Page 151 - Comparing Political Communication Theories, Cases, and Challenge

P1: Irk-Kic-JzL
0521828317agg.xml CY425/Esser 0521828317 May 22, 2004 12:27

Global Political Communication

Table 6.2 Correlations Between Media and Human Development Indicators

Media Access
(Logged % Papers +
Press Freedom % TVs + %Radio + Communication
(2000) % Online) (1997–9) Index
Human Development R .519 .879 .801
Index Sig. .000 .000 .000
1999 UNDP N 167 127 128
Income (Per Capita GDP R .508 .752 .793
in PPP U.S. $ 1997) Sig. .000 .000 .000
N 167 127 128
Economic Equality R .246 .401 .403
(Reversed Gini Index) Sig. .009 .000 .000
N 113 101 101
Lower Infant Mortality R .405 .813 .670
Sig. .000 .000 .000
N 142 129 130
Public Expenditure on R .475 .604 .659
Health (% of GDP) Sig. .000 .000 .000
N 140 127 128
Life Expectancy (years) R .464 .803 .700
1999 UNDP Sig. .000 .000 .000
N 168 127 128
Adult Literacy Rate % R .404 .776 .673
1997 UNDP Sig. .000 .000 .000
N 167 127 128
%With secondary R .459 .766 .731
education Sig. .000 .000 .000
1999 UNDP N 125 100 101

Note: See technical appendix for details.

by development generate the underlying conditions for the purchase of
household consumer durables such as televisions, radios, and personal
computers. The expansion of the middle-class service sector in more
developed economies is associated with greater affluence and growing
leisure time, which are both strongly linked to use of the mass media. Use
of newspapers and the Internet, in particular, require cognitive skills and
knowledge that are strongly related to levels of education and literacy.
Nevertheless, despite a process of interaction, the consistent and strong

131