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. 2022 Jun 22;12(7):203.
doi: 10.3390/bs12070203.

Influence of Country Digitization Level on Digital Pandemic Stress

Álvaro Antón-Sancho  1 , Diego Vergara  2 , Pablo Fernández-Arias  2
Affiliations

Influence of Country Digitization Level on Digital Pandemic Stress

Álvaro Antón-Sancho et al. Behav Sci (Basel). .

Abstract

A quick and effective solution to address the immediate change in teaching methods after the COVID-19 pandemic was digital learning environments (DLEs). The way in which this process of change towards DLEs was tackled was different around the world, depending on multiple factors, including the level of digitization, technology, and innovation. This paper conducts quantitative research on the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on the adaptation of university professors to DLEs. In order to achieve this objective, a sample of 723 university professors from 15 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean was taken. The participants' self-perception of the stress generated and their levels of digital competence during the COVID-19 pandemic were studied according to the Global Innovation Index (GII) of their country of origin. The results show that professors have an intermediate-high self-perception of both their digital competence and their ability to adapt to DLEs. It is also shown that neither the professors' level of digital competence nor the GII of the country of origin fully explain the level of pandemic stress regarding the use of DLEs. This fact suggests that there must be other influential factors to consider, thus opening new lines of future research.

Keywords: COVID-19; adaptation skills; digital competence; digital skill; stress.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
GII rank for Latin American and the Caribbean countries in 2021 whose GII is computed.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Distribution of the participants in the sample by GII area.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Distributions of the sample when the participants are differentiated by GII area and the rest of the independent variables: (a) by gender; (b) by age range; and (c) by area of knowledge.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Distributions of the sample when the participants are differentiated by GII area and the rest of the independent variables: (a) by gender; (b) by age range; and (c) by area of knowledge.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Mean values of the different subscales, globally and differentiated by GII area.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Variation in digital competence and pandemic stress from the use of DLEs, by country-of-origin GII.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Grid of results on digital competence and digital pandemic stress by gender and age.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Variations in digital pandemic stress by GII in each area of knowledge.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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