DYNAMICS OF THE DIGITAL INEQUALITY IN RUSSIA

Abstract

The aim of the article is to fill in the gap in the studies of digital divide in Russia. Digital divide is a complex phenomenon describing unequal opportunities in access to Internet resources that cannot be explained only by affordability for Internet access or only by user’s personal choice. That is why the article considers a variety of socio-demographic factors affecting the Internet usage. Empirical section of the research is based on repeated cross-sectional data from the «Courier» database and investigates how digital divide is evolving as time goes by (period from July 2011 to November 2013). Binary logistic regression is used as the method of analysis. Statistical models show that common factors of digital inequality such as age, income, education, type of residence are related to both Internet usage in general and the use of Internet as an information source. The findings suggest that gender does not affect the probability of the Internet usage; however, men are more likely to use Internet than women. The dynamic component proves that the digital divide in the Internet use is decreasing but the digital divide in the information-oriented Internet usage is increasing.