From 2007, the Institute of Culture, Discourse and
Communication (ICDC) at AUT University is conducting a long-term survey to
track trends in Internet use, and to document the role and impact of the
Internet in New Zealand society. The Internet has changed how business and
trade deals are made; how schools and other academic institutions, councils,
media and advertisers operate. The Internet also impacts on family interaction,
the ways in which people form new friendships, and the communities to which
people belong.The World Internet Project New Zealand
is an extensive research project that aims to provide important information
about the social, cultural, political and economic influence of the Internet
and related digital technologies. As part of the World Internet Project, an international collaborative research effort,
WIP NZ enables valid and rigorous comparison between New Zealand and 30 other
countries around the world. Each partner country in WIP shares a set of 30
common questions.ICDC’s longitudinal survey includes a
cross-section of participants aged 12 and up across New Zealand. A quota
ensures that people of Māori, Pasifika and Asian descent, and the range of
age-groups, are not underrepresented. The survey investigates Internet access
and targets Internet users as well as non-users; who uses this technology and
what they do online. It also considers offline activities such as how much time
is spent with friends and family. Other questions address issues such as the
effects of the Internet on language use and cultural development; the role of
the Internet in accessing information or purchasing products; and how the
Internet affects the educational and social development of New Zealand
children. In addition to studying the impact of the Internet, the survey tracks
the effectiveness of strategies to address issues such as the digital divide
between rich and poor; urban and rural.Universe: People 12 years and over with a landline phone.Sampling: An initial subsample
of those from the 2007 survey that were prepared to be re-interviewed were
contacted, yielding 629 respondents (a response rate of 70%). A fresh random
sample of 293 people aged 12 and over from across New Zealand was added (a
response rate of 21.5%). Booster samples were implemented to bring the
distribution to census proportions – additional people were sampled, of Māori,
Pasifika or Asian backgrounds, from meshblocks with high proportions of these
ethnicities. This added 329 respondents (a response rate of 24.4%). Exclusions
included people without landlines and non-English speakers.Mode: Telephone interview.Weighting: Variables are
included to reweight the sample in terms of household size, age-group, gender,
ethnicity and percentage of households in region with a landline.