PIAAC was the first large-scale survey to assess the domain of problem solving in technology-rich environments. This competency domain encompasses the skills required to use digital technologies, communication aids, and networks to successfully search for and interpret information, and to communicate. The focus is on the way in which people procure information in a computer-supported environment, and the way in which they use this information. This domain comprises tasks such as sorting and sending e-mails, filling out virtual forms, and evaluating the information content and trustworthiness of different websites.
This domain yields information on the use of goal-oriented problem-solving behavior in technology-rich environments in everyday life and in the workplace. Thus, this information offers first indications of how the population in the different participating countries is equipped to deal with the technological challenges of the 21st century.
