| On
10/27/2005 the United States Census
Bureau released a report entitled
"Computer and Internet Use in the
United States: 2003". The report
provides some insights as to who is using
computers and the internet (and who is
not) as well as why they are using
computers and the internet (or why not).
Not surprisingly, both computer and
internet use have continued to rise. 61.8
percent of U.S. households (70 million
households) in 2003 had one or more
computers compared to 56.3 percent in
2001 (and only 8.2 percent in 1984).
Access to the internet stood at 54.7
percent compared to 50.4 percent in 2001
(and only 18% in 1997, the first year for
which a figure is provided). See graph at
right. Demographically,
both computer and internet use were found
to be more prevalent in homes where the
householder 25-64 years old (peaking in
the 35-44 and 45-54 brackets). Both
computer and internet use were lowest in
the 65 or older age bracket, coming in at
34.7 and 29.4 percent respectively.
Computer presence and Internet access
were each more prevalent in households
where the householder wasnon-Hispanic
white or asian, and also in households
having one or more children aged 6-17
present in the home. The educational
attainment of the householder made a very
significant difference, with only
27.9/20.2 percent of households where the
householder did not have a high school
degree or GED having a computer or
internet access in the home as opposed to
85.8/81.1 percent in households where the
householder held and advanced degree.
Slight regional differences were found as
well with the West leading in both
categories and the coming in last. For
more information on the demographics see
the table at right.
What does the future
hold? While the report did not make
specific predictions, it seems reasonable
that both computers and access to the
internet will continue to increase,
albeit at a slower rate than in recent
years. The slowing of the rate of
increase has already begun. Both
households with a computer and households
with internet access jumped about 5
percentage points between 2000 and 2001.
The next jump of about 5 percentage
points in each category took twice as
long (from 2001 to 2003). While future
growth in these areas may be slower,
there is certainly potential for the
growth to continue for a long time with
almost 40 percent of households not yet
having a computer and over 45 percent not
having internet access.
For Further Reading:
The Census Bureau -
www.census.gov
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