Aims and Objectives

The major aims of the research are to measure, analyse, evaluate and provide guidance on initiatives employing the current generation of ICTs in the workplace and communities, and to foreshadow the possible impacts of emerging information technologies, including extensions of the broadband infrastructure network.

Objective 1
To identify impacts of ICTs on people at work, in particular, how to use ICTs to maximise capability building, wealth creation, innovative activity, and quality of work life (QWL) for New Zealanders in the workplace.

Objective 2
To identify the impact of ICTs in society, focusing particularly on people in communities, with the aim of enhancing economic and social wellbeing and encouraging empowerment and inclusiveness.

Objective 1

To identify and explain the major economic, strategic and structural consequences of ICTs and their future growth, such as changes in earnings and income distributions, and generation of employment opportunities.

Specific projects to achieve this objective include:

• To identify the effect of ICTs on the distribution of earnings for the whole NZ population by using data on workers' earnings across different occupations and industries that span a number of years (e.g. from the Census of Population). Results will be disseminated via a web page and direct links with Advisory Board and government agencies. An article will be submitted to a refereed journal. Key researchers: John Gibson and Les Oxley.
  
  
• Identify the impact of ICTs on the business processes of a stratified multi-industry sample of New Zealand organisations (including analysis of ICT diffusion, identification of perceived barriers to the adoption of ICTs and identification of changes to firm behaviour, structure and strategy caused by ICTs). Key Researcher:
  
  
• To identify the main factors that influence managers and proprietors of SME's to consider, adopt and reject ICT initiatives at specific times, and identify the differences between ICT adopting and non-adopting firms, by extending the quarterly SME Benchmarking survey developed by Dr Stuart Locke. Results will be disseminated via a web page and direct links with Advisory Board and government agencies, particularly Ministry of Social Policy, Ministry of Economic Development and Te Puni Kokiri. An article will be submitted to an industry/management magazine.
  
  
• To identify how the use of ICTs has changed network structures and practices by case research with three companies involved in ICT projects. Findings will be disseminated via a web page and direct links with Advisory Board and government agencies.

 BACK TO TOP

Objective 2

To identify and explain the major social-cultural consequences of ICTs, particularly in relation to the empowerment of relatively disadvantaged groups: women, Māori, new immigrants and Pacific Islanders.

Specific projects to achieve this objective include:

• To map the size and location of disadvantaged sub populations within New Zealand in relation to ICT access and use via demographic analysis. Findings will be communicated to government agencies and other end-users via web page and email.
  
  
• To identify the practices and perceptions of the disadvantaged groups with respect to ICT adoption and use by case study research with groups of women (Rural Women New Zealand and Webgrrls Aotearoa/New Zealand), Māori (3 kurakaupapa schools), new immigrants (Chinese and Somali immigrants and their interaction with 3 forms of media) and Pacific Islanders (The E-Research, E-collaboration and E-Dissemination of the Tongan Vision project). The case analyses will be based upon ethnographic and critical discourse analytic methods. The results of the case study research will be transmitted directly to the participating groups, as the research methodology will be action research. An article will be submitted to a refereed journal or industry/mangement magazine. In addition, a summary of the findings will be provided for the Ministry of Women's Affairs, Te Puni Kokiri and the participating groups. It would also be available publicly, on request.
  
  
• To identify the impact that education (and other characteristics that may correlate with disadvantage such as ethnicity) has on the receipt of computer training by analysis of the Education and Training Survey (ETS) of Statistics NZ. An article will be submitted to a refereed journal. Findings will be disseminated via a web page and direct links with Advisory Board and government agencies, particularly Ministry of Social Policy, Ministry of Economic Development, Te Puni Kokiri and the Ministry of Education. The findings will also be distributed to University Colleges of Education and school teachers via NZEI and the PPTA.
  
  
• To identify the characteristics of those who fail to successfully cross the digital divide by analysing the AC Nielsen NetWatch survey, which documents the Internet usage of a sample of 12,000 New Zealanders. An article will be submitted to an industry/management magazine.