Teens and Mobile PhonesAn Overview of Pew Internet Data
Amanda LenhartKeeping Kids Safe in a Mobile EnvironmentFOSI April 22, 2009
April 22, 2009Teens & Mobile Phones
Methodology
• RDD surveys with teens 12 to 17 and a parent or guardian– Sept-Nov 2007 (n=700)– Nov-Feb 2008 (n=1102)
• Focus groups
April 22, 2009Teens & Mobile Phones
Teens and their tools
• 77% of teens 12-17 own a game console• 74% of teens 12-17 own an iPod or Mp3 player• 71% of teens 12-17 own a cell phone• 60% have a desktop or laptop computer• 55% have a portable gaming device like a DS or
a PSP
April 22, 2009Teens & Mobile Phones
Mobile phone ownership growing
• Mobile phone ownership is way up:– 45% of 12-17 year olds had them in 2004– 63% in 2006– 71% in early 2008.
• Computer ownership is stable at least over the past two years
• 88% of parents have mobile phones• 75% of adults have a mobile phone• Caveat: Concept of “ownership” varies from device to
device
April 22, 2009Teens & Mobile Phones
Who has a mobile phone?
• Age is very important – huge bump up in mobile phone ownership at age 14 – 52% of 12-13 year olds have a mobile phone– At age 14 jumps to 72% – By 17 its 84% of teens have a mobile phone
• No gender differences in ownership• No significant difference in mobile phone ownership by
race/ethnicity• Some differences by socio-economic status – but mostly a
minor bump up in the highest income and education brackets.• Internet users more likely than non users to have a cell phone
– thought 50% of non-users have a phone.
April 22, 2009Teens & Mobile Phones
Teens and phone use
• 88% of teens talk to friends on a landline• 67% of teens talk to friends on a cell phone
– 94% of teens with cell phones use them to talk to friends• 58% of all teens have sent text messages
– 76% of teens with cell phones have sent textsDaily:51% of teens with cell phones talk to their friends on the cell phone
every day43% of teens send messages through online social networks daily38% of teens send text messages to each other daily32% of teens talk on their landline everyday29% spend time with friends in person26% send instant messages everyday16% send email daily
April 22, 2009Teens & Mobile Phones
Teens and phone use: Voice
• Girls more likely to talk on any kind of phone – landline or mobile.
• Age isn’t a factor in landline use• Older teens with a cell phone much more likely to talk on
cell phone everyday;• Younger teens with a cell phone tend to use them for voice
calls a few times a week or less• Suburban kids a little less likely to talk on cell phone
everyday; no difference by locale in cell phone ownership.
April 22, 2009Teens & Mobile Phones
Teens and text messaging
• Text messaging daily up since 2006– 27% of teens texted daily in 2006– 38% text daily in 2008
• 54% of social network users have sent texts or IM through a social network site.
• Girls more likely than boys to text• Older teens 15-17 also more likely to text message.• No racial/ethnic differences in texting• Slight bump up in frequency of texting by income• Not using twitter yet, via mobile or any other way.• Not really going online w/ phone; but this is changing
April 22, 2009Teens & Mobile Phones
What teens aren’t using:Likelihood of Twitter use by age
April 22, 2009Teens & Mobile Phones
Other mobile devices
Portable game players (Nintendo DS, PSP)• Owned predominately by younger teens 12-14 (67% vs.
44%)• Drops at age 14• Boys more likely to own (61% of boys have one, 49% of
girls)• No difference in use by Race/Ethnicity or SES• PSP: Skype calling and IM, internet, RSS feeds• DS(i): Pictochat (w/in 30-65), wireless gaming (30-65ft),
WiFi gaming,