This study focuses on digital divide in the context of access, use, and perceptual understanding of digital assistants. We pay particular attention to inequalities of perceptual outcomes that may be triggered by the first-(access) and second-level (use) divides. We extend this insight to the level of perceptual understanding and investigate how the understanding of various personalized AI-related applications—as manifested via the consumption of functional and informational features of digital assistants—vary depending on access and use. Our analyses of two U.S. national surveys reveal the first and second divides, such that those in higher status (higher income) enjoy higher access and use. Then, we also find related perceptual gaps along the line of socio-demographics, as the pattern was evident for education in interaction with other demographic backgrounds. That is, there were varying degrees of the understanding of algorithmic misjudgment, bias in recommended content, or data surveillance, while users with lower social status tended to easily overlook those risks for their excitement and convenience of AI-enabled devices. We argue that inequalities operate in terms of material (access/use) as well as socio-cultural (perceptual understanding) bases, suggesting how digital opportunities instigated by digital assistants may not be built on levelled grounds and continue to consolidate and reproduce existing inequalities in recursive ways.

本研究侧重于数字助理的访问、使用和感知理解背景下的数字鸿沟。我们特别关注可能由第一级（访问）和第二级（使用）鸿沟引发的感知结果的不平等。我们将这种洞察力扩展到感知理解的水平，并研究对各种个性化 AI 相关应用程序的理解（通过数字助理的功能和信息特征的消费表现出来）如何因访问和使用而异。我们对两项美国全国调查的分析揭示了第一和第二个鸿沟，即地位较高（收入较高）的人享有较高的访问权和使用权。然后，我们还发现了沿着社会人口学的相关感知差距，因为这种模式在教育与其他人口背景的相互作用中很明显。也就是说，对算法误判、推荐内容的偏见或数据监控存在不同程度的理解，而社会地位较低的用户由于对支持人工智能的设备的兴奋和便利，往往容易忽视这些风险。我们认为，不平等在物质（访问/使用）以及社会文化（感知理解）基础方面发挥作用，这表明数字助理煽动的数字机会可能不会建立在平坦的基础上，并继续巩固和再现现有的不平等递归方式。而社会地位较低的用户往往会因为他们对支持人工智能的设备的兴奋和便利而容易忽视这些风险。我们认为，不平等在物质（访问/使用）以及社会文化（感知理解）基础方面发挥作用，这表明数字助理煽动的数字机会可能不会建立在平坦的基础上，并继续巩固和再现现有的不平等递归方式。而社会地位较低的用户往往会因为他们对支持人工智能的设备的兴奋和便利而容易忽视这些风险。我们认为，不平等在物质（访问/使用）以及社会文化（感知理解）基础方面发挥作用，这表明数字助理煽动的数字机会可能不会建立在平坦的基础上，并继续巩固和再现现有的不平等递归方式。