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on Information and Communication Technologies |
| By: | Climent Quintana-Domeque (Department of Economics, University of Exeter); Jingya Zeng (Department of Economics, University of Exeter); Xiaohui Zhang (Department of Economics, University of Exeter) |
| Abstract: | With the COVID-19 pandemic, the Internet has become a key player in the daily lives of most people. We investigate the relationship between mental health and internet use frequency and purpose six months after the first lockdown in the UK, September 2020. Using data from the UK Household Longitudinal Study on the 12-item General Health Questionnaire and the Internet use module, and controlling for sociodemographic characteristics and personality traits, we find that older individuals (aged 59 or above) have a lower internet use frequency (twice a day or less). Younger women use the Internet for social purposes more than men do, while younger men use the Internet for leisure-and-learning purposes more than women and older men do. Both high frequency internet use and use for social purposes appear to be a protective factor for social dysfunction. Interestingly, high internet use is a protective factor for social dysfunction among younger women, but a risk factor for psychological distress among younger men. Finally, while leisure-and-learning purpose is a protective factor for social dysfunction among younger women, it is a risk factor for social dysfunction among younger men. |
| Keywords: | PCA, EFA, regression, leisure-and-learning, social dysfunction, psychological distress |
| JEL: | I1 J1 |
| Date: | 2022–04–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:exe:wpaper:2202&r= |
| By: | Brown, Nerissa C.; Elliott, W. Brooke; Wermers, Russ; White, Roger M. |
| Abstract: | Mobile internet devices reduce trading frictions and information search costs for investors, but also introduce attention-competing activities,such as social networking. We use exogenous nationwide and city-level outages of the Blackberry Internet Service (BIS) to investigate the effect of mobile internet technology on investors'information-gathering vs. attention-diverting activities. We find that trading volume and trading frequency surge by about 5% on days when mobile internet systems go dark, consistent with a greater role for devices (when not dark) in diverting the limited attention of investors away from information-gathering and trading - even when they are used by presumably more sophisticated investors. |
| Keywords: | mobile technology,investor activity,stock market liquidity,limited attention,distraction |
| JEL: | D83 G12 G14 L86 |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:cfrwps:2110&r= |
| By: | Audra J. Bowlus (University of Western Ontario); Lance Lochner (University of Western Ontario); Chris Robinson (University of Western Ontario); Eda Suleymanoglu (Canada Border Services) |
| Abstract: | The canonical supply–demand model of the wage returns to skill has been extremely influential; however, it has faced several important challenges. Several studies show that the standard approach sometimes produces theoretically wrong-signed elasticities of substitution, yields counterintuitive paths for skill-biased technical change (SBTC), and does not account for the observed deviations in college premia for younger vs. older workers. This paper shows that these failings can be explained by mis-measurement of relative skill prices and supplies (based on standard demographic composition-adjustments) and by inadequate ad hoc functional form assumptions about the path for SBTC. Improved estimates of skill prices and supplies that account for variation in skill across cohorts within narrowly defined groups help explain the observed deviation in the college premium for younger vs. older workers, even with perfect substitutability across age. Re-estimating the model with these prices and supplies produces a good fit with better out-of-sample prediction and robustly yields positive elasticities of substitution between high and low skill workers. The estimates suggest greater substitutability across skill and a more modest role for SBTC. We implement two new approaches to modelling SBTC. First, we study the extent to which recessions induce jumps or trend-adjustments in skill bias and find evidence that both features are important (but differ across recessions). Second, we link SBTC to direct measures of information technology investment expenditures and show that these measures explain the evolution of skill bias quite well. Together, these approaches suggest that the ad hoc assumptions for SBTC previously employed in the literature are too crude to fit the data well, leading to the incorrect conclusion that SBTC slowed during the early-1990s and under-estimates of the elasticity of substitution between high and low skill workers. |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:uwo:hcuwoc:20213&r= |
| By: | Atsuko Okuda (UNESCAP) |
| Abstract: | This article aims to identify key characteristics of broadband development in Northeast Asia. Broadband networks have become essential infrastructure in digital economy and society, enabling digital trade, e-commerce, e-government services, to name a few. Together with the expansion of social media, frontier technologies, such as artificial intelligence, have emerged to drive the so-called Industry 4.0. These applications and technologies heavily depend on the existence of reliable and affordable broadband networks. In this background, this article examines various aspects of broadband networks in the subregion, such as access, speed, affordability and usage, using the framework of the Asia-Pacific Information Superhighway to identify possible areas of further development, regional cooperation and investment. |
| Keywords: | broadband, information and communication technology, Internet, artificial intelligence, infrastructure |
| Date: | 2021–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eri:dpaper:2104&r= |
| By: | Dorine CORNET (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, 106-112 bd de l'Hôpital, 75642 Paris Cedex 13); Jean BONNET (Normandie Univ, Unicaen, CNRS, CREM, Esplanade de la Paix, 14032 CAEN cedex 5); Sébastien BOURDIN (EM Normandie Business School, Métis Lab, 9 rue Claude Bloch, 14 000 Caen) |
| Abstract: | The DIGITAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP INDICATOR (DEI), which combines individual and institutional data, is designed to chart the vitality of metropolitan areas in terms of digital entrepreneurship on a suburban scale. In this study, we apply it to the case of the Greater Paris Metropolitan area. Using geographically weighted regression, we explore the spatial heterogeneity of the effect of digital entrepreneurial ecosystems on the location quotient of information and communication technology firms with fewer than 10 employees. The results highlight a positive link between the DEI and the location quotient of small ICT firms. In particular, the aspects of both ATTitudes and CAPacities (i.e., urbanization economies, Human Development Index, density of incubators, accounting and financial services, and fiber optic coverage) appear to have a significant effect on a suburban scale. |
| Keywords: | digital entrepreneurial ecosystem, urban area, innovation, spatial econometrics |
| JEL: | R12 L26 O31 P25 |
| Date: | 2022–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tut:cremwp:2022-03&r= |
| By: | Tuheen Ahmmed; Afsoon Alidadi; Zichao Zhang; Aizaz U. Chaudhry; Halim Yanikomeroglu |
| Abstract: | Overcoming the digital divide in rural and remote areas has always been a big challenge for Canada with its huge geographical area. In 2016, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission announced broadband Internet as a basic service available for all Canadians. However, approximately one million Canadians still do not have access to broadband services as of 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has made the situation more challenging, as social, economic, and educational activities have increasingly been transferred online. The condition is more unfavorable for Indigenous communities. A key challenge in deploying rural and remote broadband Internet is to plan and implement high-capacity backbones, which are now available only in denser urban areas. For any Internet provider, it is almost impossible to make a viable business proposal in these areas. For example, the vast land of the Northwest Territories, Yukon, and Nunavuts diverse geographical features present obstacles for broadband infrastructure. In this paper, we investigate the digital divide in Canada with a focus on rural and remote areas. In so doing, we highlight two potential solutions using low Earth orbit (LEO) constellations to deliver broadband Internet in rural and remote areas to address the access inequality and the digital divide. The first solution involves integrating LEO constellations as a backbone for the existing 4G/5G telecommunications network. This solution uses satellites in a LEO constellation to provide a backhaul network connecting the 4G/5G access network to its core network. The 3rd Generation Partnership Project already specifies how to integrate LEO satellite networks into the 4G/5G network, and the Canadian satellite operator Telesat has already showcased this solution with one terrestrial operator, TIM Brasil, in their 4G network. |
| Date: | 2022–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2203.08933&r= |
| By: | Simplice A. Asongu (Yaounde, Cameroon); Nicholas M. Odhiambo (Pretoria, South Africa) |
| Abstract: | Compared to other regions of the world, the potential for information technology penetration in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is very high. Unfortunately, productivity levels in the region are also very low. This study investigates the importance of information technology in influencing the effect of foreign direct investment (FDI) on total factor productivity (TFP) dynamics. The focus is on 25 countries in SSA. Information technology is measured with mobile phone penetration and internet penetration, while the engaged TFP productivity dynamics are TFP, real TFP, welfare TFP, and real welfare TFP. The empirical evidence is based on the Generalised Method of Moments. The findings show that, with the exception of regressions pertaining to real TFP growth for which the estimations do not pass post-estimation diagnostic tests, it is apparent that information technology (i.e. mobile phone penetration and internet penetration) modulate FDI to positively influence TFP dynamics (i.e. TFP, welfare TFP, and welfare real TFP). Policy and theoretical implications are discussed. |
| Keywords: | E23; F21; F30; L96; O55 |
| Date: | 2022–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:exs:wpaper:22/019&r= |
| By: | Abid, Hofa (Bt research scoiety) |
| Abstract: | Many cloud-based marketing programs, ranging from CRM systems to marketing automation solutions, are already widely used. These services let marketers monitor campaigns and activities across mobile, social, and Web platforms, as well as customer interactions. As Internet usage has spread across devices, there are more ways to engage potential consumers in this modern era - but it is also more challenging to attract their attention. Customers desire stuff that is unique, organic, engaging, and personalized. Marketers may employ cloud technology to generate new data-driven strategies and more tailored and targeted marketing. These tools will very definitely be combined with one of the digital marketing components listed below. |
| Date: | 2020–08–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:osfxxx:dczke&r= |
| By: | Azhgaliyeva, Dina (Asian Development Bank Institute); Mishra, Ranjeeta (Asian Development Bank Institute); Yoshino, Naoyuki (Asian Development Bank Institute); Karymshakov, Kamalbek (Asian Development Bank Institute) |
| Abstract: | This study aims to examine the impact of infrastructure on firm performance in nine CAREC countries: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Empirical analysis is based on the enterprise survey for 2009, 2013, and 2019. Infrastructure is measured by the duration of power outages, electricity expenses as the share of total sales, access to broadband internet and efficiency of customs. Firm performance was measured by total sales, share of utilized capacity, dummy variable if firm exports, and the share of export sales. Results indicate that firm performance measured through sales and capacity utilization is negatively affected by the duration of power outages and electricity expenses. Moreover, access to broadband internet significantly increases the total sales and export sales of small firms, while efficiency of customs increases the exporting activities of medium and large firms. These findings underline that for the development of private sector and international trade in CAREC countries, sustainable access to, and quality of, electricity, telecommunications, and customs efficiency are important objectives for government policy. |
| Keywords: | Central Asia; electricity; telecommunications; infrastructure |
| JEL: | D24 H54 O18 Q41 Q48 |
| Date: | 2021–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbiwp:1265&r= |