Teens, Social Media and Privacy - Pew Research

Teens, Social Media and Privacy

A Pew Research Center survey from May, 2013 reports that teens are sharing a lot more information about themselves on social media sites.  In 2012 the Pew Research Center surveyed 802 teens of diverse racial, ethnic and economic backgrounds, and examined their privacy management on social media sites.  They compared these results to a similar survey done in 2006.

What social media sites do teens use most?

94% of teens have a Facebook profile, and 81% say that it what they use most often.

26% of teens have a profile or account on Twitter and 7% say that Twitter is the profile they use most often.

11% have a profile or account on Instagram and 3% say that Instagram is the profile they use most often.

7% of teens say they have a Myspace account, but none of them use it most often.

In contrast, in 2006, 85% of teens reported that they used MySpace most often.

What are teens sharing on social media?

This survey found that:

92% post their real name

91% post a photo of themselves

84% post their interests, such as movies, music, or books they like

82% post their birth date

71% post their school name

71% post the city or town where they live

62% post their relationship status

53% post their email address

24% post videos of themselves

20% post their cell phone number

The survey found that sharing personal information on social media profiles has become much more common now than it was in 2006.

Who are in teens' social media networks?

Teen Facebook users tend to have school friends, friends from outside school and family members on their friend lists:

98% are friends with people from school

91% are friends with extended family members

89% are friends with people who do not attend the same school

76% are friends with brothers and sisters

70% are friends with their parents

33% are friends with people they have not met in person

30% are friends with teachers or coaches

30% are friends with celebrities, musicians or athletes

  

Teen Twitter users have far fewer followers when compared to Facebook friends.  They typical teen Twitter user has about 79 followers compared to the 300 to 350 friends the typical teen Facebook user reports.

What about Privacy?

Most teen users report that they are not very concerned about third-party access to their data. (Madden, 2013)

Only 9% of teens say they are "very" concerned, 31% are "somewhat" concerned, and 60% report that they are "not too" concerned about their information being accessed by third parties like advertisers.

Are Parents Concerned About Their Teens' Privacy?

81% of the parents are concerned or very concerned about things like their teen's interaction with strangers, reputation management, the information available to advertisers about their teen, and the impact their teen's online presence will have on their future.  Only about 19% report that they are not too concerned.

Reputation Management

Teens are aware for the need to manage their online profiles.  Here are the responses to five questions that were asked about online reputation management.

59% have deleted or edited something that they posted in the past.

53% have deleted comments from others on their profile or account.

45% have removed their name from photos that have been tagged to identify them.

31% have deleted or deactivated an entire profile or account.

19% have posted updates, comments, photos, or videos that they later regretted sharing.

Teen Online Experiences

In addition to social media, teens report various positive and negative online experiences.  On the positive side, 52% report that they have had experiences that made them feel good about themselves, 39% met someone online that has become a good friend, and 33% had an experience that made them feel closer to someone. 

On the other side, 39% of teens report that they have lied about their age to gain access to websites or online accounts, 30% received advertising that was clearly inappropriate, and 7% have been contacted in a way that made them scared or uncomfortable. Only 4% have shared information that caused a problem or got them in trouble at school.





Reference
Madden, M., Lenhart, A., Cortesi, S., Gasser, U., Duggan, M., Smith, A., et al. (2013, May 21). Teens, Social Media , and Privacy. Pew Research Center. Retrieved June 6, 2014, from http://www.pewinternet.org/files/2013/05/PIP_TeensSocialMediaandPrivacy_PDF.pdf

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