Declining Majority of Online Adults Say the Internet Has Been Good for Society.
The research studied all categories of Americans including a survey of U.S older adults and younger adults based on their annual household income levels (Lowest household less than $30,000 and high household level of $75,000), level of education ranging high school leavers to degree holders, accessibility to smartphones and subscription to traditional broadband service. Each of these categories responds differently to the topic of research by providing specific answers. Researchers get suitable information when they focus on varying opinions from the same group of adults under survey.
Information in the article focused on answering the research question: Has the Internet been good for society? How has the internet affected various groups of people’s ages in society over the years?
Research
The first research method involved a survey in which many people are included, and its results generalized to the greater population.
The second research method in the article involved observation (Field Research) that provided rich, detailed information about categories of people observed in the field.
A survey method was conducted on adults in the U.S in January 2018 to analyze the potential impacts of digital technologies and the internet on the lives of Americans in largely positive ways. The survey covered all groups in U.S society who has the potential of accessing and using the internet. Selected adults involved a sizeable number over a wider population but maintained their major categories. The survey method was used in conjunction with an observational method where researchers note personal ways of life for various adults. These methods focused on elders in all classes and recorded data used to perform a thorough analysis to present substantial internet usage among American adults.
Learn
The article contains several key findings of the research. First, there is an ever-increasing share of online adults who say that the internet has been a mixed blessing for society. About 88% of internet users say the internet is a good thing for personal use. In comparison, about 70% of internet users appreciate that the internet is a good thing for the entire society. Secondly, responses about positive views of the internet are mainly given by users that enjoy faster access to information and experience ease of connecting with others. Still, negative views are based on a variety of issues. Thirdly, one out of five Americans, uses the internet at home via their smartphones only.
It was concluded that adults who use the internet frequently, such as those with smartphones and traditional broadband, give positive views of the internet. However, adults that rarely use the internet, such as those without smartphones, give negative views about the internet.
Do
I have based the following two additional follow-up questions on this research:
Will it be possible to attain a level where all adults have at least a means of accessing the internet?
Will it be possible to encourage or discourage adults from using the internet at any level of their lives?
I chose these questions because they are mainly independent of human influence. Responses to these questions can rarely be controlled by humans because adults decide to use the internet based on a wide range of issues such as income and age. Hence, all views depend on how users utilize the internet because most adults may acquire means of accessing the internet but still misuse it and end us disliking the internet.