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Identification of Key Indicators for Measuring the Digital Divide of Tribes: A Content Analysis Approach

Volume / Date

 VOL. 22 (NO. 2) / DEC.2024

Page

 pp.1-19

DOI

 10.6182/jlis.202412_22(2).001

Language

 English

Chitra S*, S. Thanuskodi

* Corresponding Author

Chitra S Department of Library and Information Science, Alagappa University, Karaikudi, India
St. Joseph’s College for Women, Alappuzha, India
chitra2k23@gmail.com
S. Thanuskodi Department of Library and Information Science, Alagappa University, Karaikudi, India
ORCID: 0000-0001-8471-5799

Abstract

India is home to the second-largest tribal population in the world. Tribal communities have always played a significant role in Indian society. They have distinctive lifestyles and customs as well as rich traditions, culture, and heritage. They also have many characteristics in common, such as residing in relative isolation from other social groupings and are relatively more homogeneous and independent. But they fall far behind in reaping the benefits of digital technology applications when compared to non-tribal population. There exists a huge gap in the access and use of digital devices and services between the tribal and non-tribal population. There might be internet facilities in tribal villages because the government has been keen in uplifting the lives of tribal people through various initiatives such as Digital India programme, but the fact remains that they lack the skill and infrastructure to utilize the benefits of the internet. Hence it is evident that there exists digital divide which hinders the economic and social development of the tribes. This paper attempts to identify a set of core dimensions and indicators that could be potentially used to measure the digital inclusion of the tribes. The digital divide between the tribal group and non-tribal group deepens with the ever-changing digital landscape and for ensuring digital inclusion, this digital divide should be eliminated. Qualitative content analysis of selected documents using MAXQDA software, one of the leading software for qualitative and mixed methods research, was used in this study. Five key dimensions—Accessibility, Affordability, Awareness, Ability and Attitude (5As) that play a crucial role in identifying the extent of digital inclusion of the socially excluded group of population were extracted from the documents subjected to qualitative content analysis.

Keywords

Digital Inclusion; Digital Divide; Tribal Development; Content Analysis; MAXQDA