How
Americans Are Expanding Their Use Of The Internet
NTIA and the
Economics and Statistics Administration have published A Nation
Online: How Americans Are Expanding Their Use Of The Internet.
This report is based on the September 2001 U.S. Census Bureau’s
Current Population Survey - a survey of approximately 57,000 households
and more than 137,000 individuals across the United States. As
such, the data in this study are among the most broad-based and
reliable datasets that have been gathered on Internet, broadband,
and computer connectivity.
You can view
the entire report here: PDF
FORMAT | WORD2000
EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
Few technologies
have spread as quickly, or become so widely used, as computers
and the Internet. These information technologies are rapidly becoming
common fixtures of modern social and economic life, opening opportunities
and new avenues for many Americans. A Nation Online: How Americans
Are Expanding Their Use of the Internet shows the rapidly growing
use of new information technologies across all demographic groups
and geographic regions. Not only are many more Americans using
the Internet and computers at home, they are also using them at
work, school, and other locations for an expanding variety of
purposes.
In the
last few years, Americans’ use of the Internet and computers
has grown substantially.
Use of
the Internet and computers at work has contributed to higher use
levels at home.
- Approximately
24 million of the 65 million employed adults who use a computer
at their job also work on a computer at home. Moreover, the
presence in a household of someone who uses a computer at work
makes it far more likely—by a margin of approximately 77
to 35 percent—that the household owns a computer or uses
the Internet at home.
- With more
than half of all Americans using computers and the Internet,
we are truly a nation online. At work, schools, and libraries,
as well as at home, the Internet is being used by a greater
number of Americans.
Internet
use is increasing for people regardless of income, education,
age, race, ethnicity, or gender.
- Between
December 1998 and September 2001, Internet use by individuals
in the lowest-income households (those earning less than $15,000
per year) increased at a 25 percent annual growth rate. Internet
use among individuals in the highest-income households (those
earning $75,000 per year or more) increased from a higher base
but at a much slower 11 percent annual growth rate.
- Between
August 2000 and September 2001, Internet use among Blacks and
Hispanics increased at annual rates of 33 and 30 percent, respectively.
Whites and Asian American/Pacific Islanders experienced annual
growth rates of approximately 20 percent during these same periods.
- Over the
1998 to 2001 period, growth in Internet use among people living
in rural households has been at an average annual rate of 24
percent, and the percentage of Internet users in rural areas
(53 percent) is now almost even with the national average (54
percent).
- The highest
growth rate among different types of households is for single
mothers with children (29 percent).
- People
with mental or physical disabilities (such as blindness, deafness,
or difficulty walking, typing, or leaving home) are less likely
than those without such disabilities to use computers or the
Internet.
While 80 % of Americans access the Internet through dial-up
service, residential use of broadband service is
rapidly expanding.
- Between
August 2000 and September 2001, residential use of high-speed,
broadband service doubled—from about 4 to 11 percent of
all individuals, and from 11 to 20 percent of Internet users.
Children
and teenagers use computers and the Internet more than any other
age group.
- Ninety
percent of children between the ages of 5 and 17 (or 48 million)
now use computers.
- Seventy-five
percent of 14-17 year olds and 65 percent of 10-13 year olds
use the Internet.
- Households
with children under the age of 18 are more likely to access
the Internet (62 percent) than households with no children (53
percent).
- Computers
at schools substantially narrow the gap in computer usage rates
for children from high and low income families.
CONCLUSION
The Internet
has become a tool that is accessible to and adopted by Americans
in communities across the nation. Approximately two million more
people become Internet users every month, and over half of the
population is now online. Those who have been the least traditional
users –people of lower income levels, lower education levels,
or the elderly – are among the fastest adopters of this new
technology. As a result, we are more and more becoming a nation
online: a nation that can take advantage of the information resources
provided by the Internet, as well as a nation developing the technical
skills to compete in our global economy.
The expanding
use of the Internet at schools, work, and libraries has played
a significant role in this development. Young people are now active
users of this technology. This report has demonstrated that the
presence of computers and Internet access at schools is making
these resources available to children who lack them at home. This
means that our children will gain the skills and familiarity with
new technologies that will allow them to find jobs in our new
economy.
In addition,
many more Americans than in years past are using computers and
the Internet at work. Certain jobs that previously involved only
manual labor, for example, now involve some use of information
technologies. Proficiency with these technologies has become increasingly
important, and adults are gaining such proficiency as more use
information technologies at work and find new opportunities for
using them at home.
Our nation
has passed a significant milestone now that the majority of Americans
use computers and the Internet for their daily activities. This
trend is enriching our world, facilitating our work lives, and
providing a skill set needed for a growing economy.
