The impact of ICT development on economic resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic: A country level analysis

Abstract

This research explores the relationship between information and communications technology (ICT) development and its impact on a country's economy during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study has two primary objectives: (1) to understand how ICT development influences a country's economic resilience during a crisis, and (2) to examine the interrelationships between various country-level ICT development measures. We use multi-year, country-level data made available by the United Nations, the World Bank, and World Health Organization to empirically examine our research model. Partial least squares path analysis is the primary research methodology employed in this study. Our results suggest that ICT development has a positive impact on economic resilience in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, our results specify the interrelationships between individual ICT development measures and economic resilience. This research contributes to the extant body of knowledge on the impact of country-level ICT development on economy by empirically validating a research model that explores the relationships between the various measures of ICT development and economic resilience of countries during the COVID-19 pandemic.