an article by Erik van Ingen (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands) and Uwe Matzat (Eindhoven University of Technology, The Netherlands) published in Information, Communication & Society Volume 21 Issue 4 (April 2018)
Abstract
Many studies have investigated inequalities in coping with stressful life events and often education is found to play a role in this (the higher educated are usually more successful in dealing with their problems in terms of well-being consequences).
We examine whether something similar occurs on the Internet, whether the higher educated are more successful in mobilizing help online, and whether this is related to their digital skills and the way in which they use the Internet. With the latter, we link online coping to digital inequality research.
Researchers have investigated digital inequalities with regard to skills and types of Internet use. However, we know little about the extent to which these factors translate into inequalities in resources mobilized from the Internet. This latter type of inequality is highly relevant, since it is an intermediary step between Internet use and (improved) well-being and life chances.
Using a large sample of individuals living in the Netherlands, we find educational differences in the mobilization of online problem-focused coping resources, but no differences with regard to online socioemotional or disengagement coping resources. The educational inequalities in online coping are somewhat smaller than educational inequalities in offline coping, leading to remarkable consequences for social policy.
Furthermore, we find a relatively complex pattern of interrelations between offline inequality (education) and different types of digital inequality (skills, usage, resources).
In our conclusions we make a plea for more research on outcomes of Internet use and we discuss the implications of our findings for further research.
Full text (PDF 19pp)
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