Digital Literacy and Associated Factors among Statistics Students at Universitas Sumatera Utara

Abstract

Digital literacy involves evaluating and using information responsibly as well as operating digital tools. This study describes self-reported digital literacy and its associations with technology access and use, digital skills, information literacy, and a combined measure of digital ethics, security, and attitudes toward artificial intelligence (AI). A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in November 2025 among 155 Statistics Study Program students at the Faculty of Vocational Studies, Universitas Sumatera Utara. Respondents were drawn from three entry cohorts using reported proportional stratified random sampling. Questionnaire scores were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression. The mean digital literacy score was 4.05. Technology access and use (B = 0.318, p < .001), information literacy (B = 0.231, p = .017), and the combined ethics, security, and AI-attitude measure (B = 0.304, p < .001) were positively associated with digital literacy after adjustment for the other predictors. The digital-skills coefficient was not statistically significant (B = 0.041, p = .588). The model accounted for 54.6% of the observed variance, with an adjusted R² of .534. These findings support further assessment of information evaluation and responsible technology use alongside access needs. They do not establish causal effects, objectively measured proficiency, or the separate contribution of attitudes toward AI.