Media.Knet.Ca

FINAL RESEARCH REPORT

Social Media as a Tool for Inclusion

This research project contract was funded by Human Resources and Skills Development Canada

Anne Taylor
613‐730‐2966
aataylor@magma.ca
February 23, 2011

Click here for a PDF copy of the Final Report

Introduction

This is a report of the findings of research commissioned by the Horizontal Policy Integration Division (HPID) of HRSDC. The objectives of the study were to determine the extent, nature and benefits of social media use by five vulnerable populations – Aboriginal peoples, people with disabilities, recent immigrants, the homeless and seniors – and by the institutions that serve them, and to explore the extent to which such media help to overcome social isolation and barriers to inclusion in Canadian society. The Division also requested information on the topic from three levels of government – municipal, provincial and federal. The methodology consisted of semi‐structured telephone interviews with sources, primarily but not exclusively, in the National Capital Region, and a literature review.

Findings –Vulnerable Populations

Data from different regions of Canada and anecdotal reports suggest that First Nations and Inuit peoples have embraced social media, using tools such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to keep in touch with home communities, fight addiction, showcase Aboriginal arts and crafts, preserve cultural identity and support political advocacy. Though there are well‐founded misgivings among Aboriginal peoples regarding the potential negative impact of social media on their cultures and languages, it is clear that many are using these technologies in the fight to preserve Aboriginal cultures and identity. Despite a remarkable uptake of social media among Aboriginal people, recent research suggests that about half of First Nations communities across Canada do not have access to residential broadband. In a country as connected as Canada, adequate broadband is a major criterion for equity and inclusion in Canadian society. ...

From Page 52 of the report ...

Two papers (Budka et al, 2009 and Bell et al, 2007) relate the remarkable story of MyKNet.org, an online social environment described in this literature as a ‘computerization movement’ that began in 1994 in north‐western Ontario. This project was grassroots and community‐driven. It was led by local leaders intent on adapting technology to community needs. The project was, and continues to be, oriented towards public good, such as telemedicine and e‐learning, and towards personal social networking. Since the late 90s and using dial‐up, MyKNet.org users created and linked personal profiles on their own web pages and shared profiles, messages, jokes and stories.

Bell et al note that while MyKNet.org does not visually resemble social networking sites, it is nevertheless a network of interlinked homepages and is similar in some functions and uses to social networking sites. Users post photos, create and update blogs and maintain active links to a large number of other personal sites. Locally controlled and developed, the sites are used to maintain ties in the community and retain links with those who have left. The authors highlight the great distances that separate families and contend MyKNet.org not only strengthens familial ties and other interpersonal connections but also facilitates inter‐community communication and civic action.

In 2007, a researcher (Budka, 2008) conducted a survey of more than a thousand MyKNet users, which revealed that subscribers considered MyKNet.org to be their most important communication medium, over telephone, television and community radio. Although 73.5 per cent of respondents had an email address with another provider and 47 per cent had a profile on Bebo, Pizco, MySpace or Facebook, more than 92 per cent had retained their own MyKnet.org homepage which they updated once to several times a day (36.6%) or several times a week (21.3%). Nearly three quarters of respondents did this from a home computer. More than 46 per cent of users were between 15 and 25 years of age and 17 per cent were over 35. The study illustrates the proclivity of some First Nations people for this kind of connectivity, bandwidth capacity notwithstanding.

Two other recent studies by the same authors (Mingone and Henley, 2009) examine the impact of ICTs in Aboriginal communities. In one, the authors explore the educational, economic development, health, cultural continuity, governance and socializing opportunities supported by technology networks in five Aboriginal communities situated from British Columbia to Nunavut. They also capture the drawbacks – the marginalization of those who cannot afford equipment and service, and the inability of small communities to attract infrastructure providers. The authors offer a range of solutions, underscoring connectivity as a basic infrastructure, and technical and skills training in IT as essential for bridging the digital divide. In the second study, drawing from experiences in the same communities, the authors use the notion of social capital in assessing the impact of ICTs and conclude that ICTs are a powerful catalyst for bonding within group relations, for bridging through inter‐community ties and for linking with formal institutions. Among other factors they mention: the role of ICTs in preserving language, culture and values; the human investment in the training of in‐community ICT providers; the facilitation of collective action previously impossible in remote communities; and the involvement of community members in developing, implementing and sustaining ICT networks. The authors maintain that ICT infrastructure is a right and that rural and remote communities lacking proper bandwidth are precisely the communities that stand to benefit most from ICT infrastructure.