Understanding internet participation and enjoyment : identifying salient prceptions and abilities

The internet is a vast and ever-changing medium, and with that comes much discussion of its users and their capabilities to adopt and use the internet. This study aims to advance the digital native vs. digital immigrant discussion and present a theoretically-driven understanding of the adoption process by evaluating individuals on their internet usage behaviors over that of mere demographics. This study found that by looking at users' breadth of use, ease of use and internet self-efficacy, online participation in various forms is more accurately predicted. Through the Diffusion of Innovation Theory and the Social Cognitive Theory researchers can better understand this process as it relates to changing digital media and thus harness tools that will enable users to adopt more quickly.