Digital policies imagine a "model user" whose experience contrasts sharply with the actualities of adults on the margins of access¶
Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · qualitativer2·q2
Currency · newest study 2017 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person · overdue for a recheck since 2022: baselines and conditions change
Subclaims¶
Reading the evidence codes
q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r
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This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.
q2 i? The City of Vancouver Digital Strategy envisions an idealized digitally proficient citizen (Stephanie) whose experience contrasts with actualities observed among Digital Café participants. → Smythe 2017
Evidence¶
Smythe 2017¶
Smythe, S., & Breshears, S. (2017). Complicating Access: Digital Inequality And Adult Learning In A Public-Access Computing Space. The Canadian Journal for the Study of Adult Education, 29(1), 67-81. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1139334
q2 · i? · qualitative · r2
Policy analysis of the City of Vancouver Digital Strategy's "A day in the life..." model user approach. The authors contrast this imagined "Stephanie" with Digital Café participants who lack devices, struggle with email, or get locked out of accounts, arguing the model user masks digital inequality.
"Stephanie is regarded as digitally proficient and seems to have continuous access to multiple devices, data, and a high-speed connection at work, at home, and on transit. She values ease and efficiency of services, meaning that she can achieve her personal life goals almost instantaneously"
Discussion¶
Related Claims¶
- Digital access among adults on the margins is not a one-time event but an ongoing, contingent accomplishment requiring an assemblage of resources — related
- Internet connection rates in Canada differ sharply by income, with 97% of the highest income quartile connected versus 58% of the lowest — related
- Canadian federal and provincial digital policies reflect a laissez-faire approach with near absence of consideration of affordability and digital skills for low-income adults — related
- User engagement with GAI tools is filtered through imagined affordances rather than direct encounter with software functionalities — related
Page metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
type |
claim |
id |
model-user-policy-imaginary |
title |
Digital policies imagine a "model user" whose experience contrasts sharply with the actualities of adults on the margins of access |
description |
Digital policies imagine a "model user" whose experience contrasts sharply with the actualities of adults on the margins of access |
status |
review |
evidence_strength |
moderate |
newest_evidence |
2017 |
recheck_by |
2022 |
generated |
by process:wiki-ingest on 2026-10-17 |
trust |
unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content |
sources |
1 — smythe-2017 |
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