Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
7TH International Conference on eBusiness and eGovernment, Ankara, Türkiye, 23 Kasım 2017, ss.4
From the primitive society to nowadays, the world is consistently transforming and developing. As people have changed their way of processing nature throughout history, societies have also changed, and significant economic development differences have emerged between countries over time. While trying to reduce these global disparities, the development of ICT has led to digital divisions by deepening differences among countries. As ICT develops rapidly, it also affects every aspect of social life. There is a great race between countries, companies and individuals to take advantage of ICTs advantages such as cost, speed, convenience, efficiency. To be successful in this race depends on having sufficient income level and having the technical knowledge and ability to use ICT effectively. The digital divide, which expresses the differences between countries in possession of ICT and the utilization of such technologies, has begun to be perceived as an important problem to be overcome because of its negative effects. Today, countries with a high level of development and education use intensive ICT in all areas of life, from education to health, from public services to commercials. On the other hand, many countries with a low income and education level cannot make use of technology. This pushes the countries that are already behind in the competition to the back. Moreover, digital divide is perceived not only as a country that does not have ICTs but as a serious problem that must be overcome for developed countries where we can characterize it as an information society. The elimination of digital divide and the prevention of digital poverty will increase world well-being. In the study, firstly the conceptual framework and economic dimensions of digital divide and digital poverty were investigated, and then the global division of the digital divide was examined to prevent digital divide by considering the effects of digital divide on social life.
Key Words: Digital Divide, Digital Poverty, Information and Communication Technology
JEL Classification: O10, I30