Socio-economic background and computer use: the role of computer anxiety and computer experience in their relationship

The proposition that socio-economic background relates to amount of current computer use indirectly, via its relationship with computer experience and computer anxiety, was tested with questionnaire data from a sample of 267 university students. The results supported the proposition, as they indicated a causal path model that contained a positive indirect relationship of socio-economic background with the amount of current computer use, via computer experience and computer anxiety. Socio-economic background had a direct positive relationship with computer experience and an indirect negative relationship with computer anxiety. The pattern of relationships was held over and above the variance accounted for by the set of control variables that included, among others, computer access and sex. The findings are supportive of the digital divide and they imply that information technology may in fact be increasing inequalities among social strata in their access to employment opportunities. The limitations of the study along with potential directions for future research are discussed. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved.