ONLINE BEHAVIORS

The Pew Research Center, through the Pew Internet and American Life Project, regularly conducts national surveys to determine how online information networks are affecting the lives of Americans (Rainie, 2013). Pew survey responses over time identify trends in how teens communicate, gather information, and present themselves to others. Not surprisingly, data suggest that teens’ lives are saturated with technology, that they have networked information at their fingertips, and that they can fully participate in its creation and dissemination (Lenhart, 2015).

A recent Pew Research Center survey (Lenhart, 2015) found the following:

  • The overwhelming majority of teens ages 13 to 17 (92 percent) report going online daily; 24 percent say they go online “almost constantly.”
  • Eighty-eight percent of teens have a mobile phone or access to one; 73 percent have smartphones.
  • Most teens (91 percent) go online using mobile devices at least occasionally.
  • For 71 percent of these teens, Facebook remains the go-to social media site, although they report using more than one social media site, including Instagram and Snapchat.
  • Typically, teens exchange 30 texts per day using various messaging apps (e.g., Kik or WhatsApp) or by texting on their phones.
  • There were gender differences in teens’ interest in specific types of technology: Girls share on social media sites more than boys; whereas boys are more likely than girls to own gaming consoles and play video games.