., Kaufman, J. H., & Henry, D. (2020). The digital divide and COVID-19: Teachers’ perceptions of inequities in students’ internet access and participation in remote learning. RAND Corporation. Ting-Feng, W., Ming-Chung, C., Yao-Ming, Y., Hwa-Pey, W., & Chien-Huey, C. S. (2014). Is digital divide an issue for students with learning disabilities? Computers in Human Behavior, 39, 112–117. UNESCO. (2020). ‘290 million students out of school due to COVID-19: UNESCO releases first global numbers and mobilizes response.’ Retrieved December 15, 2020, from https://en.unesco.org/news/290-million-students-out-school-due-covid-19-unesco-releases-first-global-numbers-and-mobilizes van Dijk, J. (2005). The deepening divide: Inequality in the information society. SAGE Publications. van Dijk, J. (2006). Digital divide research, achievements and shortcomings. Poetics, 34(4), 221–235. van Dijk, J. (2017). Digital divide: Impact of access. In P. Rössler, C. A. Hoffner, & L. van Zoonen (Eds.), The International Encyclopedia of media effects. Wiley. van Deursen, A., & Helsper, E. J. (2015). The third-level digital divide: Who benefits most from being online? Communication and Information Technologies Annual, 10, 29–52. van Deursen, A., & van Dijk, J. (2010). Internet skills and the digital divide. New Media & Society, 13(6), 893–911. van Deursen, A., van Dijk, J., & Peters, O. (2011). Rethinking internet skills: The contribution of gender, age, education, internet experience, and hours online to medium- and content-related internet skills. Poetics, 39(2), 125–144. van Laar, E., van Duersen, A. J. A. M., van Dijk, J. A. G. M., & de Haan, J. (2017). The relation between 21st-century skills and digital skills: A systematic review. Computers in Human Behavior, 72, 577–588. Vicente, M. R., & López, A. J. (2010). A multidimensional analysis of the disability digital divide: Some evidence for internet use. The Information Society, 26(1), 48–64. Yelland, N., & Neal, G. (2013). Aligning digital and social inclusion: A study of disadvantaged students and computer access. Education and Information Technologies, 18, 133–149.