Apps in Time of Pandemic: Digital Usage and Gratifications in Transition towards #SmartCity

Surhita Basu; Baby Gharami

Research Article

Apps in Time of Pandemic: Digital Usage and Gratifications in Transition towards #SmartCity

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@ARTICLE{10.4108/eai.19-1-2021.168222,
    author={Surhita Basu and Baby Gharami},
    title={Apps in Time of Pandemic: Digital Usage and Gratifications in Transition towards \#SmartCity},
    journal={EAI Endorsed Transactions on Smart Cities},
    volume={5},
    number={14},
    publisher={EAI},
    journal_a={SC},
    year={2021},
    month={1},
    keywords={apps, social media, uses gratification, pandemic, india, post-humanism, smart city, risk society},
    doi={10.4108/eai.19-1-2021.168222}
}

Surhita Basu
Baby Gharami
Year: 2021
Apps in Time of Pandemic: Digital Usage and Gratifications in Transition towards #SmartCity
SC
EAI
DOI: 10.4108/eai.19-1-2021.168222

Surhita Basu¹^,*, Baby Gharami²

1: Asst. Professor, Dept. of Journalism & Mass Communication, Women’s College, Calcutta, Baghbazar, Kolkata, India, Pin: 700003
2: PG Scholar, Dept. of Journalism & Mass Communication, Women’s College, Calcutta, Baghbazar, Kolkata, India, Pin: 700003

*Contact email: surhita@gmail.com

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: The study explores how during COVID-19 pandemic online apps helped people applying uses gratification paradigm to identify needs, usages and gratification of users.

OBJECTIVES: The paper investigates how COVID-19 pandemic has affected the usage pattern of online apps? What is the gratification level of using online apps during COVID-19 pandemic? How users perceive the use of online apps during COVID-19 pandemic?

METHODS: The study employs small scale snowball sampling survey across major cities of India addressing questions on comparative usage pattern of online apps before and during the pandemic, users’ gratification and users’ opinion of using online apps.

RESULTS: Usage of few apps like news, video, health increased during the pandemic with frequency and intensity of usage. Users are concerned with misinformation spread through social media, demeaning family bonding due to high usage of apps, digital divide failing to provide enough job opportunities.

CONCLUSION: Specific apps to deal with health emergencies should be developed along with mechanism against spread of misinformation and strategic attempts for digital inclusion.

Keywords: apps, social media, uses gratification, pandemic, india, post-humanism, smart city, risk society

Received: 2020-06-26
Accepted: 2020-12-04
Published: 2021-01-19
Publisher: EAI

: http://dx.doi.org/10.4108/eai.19-1-2021.168222

Copyright © 2021 Surhita Basu et al., licensed to EAI. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution license, which permits unlimited use, distribution and reproduction in any medium so long as the original work is properly cited.