UCI

Irvine, Calif., June 26, 2000 — Orange County is wired. More than three in four residents are using computers and two in three are using the Internet, according to UC Irvine's 2000 Orange County Annual Survey.

A digital divide, however, separates those who haven't yet logged on-Latinos, seniors, North County residents, the less educated and the less affluent.

Computer use in the county is ahead of the state, with 62 percent of Orange County residents saying they use a computer often and 54 percent using the Internet often. In comparison, 57 percent of Californians use a computer often and 47 percent use the Internet often, according to a February survey by the Public Policy Institute of California. Fifteen percent of both county and state residents say they use a computer sometimes, and only 23 percent in the county and 28 percent in the state say they never use a computer. Thirteen percent in both county and state use the Internet sometimes.

"Orange County is highly engaged in computers and the Internet today," said Mark Baldassare, UCI professor of urban and regional planning, who co-directed the survey with research associate Cheryl Katz. "Residents are out in front of many other regions of the state and nation in computer and Internet use, both in gathering information and using the technology in their daily lives.

"More significantly in the long run, the survey shows that we have a fundamental 
problem: As part of the growth of the 'new economy,' many people are left behind. Latinos are one of the fastest growing groups in our population, but their overall rate of computer ownership and use is way behind. They are half as likely to access the Internet or use a computer at home. As a result, they are cut off in significant ways from news and information."

Non-Hispanic whites are more likely to use a computer often (67 percent) than Latinos (37 percent), and frequent use is higher among South County residents (71 percent) than North County residents (59 percent). Frequent computer use also is higher among people age 18 to 54 (70 percent) than among older people (42 percent). College graduates are more likely to use computers often (79 percent) than those without degrees (50 percent). And those earning $36,000 or more annually (76 percent) are more likely to use a computer often than those earning less (40 percent).

When it comes to Internet use, the divide is similar: 59 percent of non-Hispanic whites and 28 percent of Latinos log on often, and 63 percent of South County residents and 50 percent of North County residents often go on line. Young people are more likely to use the Internet often (62 percent) than those 55 or older (33 percent). Seven in 10 college graduates and 41 percent of nongraduates use the Internet often, and 68 percent of those with annual incomes of $36,000 or more use the Internet often, compared with 29 percent of those with lower incomes.

Among those who go on line, the biggest use is to get news or medical information, which nearly half do often or sometimes. Four in 10 have made on-line purchases, and one in three have looked for jobs on the Internet.

Non-Hispanic whites are more likely to get news from the Web than Latinos (52 percent to 31 percent) and twice as likely to seek health or medical information from the Internet (52 percent to 26 percent). Those most likely to visit news Web sites are South County residents (61 percent), 18- to-54-year-olds (57 percent), college graduates (66 percent) and households with incomes of $36,000 or more (62 percent).

"Seniors, Latinos and the less affluent are missing out on information to be gained on the Internet. Many don't have computer skills and access, and that is holding them back economically," Katz said. Thirty-nine percent of Orange County residents use the Internet to buy goods and services, but more Internet shopping is done in South County (48 percent) than in North County (36 percent). There's also a 22-point gap between non-Hispanic whites and Latinos (43 percent to 21 percent).

The digital divide also is evident in Internet use for job searches. One in three in the county look for jobs on line, 15 percent of them often. But non-Hispanic whites are more likely than Latinos to use the Internet to look for a job (32 percent to 25 percent) and those making $36,000 or more are more likely than those making less (40 percent to 27 percent).

The 19th Orange County Annual Survey was conducted by telephone May 3 to 14, using a computer-generated random sample of telephone numbers. Interviews of 1,005 randomly selected adult household members were conducted in English and Spanish. The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent at the 95-percent confidence level. It is the most comprehensive study of the political, social and economic attitudes of Orange County residents. Baldassare, the Roger W. and Janice M. Johnson Endowed Chair in Civic Governance and Public Management in UCI's School of Social Ecology, has conducted the survey since 1982.