Open Access Publishing as a Bridge Across the Digital Divide

Abstract

In today’s world of snappy catchphrases, the complexity of a phenomenon is often hiddenbehind the simplicity of the terminology. Take, for instance, the concept of the digital divide.In short, the term means that there is a gap between those people who have effective access todigital technologies (and all the benefits that brings) and those who do not (Organization forEconomic Cooperation and Development [OECD], 2001; Selhofer & Husing, 2002). Whilethe definition seems simple enough, in fact, there are numerous reasons for the technologygap among people in the world. Typical reasons for the digital divide include material access(i.e., no access to a computer, lack of access to specific software programs or relatedtechnologies), usability or usage access (i.e., lack of qualified instruction or environmentalissues that limit access, such as an erratic electrical power supply or an underdevelopedInternet infrastructure), or mental access (i.e., a lack of digital experience resulting fromdisinterest or computer anxiety; Van Dijk & Hacker, 2003). Because the digital divide is sucha complex phenomenon, it needs a complex approach to bridging this gap. A multilayeredapproach to address this multifaceted problem has been proposed by both individuals andorganizations (Arunachalam, 2003; Oyebode, 2002; Papin-Ramcharan & Dawe, 2006).

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