Pioneering research into the risks and
benefits of digital life to help society prepare for the AI-era and
beyond
News summary:
- Cisco and the OECD launch the Digital Well-being Hub to
holistically study technology's impact on well-being and shape
inclusive digital policies.
- The Hub explores the effects of digital transformation on
people's well-being by crowdsourcing insights including life
satisfaction, mental health, AI tools and ethics, digital skills,
cyber safety, civic engagement, climate consciousness and social
connections. It also presents visitors with OECD data across
several well-being dimensions.
- The collaboration with the OECD is part of Cisco's Country
Digital Acceleration program, a global co-innovation platform that
is helping power inclusive communities and resilient
economies.
SAN
JOSE, Calif., Nov. 7, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- Cisco, the worldwide technology leader, with the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), has
launched the Digital Well-being Hub, the world's first
cross-cutting study into the complex relationship between digital
technologies and individual well-being. As AI and technology
rapidly transform the ways we live, work, and connect, there has
never been a comprehensive understanding of the overall impact of
digital transformation on our well-being. Until now.
Daily Digital Experiences: the Missing Piece in
Well-Being
Existing research already indicates that 40%
of adults in OECD countries lack basic digital skills, potentially
hampering their ability to safely navigate digital environments,
including understanding digital privacy and the mental health
implications of online activities. The situation gets more complex
when considering that more than half of the workers in these
countries are concerned that AI-related data collection could
result in biased decisions against them. However, this picture is
still incomplete. What is missing is an understanding of how
different people experience these interconnected issues on a daily
basis and how they impact overall well-being. For instance, a lack
of digital skills may limit job prospects, or uncertainty about
application of technology might deter responsible social media use,
or participating in online education, healthcare or civic
engagement.
"Digital well-being isn't one thing; it's multifaceted and
interconnected, requiring a holistic understanding to responsibly
navigate the AI era and beyond. But we've never fully examined
technology's impact on our well-being across various aspects of
everyday life such as education, health and jobs," said
Guy Dietrich, SVP and Chief
Innovation Officer, Cisco. "The evidence we gather from our
Digital Well-being Hub will help people build healthier
relationships with technology and create a more sustainable,
secure, and inclusive digital future. By understanding how
technology influences our well-being, we can unlock its full
potential."
Connecting the Dots in Digital Life
The Hub aims to
dig deeper into the interplay between these issues by taking a
holistic view of digital well-being that makes connections between
the use of digital technologies and factors such as life
satisfaction, mental health, digital skills, cyber safety, civic
engagement, climate consciousness and social
connections. Contributions from visitors to the Hub will
inform pioneering research that will go beyond technology to focus
on outcomes that enhance the quality of digital life for
everyone.
"The Digital Well-being Hub shines a light on how advanced
technology can build healthier lives and communities-and this is
just the beginning," said Francine
Katsoudas, Cisco's Chief People, Policy & Purpose
Officer. "Connecting global populations through shared experiences
presents an uplifting vision, but also an important call to action
on behalf of the 2.6 billion people who still lack access to the
Internet. This means that a third of the global population-largely
in the world's poorest countries-can't participate and won't be
represented. We must commit to narrowing this gap as the first and
most fundamental step to global well-being in the digital age."
Building the First Full Picture of Digital
Well-Being
The groundbreaking study, the first to connect
different well-being dimensions in a single view, wrestles with the
contradictions of the digital world. Where digital technology is
accessible, available, and affordable—and people have the right
skills—it can improve economic well-being and transform the way we
work, live, and connect. AI for example, can boost productivity and
improve working conditions. But it can also show biases against
women and minorities. The effects of digital technology on the
social, environmental, and relational aspects of well-being are
less clear-cut, with risks and negative effects heightened by
excessive or problematic use.
Part-crowdsourcing platform, part-research tool
The Digital Well-being Hub is grounded in the OECD Well-being
Framework. It captures real-time evidence of people's
well-being, digital behaviours, and inequalities in technology use.
Visitors to the Hub can also explore and interact with the OECD's
existing findings on technology's impacts and compare country-level
data.
"Through the Digital Well-being Hub, we will hear
directly from people to better understand the interplay between
technology and life that can inform new decisions and policies, and
spur action to improve outcomes for people," said Romina Boarini, Director, OECD Centre for
Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equal Opportunity (WISE).
"Up to 14% of people in OECD countries feel lonely, which could be
potentially exacerbated by the use of digital tools. Through
our collaboration with Cisco we are exploring the unintended
consequences of excessive or problematic use of digital tools and
understand how people live in the digital world. Our findings will
help to shape policies and foster a more equitable and inclusive
digital future."
How's Digital Life for You?
During the next several
months, Cisco and the OECD are calling on people globally to
contribute their experiences via the Hub. Once enough responses are
collected, the OECD will analyse and synthesize people's
experiences (the subjective data) with existing OECD research
(objective data) to provide a more holistic view of digital
well-being in 2025.
Additional Resources:
- Digital Well-being Hub
- Guy Diedrich Blog
About Cisco
Cisco is the worldwide technology leader that securely connects
everything to make anything possible. Our purpose is to power an
inclusive future for all by helping our customers reimagine their
applications, power hybrid work, secure their enterprise, transform
their infrastructure, and meet their sustainability goals. Discover
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SOURCE Cisco Systems, Inc.
