IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/respol/v39y2010i1p173-185.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

What really matters: Regional versus individual determinants of the digital divide in Germany

Author

Listed:
  • Schleife, Katrin

Abstract

This paper analyses the regional dimension of the German digital divide. It studies the determinants of home Internet use in Germany on the level of counties as well as on the level of individuals. Based on two large data sets, the analyses show that population density itself cannot explain regional differences in Internet use rates. The results rather indicate that it is the different composition of individual characteristics between rural and urban populations that accounts for the regional digital divide. At individual level, the findings underline the importance of network effects.

Suggested Citation

  • Schleife, Katrin, 2010. "What really matters: Regional versus individual determinants of the digital divide in Germany," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 173-185, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:respol:v:39:y:2010:i:1:p:173-185
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048-7333(09)00207-8
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Strover, Sharon, 2001. "Rural internet connectivity," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 25(5), pages 331-347, June.
    2. Parker, Edwin B., 2000. "Closing the digital divide in rural America," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 24(4), pages 281-290, May.
    3. Entorf, Horst & Gollac, Michel & Kramarz, Francis, 1999. "New Technologies, Wages, and Worker Selection," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 17(3), pages 464-491, July.
    4. Sinai, Todd & Waldfogel, Joel, 2004. "Geography and the Internet: is the Internet a substitute or a complement for cities?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 56(1), pages 1-24, July.
    5. Sylvia E. Korupp & Harald Künemund & Jürgen Schupp, 2006. "Digitale Spaltung in Deutschland: geringere Bildung - seltener am PC," DIW Wochenbericht, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research, vol. 73(19), pages 289-294.
    6. Axel Schaffer & Jochen Siegele, 2008. "Regionale Potentiale – Bedeutung und Nutzung von Potentialfaktoren in den NUTS 3 Regionen Deutschlands und Österreichs," Review of Regional Research: Jahrbuch für Regionalwissenschaft, Springer;Gesellschaft für Regionalforschung (GfR), vol. 28(2), pages 109-132, September.
    7. Bradford F. Mills & Brian E. Whitacre, 2003. "Understanding the Non‐Metropolitan—Metropolitan Digital Divide," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 34(2), pages 219-243, June.
    8. Borghans, L. & ter Weel, B.J., 2002. "Do older workers have more trouble using a computer than younger workers?," ROA Research Memorandum 1E, Maastricht University, Research Centre for Education and the Labour Market (ROA).
    9. Goldfarb, Avi, 2006. "The (teaching) role of universities in the diffusion of the Internet," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 24(2), pages 203-225, March.
    10. Brian E. Whitacre & Bradford F. Mills, 2007. "Infrastructure and the Rural—urban Divide in High-speed Residential Internet Access," International Regional Science Review, , vol. 30(3), pages 249-273, July.
    11. Jeffrey T. Prince, 2008. "Repeat Purchase amid Rapid Quality Improvement: Structural Estimation of Demand for Personal Computers," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 17(1), pages 1-33, March.
    12. Hudson, Heather E. & Parker, Edwin B., 1990. "Information gaps in rural America : Telecommunications policies for rural development," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 14(3), pages 193-205, June.
    13. Goolsbee, Austan & Klenow, Peter J, 2002. "Evidence on Learning and Network Externalities in the Diffusion of Home Computers," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 45(2), pages 317-343, October.
    14. Shane Greenstein & Jeff Prince, 2006. "The Diffusion of the Internet and the Geography of the Digital Divide in the United States," NBER Working Papers 12182, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    15. Papke, Leslie E & Wooldridge, Jeffrey M, 1996. "Econometric Methods for Fractional Response Variables with an Application to 401(K) Plan Participation Rates," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 11(6), pages 619-632, Nov.-Dec..
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Schleife, Katrin, 2008. "Regional Versus Individual Aspects of the Digital Divide in Germany," ZEW Discussion Papers 06-085 [rev.2], ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    2. Schleife, Katrin, 2006. "Regional versus individual aspects of the digital divide in Germany," Darmstadt Discussion Papers in Economics 177, Darmstadt University of Technology, Department of Law and Economics.
    3. Schleife, Katrin, 2007. "Regional Versus Individual Aspects of the Digital Divide in Germany," ZEW Discussion Papers 06-085 [rev.], ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    4. Schleife, Katrin, 2006. "Regional versus individual aspects of the digital divide in Germany," ZEW Discussion Papers 06-085, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    5. Schleife, Katrin, 2006. "Regional Versus Individual Aspects of the Digital Divide in Germany," Publications of Darmstadt Technical University, Institute for Business Studies (BWL) 35976, Darmstadt Technical University, Department of Business Administration, Economics and Law, Institute for Business Studies (BWL).
    6. Dinterman, Robert & Renkow, Mitch, 2017. "Evaluation of USDA's Broadband Loan Program: Impacts on broadband provision," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(2), pages 140-153.
    7. Brian E. Whitacre & Bradford F. Mills, 2007. "Infrastructure and the Rural—urban Divide in High-speed Residential Internet Access," International Regional Science Review, , vol. 30(3), pages 249-273, July.
    8. Downes, Tom & Greenstein, Shane, 2007. "Understanding why universal service obligations may be unnecessary: The private development of local Internet access markets," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(1), pages 2-26, July.
    9. Brian Whitacre & Roberto Gallardo & Sharon Strover, 2014. "Does rural broadband impact jobs and income? Evidence from spatial and first-differenced regressions," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 53(3), pages 649-670, November.
    10. Chris Forman, 2013. "How has information technology use shaped the geography of economic activity?," Chapters, in: Frank Giarratani & Geoffrey J.D. Hewings & Philip McCann (ed.), Handbook of Industry Studies and Economic Geography, chapter 10, pages 253-270, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    11. Brian Whitacre, 2008. "Factors influencing the temporal diffusion of broadband adoption: evidence from Oklahoma," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 42(3), pages 661-679, September.
    12. Stenberg, Peter L., 2018. "The purchase of Internet subscriptions in Native American households," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 42(1), pages 51-60.
    13. Grubesic, Tony H., 2006. "A spatial taxonomy of broadband regions in the United States," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 18(4), pages 423-448, November.
    14. Elizabeth A. Mack, 2015. "Variations in the Broadband-Business Connection across the Urban Hierarchy," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(3), pages 400-423, September.
    15. Whitacre, Brian E. & Mahasuweerachai, Phumsith, 2008. "“Small” Broadband Providers and Federal Assistance Programs: Solving the Digital Divide?," Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy, Mid-Continent Regional Science Association, vol. 38(3), pages 1-15.
    16. Greenstein, Shane, 2010. "Innovative Conduct in Computing and Internet Markets," Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, in: Bronwyn H. Hall & Nathan Rosenberg (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 0, pages 477-537, Elsevier.
    17. Madden, Gary & Coble-Neal, Grant, 0. "Internet use in rural and remote Western Australia," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 27(3-4), pages 253-266, April.
    18. Chris Forman & Avi Goldfarb & Shane Greenstein, 2003. "How did Location Affect Adoption of the Commercial Internet? Global Village, Urban Density, and Industry Composition," NBER Working Papers 9979, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    19. Mathilde Aubouin, 2023. "Determinants of the Digital Divide: Evidence from France," Annals of Economics and Statistics, GENES, issue 151, pages 37-80.
    20. BEN YOUSSEF, Adel & METHAMEM, Raouchen & M'HENNI, Hatem, 2009. "Disparités régionales et diffusion des TIC en Tunisie [Regional disparities and ICTs diffusion in Tunisia]," MPRA Paper 17938, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2009.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:respol:v:39:y:2010:i:1:p:173-185. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/respol .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.