Digital Divides

and Bridges:

Technology Use

Among Youth

Amanda Lenhart | Pew Research Center

Annenberg

April 13, 2012

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•

Internet adoption over time by teens & adults % within each age group who go online

95%94%

87%

74%

41%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Nov 04 Nov 06 Nov 07 Feb 08 Sept 09 July 11

12-17

18-29

30-49

50-64

65+

Digging down to differences

Internet use

• Latino youth slightly less likely than whites to use the internet

(88% vs. 97%)

• Youth from low income/low SES environments slightly more likely

to go online less frequently

– more likely to say that they use the internet 1-2 days a week

or less often.

Computer ownership

• No racial or ethnic differences

• Low education households – where parents have a HS diploma

or less, are substantially less likely to have youth who say they

“own” a computer. (65% vs. 80%)

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Smartphone ownership

• 23% of all teens have a

smartphone; as do one third

of mobile phone owners

• Age is most important in

determining cell or

smartphone ownership

• Once cell ownership hurdle

is crossed, no differences in

smartphone ownership by

race, income.

• Is it a smartphone? Latino

youth less certain that their

phone is a smartphone (24%

not sure, vs. 10% of whites).

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Teen social network & Twitter use Based on teen internet users

55%60%

65%

73%80%

8%

16%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Nov 2006 Nov 2007 Feb 2008 Sept 2009 July 2011

Use online social networking sites Use Twitter

Differences in Social Media Use

Twitter shows big differences

– 34% of online African-American teens use Twitter

– 11% of online white teens use Twitter

– 13% of online Latino teens use Twitter

– Lower income teens (under 30K hhd inc) more likely to use

than higher income teens.

– Girls more than boys – youngest boys 12-13 are laggards

Social network site use more broadly adopted

– Lowest income teens use SNS more than highest income

teens

– Girls more than boys

– Older teens more than younger teens

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Teens’ privacy settings on social media sites

Based on teen SNS or Twitter users (n=623)

17%

19%

62%

2%

Public

Partially Private

Private (friends only)

Don't know / Refused

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Are people your age mostly kind or mostly unkind to one another on social network sites? % of teens and adults who use social media

1%

4%

5%

5%

85%*

0%

1%

11%*

20%*

69%

Refused

Don't know

Depends

People are mostly unkind

People are mostly kind

teens 12-17 (n=623) adults 18+ (n=1047)

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How often do you witness online cruelty & meanness? % of teens and adults who use social media

.

2%

29%*

44%

18%

7%

1%

11%

47%

29%*

12%*

Don't know

Never

Only once in a while

Sometimes

Frequently

teens 12-17 (n=623) adults 18+ (n=1047)

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In the past 12 months when you have been on a social network site, has anyone been mean or cruel to you? % of teens and adults who use social media

1%

86%

13%

0%

85%

15%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Don't know

No

Yes

teens 12-17 (n=623) adults 18+ (n=1047)

10%

18%

21%

34%

40%

45%

45%

46%

54%

70%

86%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Someone or somewhere else

Librarian

Internet or cell phone service provider

Websites

Youth or church group leader, or coach

Friend or schoolmate

Older relative like an aunt, uncle or grandparent

Sister, brother or cousin

Television, radio, newspapers or magazines

Teacher or another adult at school

Parents

Have you ever received advice about how to

use the internet and cell phones responsibly

and safely from any of these people or

places?

% of teen internet or cell phone users (n=778)

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Final thoughts

• Digital differences have moved beyond classic

access issues of the last decade

• Mobile is a more universal access point

• But may be exposing some of our children to

meanness and cruelty

• Newer differences should not be immediately

pathologized

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Title of presentation 4/18/2012 15

Amanda Lenhart

Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project

http://www.pewinternet.org

@amanda_lenhart

photo by arcticpenguin

New Pew Report:

Digital Differences

http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2012/Digital-

differences.aspx