E-Political Empowerment

Abstract

Results of data from a 2003 national computer-assisted telephone interview random sample survey (n= 478 completed surveys were returned) are reported. Adult respondents living in Colorado, Iowa, and Pennsylvania were eligible for participation. Of respondents 55 and older, 49% had a home computer, 46% used e-mail, and 43% used the Internet. For seniors 75 and older, 19% had a home computer, 15% used e-mail, and 19% used the Internet. A fully saturated structural equation model with observed variables was estimated. Our survey results leave little doubt that demographics (age, education), attitudes toward the role of technology (IT advantages, computer apathy), and behavior (use of technology in daily life) play a role in determining patterns of electronic citizenship. Most (74%) of the negative total effect of age on e-politics was indirect, as was nearly half (47%) of the effect of education on e-politics. Since attitudes toward technology are formative barriers to digital citizenship, service-learning may be a key ingredient in challenging technological attitudes and increasing electoral participation of marginalized groups.

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