In Exploring the Relationship between Information and Communication Technology Collective Behaviors and Sense of Community: An Urban Refugee Analysis, Canevez argues that collective behaviors surrounding the use of mobile phones leads to a sense of community and belonging, using a quantitative study on urban refugees in Rwanda.
The study consisted of 4 regression models to test aspects of collective behaviors from a survey on Rwanda refugees, which asked questions using the Sense of Community index and items of ICT collective behaviors scales. In order to test collective behaviors, the researchers were interested in sharing and providing assistance with ICTs. The results of the study showed that collective behaviors as well as self use of ICTs were positive predictors of a sense of community. Interestingly, the results of the study showed that higher collective behaviors with ICT led to higher sense of community for men, but a decreased sense of community for women. To go a bit deeper into gender differences, it seemed that men and women had different collective behaviors, where ICT self-efficacy was a positive predictor of sense of community for women but not for men. These study findings have many implications for the refugee population, who are often in new and unfamiliar social relationships. First, it suggests that providing assistance, rather than acting on a central asset, might lead to a higher sense of belonging. Additionally, the gender differences suggest that certain demographic groups may not receive the same level of sense of community through ICT behaviors alone.
Canavez’s study provides a lot of insight around the area of urban refugees, how they interact and what can be done to assist them in developing connections. One part of the study that I found particularly interesting is the gender differences, which ultimately suggest that women are less likely to assist (even if they are capable) because they are perceived as having less technological ability than men. This is not necessarily surprising, as I am aware of the clear gender discrepancies that are probably even more severe in places such as Rwanda, however as a woman in STEM I am particularly bothered by this. It makes me wonder, what can we do to relieve some of this perception in order to provide women with a sense of belonging as well? Would providing all refugees with some kind of training or assistance with ICT help at all?
I read the same paper and also thought it was troublesome that women were looked at as having less of a technological prowess. Unfortunately, the issue is systemic and will likely take a while for it to go away, but I do think that providing training is a good idea and would be a solid step in the right direction.
I really enjoyed your opinions on this article and thought the study was extremely interesting. I am also thinking about how to resolve the discrepancies between men and women when it comes to technology, as I have heard from many people just at Lehigh that the bulk of STEM and Engineering students, as well as some other majors, are men. Just as a thought, though I am not in one of these majors myself, I think that when we are young, we have this idea of what a man is supposed to do and what a woman is. Girls are geared towards playing with certain toys that are particularly feminine, such as dolls, make up, dress up, etc. Men are taught to physically play and to suck it up when hurt. These stereotypes develop over the years to create a very clear distinction on what is masculine and what is feminine. Though they have gotten much less attention in recent years they are still prevalent and may have something to do with women choosing majors and going into fields that they may not necessarily want to but because society will recognize it as feminine.