Amartya Sen is a Nobel Prize-winning economist and philosopher whose Capability Approach is one of the foundational theories for your digital equity framework.

Amartya Sen - Quick Overview

Who He Is:

  • Nobel Prize in Economics (1998) - “for his contributions to welfare economics”
  • Indian economist and philosopher (born 1933)
  • Professor at Harvard University - Lamont University Professor, Harvard’s highest faculty honor
  • Previous positions: Cambridge University (Trinity College), Oxford University, London School of Economics

His Major Contribution: The Capability Approach (1999)

Sen revolutionized development economics by shifting focus from resources to capabilities - what people are actually able to do and become.

Three Key Concepts:

  1. Functionings - What people actually achieve
    • Example: Being digitally included, participating in online civic life
  2. Capabilities - What people are able to achieve (the opportunity set)
    • Example: Having infrastructure, devices, skills, and support to access digital opportunities
  3. Agency - People’s ability to pursue what they value
    • Example: The motivation and autonomy to engage with digital technology for personal goals

Why Sen Matters for Digital Equity:

Traditional approach:

  • “We gave everyone internet access, so we solved the digital divide”
  • Focuses on resources (infrastructure)

Sen’s approach:

  • “Do people have the capability to convert internet access into valuable outcomes?”
  • Focuses on conversion factors - what enables people to turn resources into achievements

Sen’s Key Insight:

“Opportunity without conversion factors ≠ Equity”

Applied to digital equity:

Infrastructure (resource)
  + Digital literacy (conversion factor)
  + Affordability (conversion factor)
  + Relevance to life goals (conversion factor)
  + Support systems (conversion factor)
  = Digital capability (what people can actually do)

How Sen Grounds Your Framework:

Your pathway:

Opportunity → Aspiration → Growth Mindset → Digital Equity

Sen’s mapping:

  • Opportunity = Capabilities (the means to achieve)
    • Infrastructure, affordability, training availability
  • Aspiration = Agency (the motivation and autonomy to pursue what you value)
    • “I want to video call my grandchildren”
    • “I need telehealth for my rural community”
  • Digital Equity = Functionings (what people actually achieve)
    • Actual digital inclusion, sustained engagement, valued outcomes
  • Conversion factors = Growth Mindset + Support Systems
    • What enables people to convert opportunity + aspiration into actual achievement

Sen’s Famous Works:

  1. “Development as Freedom” (1999) - Main capability approach text
  2. “The Idea of Justice” (2009) - Practical reasoning about justice
  3. “Inequality Reexamined” (1992) - Critique of traditional equality measures
  4. “Poverty and Famines” (1981) - Revolutionary work on entitlements vs. food availability

Why Your Framework Needs Sen:

Without Sen:

  • “Build infrastructure → digital divide solved” (naive technology solutionism)

With Sen:

  • “Build infrastructure + ensure people have the capabilities to convert it into valued outcomes”
  • Recognizes that opportunity ≠ achievement without conversion factors
  • Explains why identical infrastructure produces different outcomes in different communities

Sen + Other Theorists in Your Framework:

Theorist Contribution What They Explain
Sen (1999) Capability Approach What’s needed (opportunity + agency) and why resources ≠ outcomes
Dweck (2006) Mindset Theory How people develop capability (growth vs. fixed mindset)
Toyama (2015) Amplification Why technology magnifies existing capability rather than creating it
Hampton & Bauer (2020) Empirical Evidence Michigan data validating the complete pathway
Dagg et al. (2023) Measurement Framework How to measure capabilities across the pathway

Sen’s Influence on Digital Equity Policy:

  • UN Human Development Index - Based on Sen’s capability approach
  • Digital Equity Act (2021) - Recognizes that access alone isn’t enough
  • BEAD Program - Requires states to address adoption, not just deployment
  • Your framework - Operationalizes Sen’s theory for Michigan digital equity

The Sen Quote That Summarizes Everything:

“A person’s capability to achieve functionings that he or she has reason to value provides a general approach to the evaluation of social arrangements.”

Translation for digital equity:

Does infrastructure (social arrangement) 
  enable people to achieve 
  the digital outcomes (functionings) 
  they value (telehealth, education, jobs)?

If NOT → need to improve conversion factors
       → Your framework: Aspiration + Growth Mindset

Bottom line: Sen provides the philosophical foundation that explains why your Opportunity→Aspiration→Growth Mindset→Digital Equity pathway is necessary, not just nice to have. Infrastructure (opportunity) without agency (aspiration) and conversion capability (growth mindset) doesn’t produce equity (functionings).S

Version: 1.0
Last Updated: November 2025
Part of: Project Compass (Merit Network) - Digital Opportunities Intelligence Network (DOIN) • Working draft