Measuring Digital Capital: An empirical investigation

Massimo Ragnedda, Maria Ruiu, Felice Addeo

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

110 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This article develops a Digital Capital Index by adopting the definition provided by Ragnedda, who defines Digital Capital as the accumulation of digital competencies and digital technologies, and the model for measuring it developed by Ragnedda and Ruiu. It aims to develop a measure that can be replicated for comparison in different contexts. This article contributes both theoretically and empirically to the literature by (a) consolidating the concept of Digital Capital as a specific capital and (b) empirically measuring it. A Digital Capital Index is developed through an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and validated with a representative sample survey of 868 UK citizens. The validation procedure shows that the Digital Capital Index is associated with socioeconomic and sociodemographic patterns, such as age, income, educational level and place of residence, while it appears not to be related to gender.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)793-816
Number of pages24
JournalNew Media and Society
Volume22
Issue number5
Early online date27 Aug 2019
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 May 2020

Keywords

  • Digital Capital
  • digital divide
  • digital inclusion
  • digital inequalities
  • exploratory factor analysis

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