Broadband adoption and availability: Impacts on rural employment during COVID-19

Abstract

Amidst COVID-19-related stay-at-home orders, the economy moved largely online and broadband internet became more important than ever. This paper explores the relationship between broadband and employment rates during April and May 2020 in rural U.S. counties. We use two broadband dimensions: infrastructure availability rates and household adoption rates. We use a two-stage least squares approach to address endogeneity and control for socioeconomic, demographic, and pandemic-related factors. Results show broadband availability and wired broadband adoption both had significant, positive impacts on the employment rate. Our findings suggest both broadband adoption and availability may be associated with economic benefits in rural America.

Has COVID‐19 made rural areas more attractive places to live? Survey evidence from Northwest Missouri

“…Entrepreneurship and rural return migration have been connected empirically (Black et al, 2005 ; Deller et al, 2019 ), supporting our result and suggesting this group is ripe for targeted recruitment efforts. The huge effort to get rural Americans high‐speed Internet connections, as documented by Isley and Low ( 2022 ), also may drive this result. The link between broadband and rural entrepreneurship is well documented, for example, Deller et al ( 2021 ), but in rural America the linkage between broadband adoption and moving existing businesses online is less clear, although evidence from O'Hara and Low ( 2020 ) suggests farm businesses in remote rural areas are benefiting from moving online.…”

Accès au très haut débit et développement territorial en période d’incertitude : note éditoriale

“…An extensive literature exists which focuses, among other topics, on the origin and consequences of the digital divide (e.g., Philip et al, 2017 ;Salemink et al, 2017 ;Szeles, 2018 ;Thonipara et al, 2020 ;Whitacre et al, 2015), how the Internet impacts the economic performance of workers, firms, and territories (e.g., Akerman et al, 2015;Bai, 2017;Canzian et al, 2019;DeStefano et al, 2018;Ford, 2018;Haller and Lyons, 2019), on the consequences of the digitization of society on work modes and the residential attractivity of spaces (Conley and Whitacre, 2020;Davies, 2021;Lehtonen, 2020;Mahasuweerachai et al, 2010), or on digital pollution and ways to regulate it (Batmunkh, 2022;Nicolai and Peragin, 2022). More recently, research has also investigated whether more connected economic agents and territories are more resilient in the context of the health crisis (Abidi et al, 2022;Carvalho et al, 2022;Isley and Low, 2022;Pierri and Timmer, 2020). This special issue focuses on two of the most studied topics: the digital divide and the economic impact of the Internet in territories.…”

“…Une littérature abondante examine également l'effet d'internet sur les territoires. À ce jour, les travaux existants ont considéré l'effet d'internet sur de nombreux indicateurs de développement économique dont l'emploi, la productivité, l'entrepreneuriat, les revenus, l'attractivité résidentielle, et, plus récemment, la résilience économique (voir, parmi d'autres, Atasoy, 2013;Bai, 2017;Briglauer et al, 2019;Conley et Whitacre, 2020;DeStefano et al, 2022;Isley et Low, 2022;Ivus et Boland, 2015;Kandilov et Renkow, 2010;Mack, 2015;Pierri et Timmer, 2020).…”

“…An abundant literature also examines the effect of the Internet on territories. To date, existing work has considered the effect of the Internet on numerous economic development indicators including employment, productivity, entrepreneurship, income, residential attractiveness, and, more recently, economic resilience (see, among others, Atasoy, 2013;Bai, 2017;Briglauer et al, 2019;Conley and Whitacre, 2020;DeStefano et al, 2022;Isley and Low, 2022;Ivus and Boland, 2015;Kandilov and Renkow, 2010;Mack, 2015;Pierri and Timmer, 2020).…”

“…: Akerman et al, 2015 ;Bai, 2017 ;Canzian et al, 2019 ;DeStefano et al, 2018 ;Ford, 2018 ;Haller et Lyons, 2019), l'impact de la numérisation de la société sur les modes de travail et l'attractivité résidentielle des espaces (Conley et Whitacre, 2020 ;Davies, 2021 ;Lehtonen, 2020 ;Mahasuweerachai et al, 2010), ou encore la pollution numérique et les moyens de la réguler (Batmunkh, 2022 ;Nicolaï et Peragin, 2022). Plus récemment, les recherches ont également examiné si les agents économiques et les territoires davantage connectés étaient plus résilients dans le contexte de la crise sanitaire (Abidi et al, 2022 ;Carvalho et al, 2022 ;Isley et Low, 2022 ;Pierri et Timmer, 2020). Ce numéro spécial se focalise sur deux des thématiques les plus étudiées : la fracture numérique et les retombées économiques d'internet dans les territoires.…”