Impact of the Digital Divide on the Different User Groups Free Essay Example, 3000 words

Acquiring digital technology is expensive, making it unaffordable to many people. On the other hand, its use requires knowledge and skills acquired through education, and therefore the uneducated and those lacking these skills are eliminated from the group that benefits from this technology. This is mainly what generates the digital divide. It was established through research that by 2003, the services of the World Wide Web were only accessible to a mere 7% of the world population (NielsenNetRatings, 2003). This indicates a large digital divide that still exists among the world s population. In trying to address this issue, stakeholders in social welfare understand that the right to acquire vital information is significant in the considerations of public policy formulation. In several occasions, lack of access to information has been blamed for the suffering that humans undergo. Social networking is enhanced by digital technology, meaning that for those who it is inaccessible possi bly due to poverty, a location of residents and other restrictions in regard to culture or education, it is not achievable. In order to effectively address the digital divide, it is important to understand the various aspects of digital divides that exist in the world s population. We will write a custom essay sample on Impact of the Digital Divide on the Different User Groups or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now They include a difference in those living in urban and rural areas, whereby the rural areas are most likely to be inaccessible for digital technology such as broadband connections since providers of such services concentrate on urban centers. Learning institutions are also mainly located in urban centers where this technology is available, and therefore the rural communities may not get a chance to acquire skills in digital technology. There also exists a digital divide between the old and the young. As stated earlier, the digital technology that mainly reached the public sphere in the late 1990s may not be favorable to those who studied earlier unless they train once more, a factor that may be hampered by limited time due to work and other responsibilities (Tonkiss, 2006 pp. 69-73).