A Study on the Impact of the Digital Divide on Employment Inequality among the Elderly
Actively developing the human resources of older adults and promoting the re-employment and continued labor force participation of the older population are important measures for the sustainable development of an aging soci-ety.However,with the sweeping wave of digitization,the digital divide seems to have become a new shackle on older adult employment and labor force participation.Therefore,based on the theory of skill-biased technological progress,the information effect theory and the human capital theory,the article utilizes the data from the China Learning and Ageing Social Tracking Survey(CLASS)to explore in depth the impact and mechanism of the digital divide on the em-ployment inequality of the older adults,so as to bridge the older adult digital divide and unleash the employment vitali-ty of the older adults.The study finds that the digital divide will widen the employment inequality of older adults,in-cluding unequal employment opportunities,unequal employment levels and unequal employment incomes.And differ-ent types of digital divides,including access divides,utilization divides and access divides,have significant effects on employment inequality of older adults.Compared with other groups,the impact of digital divide on the employment in-equality of rural older adults and male older adults is more obvious.Mechanism analysis suggests that the digital divide can affect employment inequality among older adults in two ways:through information access and employment skill im-provement.The above findings indicate that the digital divide is an important factor affecting employment inequality among older adults,and that bridging the digital divide among older adults and releasing the employment vitality of old-er adults require accelerating the establishment of a digitally inclusive society,vigorously promoting the construction of digital infrastructure in rural areas,narrowing the urban-rural gap in the construction of digital infrastructure,and re-inforcing publicity and education on access to,use of,and acquisition of knowledge about digital technology among older adults to promote its application and popularization of digital technology among older adults,so as to promote dig-ital technology as a catalyst for unleashing the employment vitality of older persons.
Digital GapElderly EmploymentInternet UsageUnequalDelayed Retirement
NETL
NSTL
万方数据
维普
