A comparative study of mobile technology adoption in remote Australia
A comparative study of mobile technology adoption in remote Australia Conference Paper
Proceedings of the Seventh International Conference on Cultural Attitudes towards Technology and Communication
- Author(s): Brady, F, Dyson, LE
- Published: 2010
- Publisher: School of Information Systems, Murdoch University
Abstract: The paper presents a comparative study of mobile technology adoption and use by two communities - one Aboriginal and the other non-Aboriginal - both located in a remote region of Australia, the Bloomfield River Valley of Cape York. Both communities have high levels of ownership of mobile phones relative to, on the one hand, the low uptake of other leT such as fixed-line phones by the Aboriginal community at Wujal Wujal and, on the other hand, the poor mobile coverage in the non-Aboriginal community at Bloomfield. For both groups communication is of paramount importance, followed by listening to music. In addition, the Aboriginal community make extensive use of other multimedia and Internet features of their devices. Key factors in the motivation to acquire mobile phones, in comparison to other ICT, are the superior cost management that mobiles offer for Aboriginal people and the convenience of being able to communicate while away from home for Bloomfield residents. The authors conclude that mobile technology needs to be taken seriously, even in areas of limited coverage such as the Bloomfield River Valley.
- Urls: https://opus.lib.uts.edu.au/handle/10453/16288, http://hdl.handle.net/10453/16288
- Publisher Location: Murdoch University