Do We Need Computer Skills to Use a Computer? Evidence from Britain

Abstract. Using cross-section data from the 1997 Skills Survey of the Employed British Workforce, we examine the labour-market returns to self-assessed com-puter skills in Britain. Many researchers, using information on computer technol-ogy use, have concluded that wage differentials between computer users and non-users might, among others, be due to differences in the embodiment of computer skills. Using unique information on the importance, level of sophistication, and effectiveness of computer technology use, we show that computer skills do not yield significant labour-market returns for most types of use. Examining the returns to computer skills at different levels of sophistication of use yields estimates suggesting returns to computer skills at the highest level of sophistication of use only. 1