The Existential Significance of the Digital Divide for America's Historically Underserved Populations

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Author(s): L. Kvasny (The Pennsylvania State University, USA)
Copyright: 2007
Pages: 13
Source title: Information Technology Ethics: Cultural Perspectives
Source Author(s)/Editor(s): Soraj Hongladarom (Chulalongkorn University, Thailand)and Charles Ess (University of Drury, USA)
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-59904-310-4.ch014

Keywords: Information Ethics / Information Science Reference / IT Security and Ethics / Security & Forensics

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Abstract

During the 1990s, the digital divide figured prominently in the discourses of academics, corporate leaders, educators, and policymakers worldwide. In the U.S., we witnessed a massive infusion of computers and Internet access in homes, schools, libraries, and other neighborhood institutions. This has significantly increased citizens’ physical access to information and communication technology (ICT) artifacts and has enhanced citizens’ opportunities for acquiring and strengthening technical skills. However, does increased physical access and technical skills signal closure of the digital divide? In this chapter, I address this question by describing the preconstructed ways in which the digital divide is conceptualized by academics and policymakers, and inferring what these conceptualizations suggest about the existential significance of the digital divide as experienced by historically underserved groups in the U.S.

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