Young people online: digital natives, or digitally naive? Two Israeli researchers who’ve analyzed digital literacy believe it has five components: photo-visual skill, reproduction skill, hyperlinking skill, informational skill, and socio-emotional skill. Photo-visual skill deals with the understanding of visual cues. Reproduction skill helps a person create something new out of existing material. Hyperlink skills construct meaning from independent, non-linear chunks of information. Informational skill helps evaluate sources critically, and socio-emotional skill makes it possible to connect via social networks.
The researchers measured these skills in high schoolers, university students, and adults. The younger people were better at visual interpretation and hyperlinking; the adults were stronger in reproduction and informational skills. As for socio-emotional skill, the results were contradictory and need further study.
These five components help answer the question of whether, in the digital world, people are natives or naive. It turns out that, whether young or old, we are both.