SOCIAL FACTORS Flashcards
Berry - older users of the internet.
Found there were psychological barriers preventing older people going online. More significant than material factors.
Mertens & D’Haenens - social class/digital divide.
Lower social class were linked to lower internet use. Divide might be bigger than their research suggests as many may not be able to admit it.
Li & Kirkup - gender.
Carried out self-report studies that found men in both China and Britain were more likely than women to use emails, chat rooms and play games.
Garside - age.
The average six-year-old understands more about technology than a forty-five year old.
Boyle - age.
‘Digital generation divide’ between the old and the young. Young people are also more receptive to learning new skills demanded by new forms of tech.
Parents and children.
Parents are also spending more money on their children, therefore children now have more expensive phones, tablets and laptops.
Location.
Evidence of the use of the internet shows interesting patterns of access. More developed countries have greater access to and consumption of the internet.
Granovetter - ties.
Relationships are broken into weak ties and strong ties. Activities such as email and chat tend to have positive impacts on social ties and will strengthen relationships.
Kraut - offline.
Argued against as people who use it for social purposes are able maintain their offline relationships.
Turkle - ‘alone together’.
Expresses concerns about the ways in which digital communication distances us from one another.
Russell Clayton - conflict.
Spoke to 581 Twitter users of all ages and asked if their activity online causes conflict with partners.
Miller - relationships.
Facebook now seems to be the main way people find and encourage relationships. However, it may also break up relationships and marriages.
Howard - fundamentalist groups.
Internet was playing a key role in Christian fundamentalist groups. This shows how new communication technologies can empower the individuals that use them.
Taliban internet strategy - initially.
Once banned photography, movies and use of Internet - deeming it ‘un-Islamic’.
Taliban internet strategy - recent.
Taliban members now use films they distribute on websites, and reaching audiences through social medias such as Facebook.
