IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/tvs/wpaper/wp-036.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Technologies follow technologies and occasionally social groups

Author

Listed:
  • Michael Huebler
  • Dorothee Buehler

Abstract

An innovative model describing the convergence of technology use at the micro level is introduced. ICT (information and communication technology) ownership, measured as the number of smartphones within a household, depends upon socioeconomic character- istics, such as income, education, technologies and occupation. ICT ownership and the socioeconomic characteristics are specified in relative terms between household pairs. Indicators for jointly belonging to a social group define a new explanatory variable type. Applying this model to survey and geographic data on rural households in Thailand and Vietnam, Heckman-type regressions show that better education and existing technologies unequivocally enhance convergence of ICT ownership among households, whereas the effect of social groups depends on the specific group. Self-employment or employment outside agriculture enhance convergence, whereas farming or employment in agriculture lead to divergence. The results advice policymakers to support the spread of ICT that provides access to valuable information and creates income-generating opportunities.

Suggested Citation

  • Michael Huebler & Dorothee Buehler, 2023. "Technologies follow technologies and occasionally social groups," TVSEP Working Papers wp-036, Leibniz Universitaet Hannover, Institute of Development and Agricultural Economics, Project TVSEP.
    • Handle: RePEc:tvs:wpaper:wp-036
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://wp-tvsep.ifgb.uni-hannover.de/RePEc/tvs/pdfbib/wp-036.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Katharina Grabrucker & Michael Grimm, 2021. "Is There a Rainbow after the Rain? How Do Agricultural Shocks Affect Non‐Farm Enterprises? Evidence from Thailand," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 103(5), pages 1612-1636, October.
    2. Suri, Tavneet & Bharadwaj, Prashant & Jack, William, 2021. "Fintech and household resilience to shocks: Evidence from digital loans in Kenya," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    3. Marcel Fafchamps & Bart Minten, 2012. "Impact of SMS-Based Agricultural Information on Indian Farmers," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 26(3), pages 383-414.
    4. Michael Hübler & Alexander Glas, 2014. "The Energy-Bias of North–South Technology Spillovers: A Global, Bilateral, Bisectoral Trade Analysis," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 58(1), pages 59-89, May.
    5. 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.
    6. Hübler, Michael & Hartje, Rebecca, 2016. "Are smartphones smart for economic development?," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 130-133.
    7. Arslan, Aslihan & Belotti, Federico & Lipper, Leslie, 2017. "Smallholder productivity and weather shocks: Adoption and impact of widely promoted agricultural practices in Tanzania," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 68-81.
    8. Timothy J. Bartik, 1991. "Who Benefits from State and Local Economic Development Policies?," Books from Upjohn Press, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, number wbsle, August.
    9. Hübler, Michael, 2016. "Does Migration Support Technology Diffusion in Developing Countries?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 148-162.
    10. Jenny C. Aker & Isaac M. Mbiti, 2010. "Mobile Phones and Economic Development in Africa," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 24(3), pages 207-232, Summer.
    11. André Gröger & Yanos Zylberberg, 2016. "Internal Labor Migration as a Shock Coping Strategy: Evidence from a Typhoon," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 8(2), pages 123-153, April.
    12. Juliane Zenker & Andreas Wagener & Sebastian Vollmer, 2018. "Better Knowledge Need Not Affect Behavior: A Randomized Evaluation of the Demand for Lottery Tickets in Rural Thailand," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 32(3), pages 570-583.
    13. Andreas Wagener & Juliane Zenker, 2021. "Decoupled but Not Neutral: The Effects of Counter‐Cyclical Cash Transfers on Investment and Incomes in Rural Thailand†," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 103(5), pages 1637-1660, October.
    14. Robert Jensen, 2007. "The Digital Provide: Information (Technology), Market Performance, and Welfare in the South Indian Fisheries Sector," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 122(3), pages 879-924.
    15. Heckman, James J, 1974. "Shadow Prices, Market Wages, and Labor Supply," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 42(4), pages 679-694, July.
    16. Ruzzante, Sacha & Labarta, Ricardo & Bilton, Amy, 2021. "Adoption of agricultural technology in the developing world: A meta-analysis of the empirical literature," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    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. Abate, Gashaw T. & Abay, Kibrom A. & Chamberlin, Jordan & Kassim, Yumna & Spielman, David J. & Paul Jr Tabe-Ojong, Martin, 2023. "Digital tools and agricultural market transformation in Africa: Why are they not at scale yet, and what will it take to get there?," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).
    2. Apoorv Gupta & Jacopo Ponticelli & Andrea Tesei, 2020. "Language Barriers, Technology Adoption and Productivity: Evidence from Agriculture in India," NBER Working Papers 27192, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Yaw Nyarko, 2017. "Transforming Rural Africa-Economics, Technology and Governance," Journal of African Development, African Finance and Economic Association (AFEA), vol. 19(1), pages 161-167.
    4. Min, Shi & Liu, Min & Huang, Jikun, 2020. "Does the application of ICTs facilitate rural economic transformation in China? Empirical evidence from the use of smartphones among farmers," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    5. Chris Parker & Kamalini Ramdas & Nicos Savva, 2016. "Is IT Enough? Evidence from a Natural Experiment in India’s Agriculture Markets," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 62(9), pages 2481-2503, September.
    6. Francesco Billari & Valentina Rotondi & Jenny Trinitapoli, 2020. "Mobile phones, digital inequality, and fertility: Longitudinal evidence from Malawi," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 42(37), pages 1057-1096.
    7. Apoorv Gupta & Jacopo Ponticelli & Andrea Tesei, 2019. "Technology Adoption and Access to Credit via Mobile Phones," Working Papers 892, Queen Mary University of London, School of Economics and Finance.
    8. Pierre Courtois & Julie Subervie, 2015. "Farmer Bargaining Power and Market Information Services," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 97(3), pages 953-977.
    9. Blumenstock, Joshua E. & Eagle, Nathan & Fafchamps, Marcel, 2016. "Airtime transfers and mobile communications: Evidence in the aftermath of natural disasters," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 157-181.
    10. Kahsay, Goytom Abraha & Garcia, Nerea Turreira & Bosselmann, Aske Skovmand, 2023. "Mobile Internet Use and Climate Adaptation: Empirical Evidence from Vietnamese Coffee Farmers," Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Western Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 48(3), September.
    11. Markus K. Brunnermeier & Nicola Limodio & Lorenzo Spadavecchia, 2023. "Mobile Money, Interoperability, and Financial Inclusion," NBER Working Papers 31696, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    12. Zhongkun Zhu & Wanglin Ma & Chenxin Leng, 2022. "ICT Adoption, Individual Income and Psychological Health of Rural Farmers in China," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 17(1), pages 71-91, February.
    13. Mittal, Surabhi & Mehar, Mamta, 2012. "How Mobile Phones Contribute to Growth of Small Farmers? Evidence from India," Quarterly Journal of International Agriculture, Humboldt-Universitaat zu Berlin, vol. 51(3), pages 1-18, August.
    14. Ma, Wanglin & Renwick, Alan & Nie, Peng & Tang, Jianjun & Cai, Rong, 2018. "Off-farm work, smartphone use and household income: Evidence from rural China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 80-94.
    15. Tadesse, Getaw & Bahiigwa, Godfrey, 2015. "Mobile Phones and Farmers’ Marketing Decisions in Ethiopia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 296-307.
    16. Lee, Guenwoo & Suzuki, Aya & Kim, Yu Ri, 2021. "The Role of Agricultural Market Information on Farmers' Agricultural Outcomes: Evidence from Smallholder Coffee Producers in Ethiopia," Discussion paper series HIAS-E-110, Hitotsubashi Institute for Advanced Study, Hitotsubashi University.
    17. Aker, Jenny C. & Ksoll, Christopher, 2016. "Can mobile phones improve agricultural outcomes? Evidence from a randomized experiment in Niger," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 44-51.
    18. Ni Zhuo & Baozhi Li & Qibiao Zhu & Chen Ji, 2023. "Smartphone‐based agricultural extension services and farm incomes: Evidence from Zhejiang Province in China," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(3), pages 1383-1402, August.
    19. Arimoto, Yutaka & Kono, Hisaki & Ralandison, Tsilavo & Sakurai, Takeshi & Takahashi, Kazushi, 2015. "Understanding traders' regional arbitage : the case of rice traders in Antananarivo, Madagascar," IDE Discussion Papers 505, Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization(JETRO).
    20. Lin Xie & Biliang Luo & Wenjing Zhong, 2021. "How Are Smallholder Farmers Involved in Digital Agriculture in Developing Countries: A Case Study from China," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-16, March.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ICT; Smartphones; Technology diffusion; Rural development; Social networks;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F63 - International Economics - - Economic Impacts of Globalization - - - Economic Development
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
    • Q12 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Micro Analysis of Farm Firms, Farm Households, and Farm Input Markets
    • Q17 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Agriculture in International Trade
    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:tvs:wpaper:wp-036. 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: Nguyen, Trung Thanh (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/iehande.html .

    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.