Focused on Internet non-users and net-evaders.

1. J A N SLÁ D EK
FA C U LT Y OF PHI LOSOPHY & A RT S
C HA RL ES U NI VERSI T Y, P RA GU E
C YB ERSPA C E, B RNO, 28.-29. 1 1 . 2008
No to the Internet?

2. Inspiration
29.11.2008Jan Sládek
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 Manuel Castells (2001)
 „If you do not care about the networks, the networks will care about
you anyway.“
 Alan McCluskey (2006)
 „Will people be free not to have access?“
 „Strangely enough for a proclaimed ‚knowledge society‘, emphasis
continues to be placed on the possession of mass produced tools
rather than on the individual development and use of knowledge“
 Sharon Ungar (2003)
 Does knowledge economy produce knowledge society?
 Information overload leads to „knowledge aversion“ (being proud of
ignorance, Internet substitutes the stock of knowledge at hand, less
public knowledge)
 Neil Postman (1985)
 Information must be amusing
 Telegraph intoduced irelevancy, incoherency and powerlessness
 Jan A. G. M. van Dijk (2005)
 Motivational Access (I don‘t want/need it)

3. The data
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 WIP 2005-2008 (D. Šmahel)
 Czech men and Czech women in cyberspace project
(P. Soukup et al.)
 The Actor and Risks (dept. of sociology, J. Buriánek)
 Falling through the Net, 2000, National
Telecommunications and Infromation
Administration, USA

4. Which part of
NO don‘t you
understand?
 Similar to 1998
 40.8% seniors „do
not want“
 20%-30% „do not
want“ regardless
the income
 25%-34% „do not
want“ in all
education groups
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29.11.2008Jan Sládek
• Falling Through the Net, NTIA, 2000, n=48,000 (US Census)
• 61.6 mill. not connected, 10.8 mill. computer, 8.7 mill „never“
Reasons for U.S. Households with a Computer/Web TV
Never Accessing the Internet

5. Which part of
NO don‘t you
understand?
5
29.11.2008Jan Sládek
Reasons for U.S. Households Discontinuing Internet
Access
Falling Through the Net, NTIA, 2000, n=48,000 (US Census)
 4 million „drop-offs“
both in 1998 and
2000
 Almost 1/3
„computer related“
drop-offs
 ¼ „motivation
related“ drop-offs
 Low motivation
associates with age
 Households with
higher income do
not have time

6. 18%
21%
39%
15%
4% 3% Not
interested, not
useful
Do not know how
to use
No computer, no
connection
Too expensive
Czech „No to
the Internet“
6
29.11.2008Jan Sládek
The main reason for not using the Internet
WIP 2007, 2008, n=1623, age 12+
 Internet penetration
in CR: 55%
(2007), 57% in 2008
 22% non users lack
motivation
 54% non users have
material barriers
 Motivation declines
with age
Lack of motivation („not interested“) prevails in:
• Households with monthly income higher than
25,000 CZK
• Villages and small cities (up to 5,000 inhabitants)
• older than 30 years

7. Focus groups with nonusers: Key findings
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 Czech men and Czech women in cyberspace project
 Three focus groups, 8-10 respondents, age 16-60
 In most cases parents
 Have no control over their children‘s online activities
 Are aware of some risks (molesting, „explicit content“)
 Knowledge gap between them and their children
 Do not recognize various possibilities of the Internet
 The Internet perceived as:
 Waste of time
 Container for unreliable or dangerous information

8. Do the users spend less time by cultural activites?
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 Cinema, theatre, music, reading etc (WIP
2008, hours per week)
 9% of users do not perform these activities (14% in nonusers)
 20% of „not interested in the Internet“ do not perform these
activities as opposed to 10% who stated economical reason
 Not associated with intensity of Internet use and experience
 Average time spend:
 Seven hrs for users, eight for nonusers
 7.4 hrs (not interested), 8.7 (material barrier)
 Is this a substantial difference?

9. Leisure time - fun or education?
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In your leisure time, do you prefer studying or to having fun?
Education or fun by age group
% within Age groups
Age groups Total
15-30 31-45 46 and more
Education 32 40 43 38
Undecided 28 21 16 22
Fun 40 38 41 40
Actor and Risks, 2005, n(only users)=1373

10. No means no?
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 The change from freedom of access to a must
 Universal dependence: security and social risks
 Attack on the „knowledge society“ ?
 Total inclusion or keeping the alternatives in sight
 No – or mere „not yet“?
 Research agenda:
 Focus on off-line activities (leisure time) and skills
 Look for the groups who deliberately reject the Internet as part
of their life-style

11. Will the Internet….go wrong?
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