Influence of Certain Social Aspects on Most Likely Internet Usage Scenarios

Abstract

This paper aims to analyze the influence that certain social factors (education and area of residence) have on the most likely scenarios people encounter in their online activities. Among the possible scenarios of using the internet, based on everyday individuals’ activities, we selected seeking information about health, goods, and services, taking online courses, internet banking, and participating in social networks. Using data acquired from international databases over the 2002–2020 period, we proposed five hypotheses and applied a multilinear regression model to the data collected for four European countries, namely, Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, and Slovenia. We have analyzed the degree of confirmation for all five hypotheses. The results provided a better understanding of the influence of the above-mentioned factors on the considered scenarios, allowing stakeholders to define and propose specific development policies.