The factors affecting the international digital divide: A practice for the developed and developing countries

The rapid technological advancements that took place in developed industrial societies during the second half of the twentieth century have created significant changes in almost every area of social life. During this process, with the influence of major developments in information and communication technologies, a new social and economic structure emerged. Technology has a significant role in the development of countries' economies and increasing public welfare. Time and railway schedules are the symbols of the industrial age. These express time in hours, minutes, and seconds. Computers which are the symbol of the information age "think" within nanoseconds or thousands of microseconds. Thus, a new space and time frame is provided to the modern society through the pairing of computers and new communication technologies. With the availability of the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), the digital divide, which explains the inequality experienced in the access and utilization of these technologies, can be either related to social, economic, and political factors or geographical conditions. In this study, the concept of "digital divide" was explained with its reasons and types; and it was aimed to identify the factors that lead to a digital divide in developed and underdeveloped countries. For this purpose, first of all, the ICT development index (IDI) was calculated using the methods developed by the International Telecommunication Union and used as the dependent variable. Dynamic panel regression analysis, which covered the period between 1995 and 2013, was used for 20 developed and 16 developing countries. In the model prepared for all countries, the lagged value of the dependent variable (network effect), patents, income per capita, import of goods and services, quality of laws, and city population were found significant in explaining the digital divide. In the model of developed countries, the lagged value of the dependent variable, income per capita, quality of laws, and city population were found significant in explaining the digital development level of the countries. In the model of developing countries, the lagged value of the dependent variable, electricity consumption per capita, and income per capita variables were found significant in explaining the digital development level of the countries. Key Words: Information, Technology, Digital Divide, ICT Development Index.