The Digital Disconnect by Ellen Helsper

Author:Ellen Helsper [Helsper, Ellen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Published: 2021-02-10T00:00:00+00:00

Conclusions and recommendations

Equal opportunities to access and engage in the processes that shape society produce high levels of well-being. In digital societies, this means access to platforms, relevant content, and engagement with people who hold resources. ICTs’ accessibility and non-hierarchical structures have led to optimism that digitisation will allow everyone to become civically engaged, and those who most need it will be newly empowered. Nevertheless, the extent to which digital opportunities translate into tangible, empowering outcomes for all citizens is ‘driven by the equality of power relations in all decision making processes in society’ (Jenkins & Carpentier, 2013, p. 261). How digital literacy and engagement with government, civic causes, community organisations, and political discussions translate into influence depends on our societal positions. Inequalities expressed in everyday social contexts are key to shaping inequalities in digital civic engagement. In the language of my CF model, if social inequalities restrict content and interactions, access and skills do not necessarily lead to empowering outcomes from ICT use.

This chapter calls socio-digital inequalities researchers and stakeholders to contribute more to this debate. By focusing on critiquing digital-by-default policies and the digitisation of government services, inequalities in non-traditional and newer forms of civic engagement have gone understudied. This chapter highlights how existing data are insufficient to draw conclusions about informal types of engagement. For example, we know little about inequalities in online community engagement, petition signing, and who is likely to end up in polarising environments. Similarly, we know little about who is subject to implicit silencing by restricting certain topics or activities. Specifically, inequalities in the following newer aspects deserve more attention:

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