Proposing a Survey Instrument for Measuring Operational, Formal, Information, and Strategic Internet Skills

Abstract

Observational studies prove to be very suitable to provide a realistic view of people's Internet skills. However, their cost and time are a strong limitation for large-scale data gathering. A useful addition to the measurement of Internet skills would be the development of survey questions for measuring Internet skills. In this contribution, potential survey measures for operational, formal, information, and strategic Internet skills were analyzed. Three steps were followed to obtain valid items; coherences between, on one hand, frequency and agreement scales and, on the other hand, the results of two large-scale performance tests (assignment completion and time spent) are measured, the Fornell and Larcker discriminant validity criterion was used to test discriminant validity of these Internet skills items, and the items are analyzed using a first-order confirmatory factor analysis. The items that resulted from the three steps might be used in future survey measures.