Digitalization in Vulnerable Populations: A Systematic Review in Latin America

Abstract

The present systematic review seeks to collect and analyze relevant academic approaches to the effects of digitalization on the populations that live in vulnerable contexts in Latin America with the purpose of examining to which extent the ongoing universalization of information and communication technologies has the potential to improve the lives of the most disadvantaged in this region. For this aim, both theoretical as well as empirical studies on these populations were considered, as long as they were from Latin America with the aim of listening to the voice of those involved, thus avoiding assigning understandings of the phenomenon and solutions that are alien to the characteristics of the region. Five databases (SCOPUS, Web of Science, ERIC, Communication & Mass Media Complete and Dialnet) were consulted for the period 2001–2021. The analysis of the studies that met the inclusion criteria led to identifying seven themes that point to specific needs that must be met to advance development for the populations under study and that are useful for generating hypotheses for future effective interventions. Among them, some stand out: the specific demands of indigenous communities in the political agendas, the increasingly noticed opportunity for political empowerment through e-government, the development of a sense of belonging through technology, the potential of a digitally-mediated construction of personal identity, and the lack of enough consideration of cultural and situational factors that led to limited results in the implementation of digital public policies.