study
Society is more skeptical about digitalization
According to the study, there is a new digital divide between those who accept digital change and those who distance themselves (symbolic image). photo
© Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH/dpa
Whether for work or leisure: digital communication, apps and artificial intelligence are increasingly determining everyday life. However, many people feel overwhelmed by digitalization.
The Digital Index is a representative study. The basis is around 33,600 interviews with people aged 14 and over, of which almost 6,500 discussions were further in-depth. The study project is supported and financed by, among others, the Federal Ministry of Economics and business partners. The digital index has been collected since 2001.
The central key figure of the study is the Digital Index value, which rose slightly compared to the previous year to 58 out of a maximum of 100 points – one point more than before. The index is calculated from four sub-areas: digital competence, usage, attitude and access. The increase in the index by one point shows that, on the one hand, society is moving more confidently in the increasingly digitalized world. “On the other hand, openness to digitalization is stagnating and is even noticeably decreasing in some groups.”
Digital divide
The study says that a new digital divide is emerging between those who accept change and those who distance themselves: “Our world will become even more digital in the future,” said Lena-Sophie Müller, managing director of the D21 initiative. The ability to keep up with digital change in the future will therefore become a “superpower” of the future. “We need low-threshold educational offerings in educational institutions, at work or in retirement homes in order to develop these skills everywhere.”
The authors of the study identify an “ostrich effect” among part of the population: 76 percent of working people assume that the changes by 2035 will also lead to the elimination of activities or entire professions. However, only 23 percent believe that this could affect their own job. “The need for personal development is often underestimated.”
43 percent of working people see companies as having a duty to prepare their employees for the requirements of digital change through further training. However, the proportion of those who use such offers has stagnated at a low level for years (2023: 18 percent). Working people are less optimistic than before about the measures taken by their own employers to keep up with change. Only 54 percent believe that this will be enough, four percentage points less than in the previous year. The education system is also critically assessed: only 28 percent of those surveyed believe that schools teach the digital skills in order to be able to compete internationally in the future – in 2019 it was still 36 percent.
How is ChatGPT used?
People in Germany have most likely had experience with artificial intelligence applications with the text robot ChatGPT from OpenAI, which has been available to the wider public since November 2022. Almost one in five respondents used ChatGPT in the first six months after its launch. 47 percent used the application to write texts. However, a high proportion (43 percent) also used the system as a search engine or to obtain information, although ChatGPT often does not provide reliable results.
“Artificial intelligence will play a crucial role in securing the prosperity of our country,” emphasized D21 President Marc Reinhardt. It is the responsibility of decision-makers in politics and business to strategically use the possibilities of AI and at the same time minimize the associated risks.