A recent study released by Pew Internet & American Life Project found that 35 percent of U.S. adults ages 18 and older used online social networks in 2008, compared to 65 percent of teenagers 12- to 17-years old.
However, since adults ages 18 and over account for a bigger portion of the U.S. population, it means that this age group makes up a larger number of online social network users.
Adults are also more likely to use social networks for personal rather than professional purposes. Fifty percent of adult social network users have profiles on MySpace, while 22 percent have one on Facebook and just 6 percent have a profile on LinkedIn.
Adults and teens use online social networks to stay in touch with friends (89 percent and 91 percent, respectively), though 72 percent of teens use them to make plans with friends, compared with 57 percent of adults.
Twenty percent of adults use these social networks to flirt, compared with 17 percent of teens. A peek underneath this figure shows that 20 percent of MySpace users utilize their online profile to flirt, compared with 20 percent of Facebook users and 0 percent of LinkedIn users.
Fifty-one percent of social network users have two or more profiles, while 43 percent maintain just one profile.
Social network users check their profiles quite often, with 37 percent indicating that they check theirs daily, while 23 percent said every few days, 15 percent said once a week and 23 percent said less often.
Social networks also seem to be a place where users can glean political information about their friends. Twenty-nine percent of respondents to Pew Internet & American Life Project’s survey said they discovered their friends’ political interests or affiliations on social networks.
Source:
http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/272/report_display.asp
http://www.clickz.com/3632374
Jason Hahn
e: jhahn221@gmail.com
|
Digg 
