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Comparisons of Countries

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The Global Digital Divides

Part of the book series: Progress in IS ((PROIS))

Abstract

The intra-national digital divides differ among countries. Comparisons are made between the study nations of China, India, Japan, and the United States to determine what correlates of ICTs are common and which ones are unique to a single nation. Conceptual frameworks for comparing socio-economic phenomena between geographical units are examined, which range from models having identical variables across different units to those with mostly unique variables or that use qualitative methods. The present comparison is a hybrid, that includes both common factors and unique ones. Results indicate the states/provinces/prefectures within the 4 nations have the common factors of urban location, economic prosperity, education, and infrastructure for four phone and internet/broadband variables; but lack of common factors for social media, albeit only comparing only two nations with available data. Many unique factors are identified for each of the four nations. The comparisons support that that intra-national digital divides are distinctive and culturally influenced. A case study of Lenovo illustrates success at understanding province-level distinctiveness in China but also recognition of cultural differences for its U.S. presence.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Business, University of Redlands, Redlands, CA, USA

    James B. Pick & Avijit Sarkar

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  1. James B. Pick
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  2. Avijit Sarkar
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Correspondence to James B. Pick .

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Pick, J.B., Sarkar, A. (2015). Comparisons of Countries. In: The Global Digital Divides. Progress in IS. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-46602-5_10

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