FACTORS INFLUENCING WOMEN’S ATTITUDES TOWARDS COMPUTERS IN A COMPUTER LITERACY TRAINING PROGRAM

ABSTRACT

In the “Digital Divide” research, adult women have generally been found to be the weakest group when compared with others. There is thus a need to provide this particular group with computer literacy training, and to give them opportunities to learn about using computers. In such training, women not only need to learn computer skills, but also a positive attitude. This study gathered qualitative and quantitative data from 175 women who attended computer literacy training, to analyze their attitudes towards computers and to identify differences in their attitudes. The data were collected from questionnaires, interviews and class observations. It was found that only women with lower educational levels had feelings of high anxiety prior to the training. However, other characteristics influenced their attitudes during the training, including age, education, nationality, and PC ownership. Factors influencing the differences in their attitudes were the difficulties of data input, physiological limitations, cultural differences, computer access and learning opportunities. Suggestions for future computer training programs for adult women are proposed.