Digital Equity Research
Tech Goes Home has gathered extensive research to support and inform our work. Take a look below and get a glimpse of why we do what we do.
The Digital Divide and Economic Benefits of Broadband Access
by The Council of Economic Advisors
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"Just under half of households in the bottom income quintile using the Internet at home, compared to 95 percent of households in the top quintile."
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"Academic research shows that using online job search leads to better labor market outcomes, including faster re-employment for unemployed individuals, yet because of a digital divide, low- income households are less able to use these tools than high-income households."
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"Addressing the digital divide requires effort on multiple fronts, including policies that make broadband more affordable."
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"When Google Fiber was to be rolled out in Kansas City, speeds on existing networks in Kansas surged 86 percent."
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"Effective digital literacy training may require place-based or demographically tailored interventions."
by Pew Research
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Among adults with household incomes below $30,000 a year:
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44% don’t have home broadband services
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46% don’t have a computer
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“By comparison, each of these technologies is nearly ubiquitous among adults in households earning $100,000 or more a year.”
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“As of early 2019, 26% of adults living in households earning less than $30,000 a year are “smartphone-dependent” internet users – meaning they own a smartphone but do not have broadband internet at home. This represents a substantial increase from 12% in 2013. In contrast, only 5% of those living in households earning $100,000 or more fall into this category in 2019.”
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“In 2015, 35% of lower-income households with school-age children did not have a broadband internet connection at home”
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from the FCC
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"One-third of all Americans – 100 million people – haven’t adopted broadband at home. Broadband adoption is key to America’s competitiveness – to jobs, e-government, education, and energy. Compare that to South Korea and Singapore where adoption rates top 90 percent."
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"Internationally, the U.S. continues to lag behind a number of other developed nations, ranking 16th out of 34 countries"
by Pew Research
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“92% of adults from households earning $75,000 or more a year say they have broadband internet at home, but that share falls to 56% among those whose annual household income falls below $30,000.”
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“Half of non-broadband users today say they do not subscribe to broadband because the cost of a monthly subscription is too expensive, while 31% say the cost of a computer is too expensive.”
by Common Sense Media &
Boston Consulting Group
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"Approximately 15 million to 16 million K-12 public school students, or 30% of all public K-12 students, live in households either without an internet connection or device adequate for distance learning at home, a higher number than previously recorded; and of these students, approximately nine million students live in households with neither an adequate connection nor an adequate device for distance learning."
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"300,000 to 400,000 K-12 teachers live in households without adequate internet connectivity, roughly 10 percent of all public school teachers, and 100,000 teachers lack adequate home computing devices."
by National Digital Inclusion Alliance
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“All of the nation’s counties whose populations are at least 75% rural [those most likely to qualify for federal broadband subsidies], taken together, accounted for less than 8% of Americans living in households with no broadband. In contrast, the most urban counties - those with fewer than 5% rural residents - accounted for more than 35%.”
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"76% of residents living without broadband connection in the most rural third of U.S. counties were white and non-Hispanic. [...] In contrast, substantial majorities of the residents in households without broadband in our urban datasets were people of color. People of color accounted for 75% of the unconnected in cities with 200,000+ residents. Black residents alone accounted for 28% of the unconnected in 95%+ urban counties."
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"A federal broadband policy which provides funding only for broadband infrastructure deployment, and only to areas which have no existing 25/3 Mbps residential broadband service - with no accompanying investment in affordable access and other measures to help urban as well as rural residents get connected - discriminates in a big way against Black Americans and other communities of color.”
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“All of the nation’s counties whose populations are at least 75% rural [those most likely to qualify for federal broadband subsidies], taken together, accounted for less than 8% of Americans living in households with no broadband. In contrast, the most urban counties - those with fewer than 5% rural residents - accounted for more than 35%.”
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"76% of residents living without broadband connection in the most rural third of U.S. counties were white and non-Hispanic. [...] In contrast, substantial majorities of the residents in households without broadband in our urban datasets were people of color. People of color accounted for 75% of the unconnected in cities with 200,000+ residents. Black residents alone accounted for 28% of the unconnected in 95%+ urban counties."
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"A federal broadband policy which provides funding only for broadband infrastructure deployment, and only to areas which have no existing 25/3 Mbps residential broadband service - with no accompanying investment in affordable access and other measures to help urban as well as rural residents get connected - discriminates in a big way against Black Americans and other communities of color.”
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"Most low- and moderate-income families have some form of Internet connection, but many are under-connected, with mobile-only access and inconsistent connectivity."
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"One third (33%) of those below the poverty level rely on mobile-only Internet access."
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"Among families who have home Internet access, half (52%) say their access is too slow, one quarter (26%) say too many people share the same computer, and one fifth (20%) say their Internet has been cut off in the last year due to lack of payment."
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"Parents with mobile-only access are [...] 25 percentage points less likely to use online banking or bill-paying (49% vs. 74%), 14 percentage points less likely to apply for jobs or services online (42% vs. 56%), and 12 percentage points less likely to get news or follow local events online (70% vs. 82%)."
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"Four in 10 parents without a home computer (40%) or home Internet access (42%) say the main reason they do not have these items is because they are too expensive."
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"Children from low- and moderate-income families use computers and the Internet for a variety of educational activities, but those without home access are less likely to go online to pursue their interest. [...] 35% of those with mobile only access say they 'often' do this, compared to 52% of those with home access."
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"Children and parents frequently learn with, and about, technology together, especially in families with the lowest incomes and where parents have less education."
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"Among parents who did not graduate from high school, 62% say their child has helped them with technology, compared with 45% of parents who graduated from college."
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"Among families with more than one 6- to 13-year-old and a computer in the home, [...] more than half (53%) of children from the lowest income group (less than $25,000 a year) 'often' help each other learn about computers and technology, compared to 33% of those in the higher-income group ($45,000–65,000 a year)."
by Pew Research
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3 in 10 adults with "less than a high school education" do not use the internet.
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"Adults from households earning less than $30,000 a year are far more likely than the most affluent adults to not use the internet (18% vs. 2%)."
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"Seniors are much more likely than younger adults to say they never go online [...] 27% still do not use the internet, compared with fewer than 10% of adults under the age of 65."
by the Washington Post
"Seniors who log on tend to be far more educated about their health; they’re far less isolated and more independent."
"One study out of the University of Michigan suggested that Internet use could cut depression risk among seniors by more than 30 percent — a huge finding, given the wide-ranging effects that depression and isolation have on senior’s health."
by HR Dive
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“More than 1 in 10 workers are employed in manufacturing, and one third lack key digital skills." This equals about 5.6 million workers in manufacturing who have low digital skills.
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“Approximately 1 in 7 American workers is employed in the health and social assistance sector, and one-third lack key digital skills.” This equals about 6.7 million workers in this sector with low digital skills.
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“Nearly one-third of workers with limited digital skills are younger than 35.”
by Burning Glass Technologies
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“More than 8 in 10 middle-skill jobs (82%) require digital skills”
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“Digitally intensive middle-skill jobs pay more than non-digital middle-skill jobs: Baseline digital skills alone pay a 17% premium over non-digital roles.”
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“Eight in 10 (78%) of middle-skill jobs demand facility with productivity software, and these digital jobs pay a premium over non-digital middle-skill roles. Additionally, productivity software is necessary for upward movement.”
Digital Skills & Employment
by Urban Institute
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“Between 2002 and 2016, the share of all jobs with high digital content more than quadrupled, from 4.8 to 23.0 percent. This reflects both an increase in the digital nature of existing jobs and the addition of new digital jobs.”
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“Research suggests the demand for jobs requiring digital skills will increase [...] employers will increasingly desire workers with foundational digital skills as the digitization of jobs and tasks increases.”
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“Many occupations that were previously technology-free, such as janitorial work, now require technology for such basic tasks as checking room assignments and filling out time cards.”
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“[...] ‘the increased use of electronic job applications makes it difficult for those with low literacy skills to get a job’ [...] Online tools are now the most important resource for many job seekers”
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Strategies for teaching foundational digital skills:
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Teach skills in context
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In-person teaching
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Match training to people’s needs
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Access to digital tools
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Digital Inclusion & Education
by Pew Research
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“Some 15% of U.S. households with school-age children do not have a high-speed internet connection at home”
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“Roughly one-third of households with children ages 6 to 17 and whose annual income falls below $30,000 a year do not have a high-speed internet connection at home, compared with just 6% of such households earning $75,000 or more a year. These broadband disparities are particularly pronounced for black and Hispanic households with school-age children – especially those with low household incomes.”
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“17% of teens say they are often or sometimes unable to complete homework assignments because they do not have reliable access to a computer or internet connection.”
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“24% of teens whose annual family income is less than $30,000 say the lack of a dependable computer or internet connection often or sometimes prohibits them from finishing their homework, but that share drops to 9% among teens who live in households earning $75,000 or more a year.”
by The Consortium for School Networking & Alliance for Excellent Education
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“Today, roughly seven in ten teachers assign homework that requires access to broadband. But the FCC’s data suggest that almost one in three households do not subscribe to broadband services at any speed.”
by Child Trends
"Students with parents who are involved in their school tend to have fewer behavioral problems and better academic performance, and are more likely to complete high school than students whose parents are not involved in their school."
by Pew Research
"31.4% of households whose incomes fall below $50,000 and with children ages 6 to 17 do not have a high-speed internet connection at home. [...] By comparison, only 8.4% of households with annual incomes over $50,000 lack a broadband internet connection at home. In other words, low-income homes with children are four times more likely to be without broadband than their middle or upper-income counterparts."
This map displays broadband technologies offered to end users.