The use of the Internet in households of the European Union countries

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are nowadays indispensable and obligatory tools to be used in every household. The examination of the use of ICT in households is considered to be a significant element for the observation of information society and economic development based on knowledge. In the Europe 2020 Strategy, it was specified that common access to digital goods is a priority in order to support the economic and social development of the country and to minimize the phenomenon of digital exclusion. The current study aims mainly at the evaluation of Poland's status, in comparison to the EU countries, on the basis of chosen indicators which describe the Internet access and the use of this communication medium in households. In the research multidimensional comparable analysis was used. Another aim of the present analysis is to demonstrate that a very particular group of people who use ICT intensively, especially the devices with the Internet access, are young people. Easy Web access and the wide range of services offered may have a significance influence on problematic Internet use as well as excessive implementation of some Internet activities by young people. All of the EU countries were subjected to research in 2017. Moreover, the author's own research results from 2015-2016 were also taken into consideration as well.