Mobile-App Assisted Digital Literacy and Job Search Program
RCTReview
Economically excluded welfare recipients struggle with digital administrative procedures and online job applications due to a lack of hardware access and foundational digital skills.
Picture this
Giving someone a smartphone with an app installed without explaining how to use it is like giving someone a toolbox without demonstrating how the tools work. Combining a smartphone and custom mobile app with 39 hours of guided digital literacy training teaches participants step-by-step how to submit official online paperwork and navigate job opportunities.
What the evidence says
Only Treatment 2 (which included 39 hours of digital literacy training) yielded a statistically significant positive impact on the completion of online administrative procedures, whereas none of the treatment arms improved job search skills, job search intensity, or life satisfaction.
- Who was studied
- 713 unemployed recipients of minimum income schemes in Ceuta, Spain (243 Treatment 1, 231 Treatment 2, 239 comparison).
- How
- Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT) testing smartphone provision with a job search app alone, app plus 29 hours of job search strategy training (Treatment 1), and app plus 39 hours of digital literacy training (Treatment 2) over 5 months.
What to do
Provide low-income job seekers with internet-connected smartphones pre-loaded with employment apps and pair them with 39 hours of structured digital literacy instruction to improve online e-government task execution.
From the source
"Only the treatment that included digital skills training had a positive impact on the completion of online administrative procedures. None of the interventions impacted job search skills or intensity, access to and use of digital devices, self-perceived ability to secure employment, or life satisfaction."
promoting-labor-market-inclusion-policy-publication.pdf