Digital Media Use and Availability Can Mitigate The Digital Divide: Meta-Analytic Insights From PISA 2022

Abstract

The digital divide, commonly described as the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and digital competence, has garnered significant attention in educational research, particularly since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, despite ongoing efforts to promote digitalization across countries and schools, there has been limited research into the extent to which school-level or country-level factors can moderate the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and digital competence—an association commonly referred to in the literature as the second-level digital divide. This study addressed these gaps by examining the association between SES and digital competence using data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2022, encompassing 52 countries (N = 393607) and employing an integrative meta-analytical approach. We found positive associations between SES and two measures of digital competencies; self-efficacies, and practices related to online information (βsummary effect = 0.15, 95% CI [0.14, 0.16]. βsummary effect = 0.11, 95% CI [0.10, 0.12]). Furthermore, moderator analyses showed that the adequate availability and high-quality use of digital media, such as inquiry-based learning methods, can mitigate the positive relationship between SES and digital competence, an effect that holds promise for reducing digital inequalities. This study contributes to the existing body of research by providing a more nuanced understanding country-level factors that may mitigate the digital divide. Furthermore, it highlights potential approaches for targeted interventions aimed at addressing SES-related disparities that perpetuate digital inequalities.