A Study on Cause Analysis of Digital Divide among Older People in Korea

Most people in modern society enjoy various benefits due to the development of information and communication technology and smart technology in modern society. However, due to the digital divide, there is a social class that cannot enjoy abundant benefits. The representative class is the class of older people. In the latest four-year national report on the status of the digital divide, the class with largest digital divide among various information disadvantaged groups, such as the disabled, the low-income class, farmers and fishermen, and older people, is the class of older people. In this study, the causes of the digital divide among older people in Korea are analyzed from various perspectives. To this end, various statistical analyses have been conducted based on national statistical survey works over the past four years. The digital informatization level, which is an index used to measure the digital divide, can be classified into three main components: information access, information capability, and information utilization. Among the three components, the information capability is found to be the lowest. Information capability can also be divided into three components for PCs and mobile devices: installation, use, and management. Among them, management capability was found to be the lowest. Based on this analysis, various plans to reduce the digital divide among older people were proposed.