Adults learning online: Digital choice and/or digital exclusion?

Eynon, Rebecca; Helsper, Ellen

doi:10.1177/1461444810374789

Cited by 78 publications

(53 citation statements)

References 25 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In this context, debates are taking place about whether forced exclusion or deliberate choice is the best way of discussing these phenomena. [12][13][14] This article aims to disentangle psychological, individual explanations from sociological, demographic explanations for disengagement.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Quantitative Examination of Explanations for Reasons for Internet Nonuse

Helsper

Reisdorf

2013

Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Original citation:Helsper, Ellen J. and Reisdorf, Bianca C. (2013) This article investigates patterns of reasons for digital disengagement of British adults. It adds a psychological dimension to research that is mostly sociological in nature in trying to separate out explanations for disengaging from the Internet by choice or by forced exclusion. The analysis of a nationally representative survey shows differences between the number of reasons and the most important reasons among different sociodemographic groups, but also among individuals with different psychological profiles. The findings suggest that ex-and nonusers do not have one simple reason for nonuse, but a multifaceted range of reasons, which often represent disadvantages at several levels. The range of often mentioned reasons, moreover, shows that motivations for disengagement cannot be measured by means of the most important reason, but that all reasons have to be taken into account and looked at concertedly.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Quantitative Examination of Explanations for Reasons for Internet Nonuse

Helsper

Reisdorf

2013

Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Some have argued that the relationship between age and lower levels of digital engagement might be explained by higher levels of social isolation (Eynon & Helsper, 2011), though there is little research in this area. Whether older people ask for help when it is available depends on individual characteristics as well as their broader network's characteristics.…”

Section: Socio-cultural Indicators and Digital Engagementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do the rich get digitally richer? Quantity and quality of support for digital engagement

Helsper

Deursen

2016

Information, Communication & Society

106

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This paper asks what predicts having access to and using social support networks that might help an individual in using the Internet. Following the course taken by the digital divide or digital inclusion research, this paper uses socio-cultural, socio-economic, social, and digital indicators to predict access to and the type of potential and actual social support networks that might help an individual in using the Internet. In addition, the paper examines the quality of the support received which is neglected in most investigations that mainly focus on quantitative indicators of support. The study draws on a representative survey conducted in the Netherlands; 1149 responses were obtained. The results show that while there are no real inequalities in access to and use of support, the quality of the support that people access is unequally distributed replicating existing patterns of disadvantage. Thus, access to support is another level at which the digital divide manifests and strengthens itself. Those who experience most problems online also seem to have the most difficulty obtaining high-quality support even when it is available, creating an even larger 'gap' between those who do and do not need support. ARTICLE HISTORY

show abstract

“…Accordingly, lack of economic resources and access is what policies focus on in their efforts to tackle digital inequalities. Most studies focus on physical access and neglect other issues such as lack of knowledge about technologies, attitudes towards technologies, or lack of skills or interest in the Internet (see also Eynon & Helsper, 2011;Selwyn, 2003Selwyn, , 2004. To know how to motivate Internet non-users to become users, the first step needs to be a thorough understanding of why they do not use the Internet in the first place.…”

Section: Research Questionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Living Offline - A Qualitative Study of Internet Non-Use in Great Britain and Sweden

Reisdorf

Axelsson²,

Maurin³

2016

SSRN Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This study explores and compares attitudes and feelings of middle-aged British and Swedish Internet non-users as well as their reasons for being offline. The rich qualitative data are conceptualized and presented according to various reasons for non-use, positive and negative feelings regarding non-use, and the positive as well as negative influence of and dependence on social networks. The comparison shows both unique and common perceptions of the British and Swedish respondents, some of which can be attributed to social, economic, or socio-economic factors. However, it also displays vast differences between middle-aged nonusers in both countries. The analysis paints a complex picture of decisions for and against the use of the Internet and the need for more research to understand these highly complex phenomena, which cannot simply be attributed to socio-economic backgrounds as has been done in most previous research. The analysis shows that more complex reasons, such as lack of interest or discomfort with technologies, as well as the somewhat surprising finding that social networks can prevent non-users from learning how to use the Internet, as it is more convenient to stay a proxy-user, should be considered in future research and policies regarding digital inequalities.1

show abstract

Adults learning online: Digital choice and/or digital exclusion?

Cited by 78 publications

References 25 publications

A Quantitative Examination of Explanations for Reasons for Internet Nonuse

A Quantitative Examination of Explanations for Reasons for Internet Nonuse

Do the rich get digitally richer? Quantity and quality of support for digital engagement

Living Offline - A Qualitative Study of Internet Non-Use in Great Britain and Sweden

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About