DIGITAL DIVIDE ASSOCIATED WITH ADOPTION OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES (ICTS) IN SMALL AND MEDIUM BUSINESSES (SMBS)

The conceptualization of the digital gap could be approached from an economic and social perspective. In this sense we could say that one of the underlying elements of the first aspect refers to the adoption of ICTs by SMBs with the ultimate goal of increasing the business competitiveness. On the other hand, the social aspect of the digital divide could be related to the social and economic underdevelopment of the sector of society that cannot access ICTs. This paper seeks to identify the impact that ICTs generate on the productivity growth of the SMB sector, in addition to understanding the ripple effect on the local economy, viewed through the lens related to socioeconomic factors aligned with employment, and income, among others; with the ultimate goal of strengthening local economies. It also analyses the impact that education has on the digital divide, taking into account the existing relationship between the level of education in the ICTs and the individual performance, allowing people's inclusion in information society. The methodology used in this work is based on literature review. We made this choice due to the fact that it offers the academia an improvement experience contributing to the construction and promotion of theoretical bases. In order to find relevant journals, the principal international database selected was the ISI Web of Knowledge and also Google Scholar as a web search engine. The selection of the principal keywords to launch the research were associated with the words "digital divide", "SMBs" and "education" in the Spanish and English languages, the time period considered being from 2000-2016, in order to evaluate recent investigations. The final resulting papers were analysed by the authors, seeking the principal studies related directly with the main topic of the present research. The study results emphasize the positive effect of the use of ICTs by SMBs, since education in different contexts is an indispensable element to foster the access to these technologies. The reinforcement of the relation between education and ICTs will decrease the digital divide, bolstering the digital literacy of society and industry. Considering that one of the digital divide promoters is the lack of education due to the poor training and educational status of people, the impulse of this educational issue constitutes a core element to improvement.