Digital Access and Practices Related to the Knowledge Economy Among Young Ecuadorians: Implications for Sustainable Education and Digital Inclusion

This study analyzes the relationship between digital access and knowledge-economy practices among young Ecuadorian adults, with emphasis on their implications for sustainable digital inclusion and knowledge-based development. The study is based on the premise that access to the Internet, devices, and technological tools does not necessarily ensure critical, productive, collaborative, or knowledge-generating uses of information. A quantitative, non-experimental, cross-sectional, and descriptive-correlational design was applied to a sample of 441 young Ecuadorian adults aged 18 to 30. Data were collected through an online questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, KMO and Bartlett indicators, the Mann–Whitney U test, effect sizes, and Spearman’s rho with 95% confidence intervals. The instrument showed very high internal consistency for knowledge-economy practices (α=.978; ω=.978) and digital access and technological resources (α=.963; ω=.964). The KMO values were also adequate for both variables (.963 and .902, respectively), and Bartlett’s tests were statistically significant (p<.001). The results showed that digital access received more favorable ratings than knowledge-economy practices. A very strong, positive, and statistically significant association was found between digital access and knowledge economy practices (ρ=.822, 95% CI [.765, .870], p<.001). Information management and collaboration was the dimension most strongly associated with digital access (ρ=.820, 95% CI [.764, .868], p<.001). Women reported higher scores than men in knowledge-economy practices, although the effect size was small (r=.158; rrb=.184). These findings suggest that digital access is a necessary but insufficient condition for sustainable digital inclusion. The study contributes empirical evidence from a developing-country context and highlights the need for educational and public-policy strategies that transform connectivity into critical learning, collaboration, innovation, and knowledge creation.