Abstract:

Technology has advanced so much and it is present in almost all aspects of people’s lives. In today’s world, technology plays a pivotal role in our social interactions, influencing not only the business environment but our everyday lives. The power of the digital environment has become so obvious that people feel the need, or it’s expected of them to use digital technology on a daily basis, whether for work related task or daily chores, mainly due efficiency reasons. The study proposed wants to find if social groups divided by income are using different types of technology. The main objectives of the research are to discover if age is a factor in technology usage in Romania and to identify if income is a factor that influences digital consumption. For the research method the study uses a quantitative methodology and statistical software in order to better determine and understand if the digital divide is caused by age or income factors. The advantages of digital technology are multiple, still each advantage can become a disadvantage. Most individuals focus only on the positive effects of technology but it should be considered from at least two perspectives in order to have an overview. New media has become a source of innovation, using bits of information rather than material goods. The digital generation has become capable of performing more task at the same time, but it comes with costs in terms of time and performance. Our study aims to identify and analyse the factors that determinate technology usage and social stratification of technology users in Romania. The newer generations are being born into an interconnected world, a world for which their parents were not prepared or educated for, with things like having fast access to the Internet, social networks or smart-phones. The ability of the younger generation to learn how to use technology is progressing at a high pace, a pace that risk to put the older generation at a disadvantage when it comes to things like job opportunities, economic stability, entertainment, investments, accessing government services and so on. In order to prevent a future in which we see not only a generation gap, but also a wealth gap, we need to understand how can we better design our technologies and make them more inclusive for all people.

Keywords:

Digital divide, digital technology, digital social stratification, social mobility, generation gap.