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Research papers on The digital divide

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  4. The Digital Divide in Brazil and Barriers to Telehealth and Equal Digital Health Care: Analysis of Internet Access Using Publicly Available Data

    L. Nakayama, W. Binotti, Naira Link Woite, et al. · 2023 · Journal of Medical Internet Research · 68 citations

    Background The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the use of digital solutions in medical care, especially for patients in remote areas and those requiring regular medical care. However, internet access is essential for the implementation of digital health care. The digital divide is the unequal distribution of access to digital technology, and the first level digital divide encompasses structural barriers. Brazil, a country with economic inequality and uneven population distribution, faces challenges in achieving internet access for all. Objective This study aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the first-level digital divide in Brazil, estimate the relationship between variables, and id

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  5. The Association Between the Digital Divide and Health Inequalities Among Older Adults in China: Nationally Representative Cross-Sectional Survey

    Mengqiu Wu, Yongxi Xue, Chengyu Ma · 2025 · Journal of Medical Internet Research · 48 citations

    Background Health inequalities among older adults become increasingly pronounced as aging progresses. In the digital era, some researchers argue that access to and use of digital technologies may contribute to or exacerbate these existing health inequalities. Conversely, other researchers believe that digital technologies can help mitigate these disparities. Objective This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the digital divide and health inequality among older adults and to offer recommendations for promoting health equity. Methods Data were obtained from the 2018 and 2020 waves of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. Physical, mental, and subjective health wer

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  6. The persistent educational digital divide and its impact on societal inequality

    Glenn L. Pierce, Paul F. Cleary · 2024 · PLOS ONE · 40 citations

    Computers and the Internet are widely recognized as fundamental to academic and future success on both the individual and the societal level. Moreover, the academic success of school-age children is now increasingly tied to access to educational technology, a reality that became even more apparent during the pandemic. While academic performance is viewed as the major outcome of using educational technology, this study looks at a crucial early stage in the educational technology value chain, specifically; 1) to what extent do students use computers and the Internet in their homes and at school and 2) what is the extent and nature of disparities in student access to educational technology. Thi

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  8. Digital divide as an explanatory variable for dropout in higher education

    Sandra Patricia Barragán Moreno, Alfredo Guzmán Rincón · 2025 · International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education · 19 citations

    The digital divide is a multidimensional phenomenon that significantly affects access, learning, and retention in higher education. This study aimed to simulate the effects of digital inequality on student dropout rates in undergraduate programs. Using a System Dynamics methodology, a causal loop and a stock-and-flow model were developed and calibrated with empirical data from Colombia, including dropout rates, enrollment levels, household income, internet connectivity, and availability of digital devices. The model was validated structurally and behaviorally, and sensitivity analyses were conducted. Simulations were performed under three scenarios: variations in household income (affecting

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  11. Measuring the Digital Divide: A Neighborhood-Level Analysis of Racial Inequality in Internet Speed during the COVID-19 Pandemic

    Stephen Rodriguez-Elliott, Karl Vachuska · 2023 · Societies · 9 citations

    Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, internet access has been vital to ensuring individuals can work from home, attend online school and maintain contact with loved ones. While research has already shown that inequalities exist regarding who has access to the internet, less research has used actual internet speed test data to examine neighborhood inequalities in internet access, and even less research has explored trends related to this during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a dataset containing over 100 million internet speed tests in the United States, we analyze neighborhood-level variation in internet speed. We find that neighborhoods with higher proportions of Black residents tend

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  12. The Effect of Internet Infrastructure’s Impact on Foreign Investment Inequality: Based on Digital Divide Perspective

    Yizhe Hao, Weijian Liu, Min Liu · 2025 · SAGE Open · 8 citations

    Internet infrastructure has gradually become a driving force for foreign investment in the digital age, but it also brings about risks for the digital divide. This study innovatively investigates how Internet infrastructure has influenced foreign investment inequality across 30 provinces in China. It also explores pathways to reduce the foreign investment inequality within the digital divide. The digital divide is also introduced innovatively with matrix form across the econometric model. Results provide that Internet infrastructure reduces the inequality of foreign investment inflows at the national level. Further, Internet infrastructure makes foreign investment the convergence effect in C

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  13. Bridging the digital divide: Unmasking socioeconomic barriers to equitable access to digital tools in education

    Akem Solange Ojong · 2025 · International Journal of Science and Research Archive · 7 citations

    Digital tools, online platforms, multimedia resources, and internet-connected devices are now central to higher and online education. While these technologies offer flexibility and personalized learning, access remains unequal, especially for students from low-income and rural backgrounds. This review examines how socioeconomic factors influence students’ ability to access and benefit from digital education. Drawing on research published between 2015 and 2024, it applies Van Dijk’s Theory of the Digital Divide and the Framework for Inquiry into the Technological Divide to analyze four levels of access: motivation, material resources, digital skills, and actual use. It also uses a digital inc

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  14. Digital home-lessness: Exploring the links between public Internet access, technological capital, and social inequality

    Matt Comi, Sarah Smith, Walter Goettlich, et al. · 2022 · Current Sociology · 7 citations

    Millions of individuals in the United States without a computer or broadband at their residence must rely on public libraries for their Internet access. Drawing on a rich data set of interviews and participant observation at three public libraries, we explore how individuals navigate these complex settings and how they profoundly shape their digital lives and experiences, one we characterize as digital home-lessness. In this article, we identify three themes that characterize the relationship between library computer use and digital home-lessness: lifeline encompasses the diverse set of activities that require computer and broadband access; negotiating access focuses on usability, privacy, a

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  16. Digital Divide: Examining Socioeconomic Inequalities in Internet Access and Usage

    Deepak Kem - · 2024 · International Journal For Multidisciplinary Research · 6 citations

    The term "digital divide" refers to the disparity that exists between those who have access to digital technologies, most notably the internet, and those who do not have such access. This disparity is caused by several socioeconomic, regional, and demographic reasons. The digital gap not only exacerbates existing disparities but also creates challenges for marginalized communities. This is because the Internet is becoming an increasingly vital instrument for education, communication, employment, and social involvement. The purpose of this review article is to analyze the underlying factors that contribute to these disparities, such as income, education, geographic location, and age, and to i

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  17. Bridging the Digital Divide: How Internet Access Shapes Human Capital Development and Economic Inequality

    Jinyan Liao, Sameer Kumar, F. Furuoka · 2025 · e-Bangi Journal of Social Science and Humanities · 5 citations

    This study investigates the relationship between the digital gap and the development of human capital concerning economic inequality. Despite the swift progression of the digital economy, which presents novel chances for knowledge acquisition and skill development. The unequal access to the internet has deepened disparities in human capital across different socioeconomic groups, thereby contributing to broader economic inequality. The digital divide is primarily influenced by a combination of factors: access to technology, digital literacy, and financial circumstances. We examine specific regions and demographic groups to analyze the impact of digital skills on human capital development and

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  18. The Digital Divide, Wealth, and Inequality: An Examination of Socio-Economic Determinants of Collaborative Environmental Governance in Thailand through Provincial-Level Panel Data Analysis

    Suwatchai Denfanapapol, Prasongchai Setthasuravich, S. Rattanakul, et al. · 2024 · Sustainability · 4 citations

    Collaborative environmental governance (CEG) is a tripartite process that engages the government, private sector, and general public in decision-making related to environmental challenges, focusing on fostering more sustainable and efficient solutions. Understanding the specific factors influencing the degree of CEG presents a significant challenge, particularly in developing countries. This study aims to identify and assess the socio-economic determinants affecting the degree of CEG in Thailand, a representative developing country. Utilizing robust panel data models, which are well-suited to handle the complex variability of socio-economic factors, we analyzed provincial-level data from 201

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  19. Space Commercialization is Closing the Digital Divide, but Expanding Global Economic Inequality

    Eytan Tepper · 2023 · Georgetown Journal of International Affairs · 3 citations

    Abstract:Space-based broadband internet could prove trans-formative for half of the world's population, who are currently without access to broadband internet. There is a risk, however, that the economic benefits from space exploration and exploitation will flow to just a handful of countries where commercial space companies are concentrated, chiefly the United States, further widening global economic inequality. While more multilateral mechanisms are warranted, countries should proactively engage in cooperation with leading actors, lest they miss out on the high economic growth resulting from the space economy.

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  22. How Did We Deliver Team-Based Learning (TBL) Remotely to Overcome Digital Divide and Internet Access Inequality?

    Adhari Alzaabi · 2023 · Int. J. Emerg. Technol. Learn. · 1 citations

    The shift to online learning during COVID-19 has uncovered the existing internet access inequality in the world. Shifting an interactive team-based learning (TBL) session to online is even more challenging since it necessitates interactions and feedback. Choosing the proper digital platforms for online TBL is critical to ensure achieving the intended benefits of TBL. A face-to-face TBL course was transformed fully to online. The basic TBL elements, i.e., pre-reading materials, iRAT, tRAT, and the tAPPS, remained the same in online TBL. Platforms that use less internet bandwidth and are familiar to students were used such as Google meet, WhatsApp, and Google Chat. An online questionnaire was

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  23. Digital Inequality and Efforts to Bridge the Global Digital Divide

    Alisher Tuychiyev, Shohjakhon Khamdamov, Zokir Mamadiyarov, et al. · 2024 · Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Future Networks & Distributed Systems · 1 citations

    Research investigates the multifaceted digital divide issue and different actions taken to close the gap globally. We take a mixed-methods strategy, studying quantitative data for 195 countries spanning 2010-2023 and qualitative results from case studies and interviews with experts. This study investigated the multifaceted nature of digital inequality, its underlying causes, and potential solutions. In this context, the study design combines descriptive statistics, a number of multiple linear regressions, a difference-in-differences analysis, and time series forecasting. The findings show that there are striking disparities in internet penetration rates across regions and classes of incomes.

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  24. Digital Infrastructure – The Need to Overcome Digital Divide and Inequality in Higher Education

    Dominic Savio, S. Rachel · 2024 · Studies in Media and Communication · 1 citations

    Coronavirus affected millions of people worldwide. India was no exception with huge loss of lives. Life was not normal for everyone. The absence of requisite learning skills in around 825 million children and gaps in access to education were further highlighted by pandemic (World Economic Forum, 2021). When Covid hit, academics had no clue of how to manage education. While educational institutions in Chennai were getting ready for online education, this qualitative study was undertaken to identify the availability of Digital Infrastructure among students for Education. Purposive sampling method was adopted for the study. A survey questionnaire was used for data collection from students onlin

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