People With Disabilities in the Digital Era: Selected Statistical Data 2021

Background

The Commission for Equal Rights of Persons with Disabilities (hereinafter, the Commission) seeks to expand the available data on the statuse of people with disabilities in Israel by publishing annual reports and promoting initiatives for the improvement of the related databases. At the request of the Commission, the Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute conducted a special analysis of the data collected through the Social Survey of the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) for 2020 regarding people with disabilities in the digital era.

Goal

The goal of this study is to provide policy makers, professionals, researchers, activists, the media, and the public at large with information on the digital literacy of people with disabilities in Israel and their use of digital technologies, compared with people without disabilities.

Method

The researchers at the Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute conducted a secondary analysis of the data collected through the Social Survey of the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) for 2020. The survey, aimed at examining the social and economic status of the population in Israel, has been conducted annually since 2002 among a representative sample of about 9,000 adults (aged 20 and over) living in the community. The survey consists of a fixed part including questions in various spheres of life, and a variable part focused on a specific topic selected each year for in-depth examination. The selected topic for 2020 was the digital era. This study summarizes the relevant data on people with disabilities in the digital era.

Key Findings and Conclusions

  • During the years 2011-2020, there was a sharp increase in the rate of Internet users. The increase was higher among people with disabilities: 59% of people with disabilities and 80% of people without disabilities used the Internet in 2011, compared with 90% of people with disabilities and 95% of people without disabilities in 2020.
  • At the same time, there are digital and technological literacy gaps between people with disabilities and people without disabilities. Fewer people with disabilities use the internet for video calls and emailing, compared with people without disabilities. In addition, more people with disabilities reported difficulty in acquiring new technological skills: 42%, compared with 23% of people without disabilities. Also, more people with disabilities reported their need for training and guidance on using the Internet: 41%, compared with 24% of people without disabilities.
  • Although people with disabilities (especially those with mobility difficulties) are likely to significantly benefit from digital services, they use the Internet less than their counterparts without disabilities for economic and business purposes, for consumption of digital services offered by the health plans and the government ministries and agencies, etc. The rate of people with disabilities aged 20-34 who use the Internet for economic and business purposes is similar to that of people without disabilities in the same age group. At the same time, people with disabilities in the 20-34 age group use the Internet less than their counterparts in the same age group for study and employment purposes: 40% of the 20-24 years old with disabilities use the Internet for study purposes and 47%, for employment purposes, compared with 46% and 57%, respectively, of their counterparts without disabilities.
  • The Internet helps people with disabilities aged 20-34 to cope with loneliness. 52% of people with disabilities aged 20-34 use the Internet to reconnect with old friends, compared with 47% of their counterparts without disabilities. In addition, 31% of people with disabilities aged 20-34 reported that they met face to face with someone they had previously met online, compared with 23% of their counterparts without disabilities. At the same time, people without disabilities aged 65 and overuse the Internet more than people with disabilities in the same age group to reconnect with old friends (27%, compared with 18%, respectively).
  • To reduce gaps in the use of digital services between people with disabilities and people without disabilities and to improve the services, the barriers faced by people with disabilities and their needs should be examined. The gaps may be caused by the inaccessibility of websites and applications. Providing accessible websites and the information they contain as per the accessibility regulations could enable more people with disabilities to use them.

 

 

Citing suggestion: Barlev, L., Nagar Eidelman, R. & Konstantinov, V. (2022). People With Disabilities in the Digital Era:  Selected Statistical Data 2021. S-207-22. Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute.