• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, July 6, 2010

How did Facebook so easily survive its most recent privacy backlash? Chalk it up to the addictive personalities and naiveté of its many female users, according to new research conducted by Lightspeed Research on behalf of the Oxygen Media Insights Group.

More than one-third -- 39% -- of women 18-34 are now self-proclaimed Facebook addicts, Lightspeed found after surveying a nationally representative sample of 1,605 U.S. adults who use social media.

Indeed, 57% now report talking to people online more than face-to-face, while 34% say checking Facebook is the first thing they do in the morning -- even before brushing their teeth or using the bathroom.

Meanwhile, displaying a degree of comfort bordering on foolishness, 42% of respondents think photos of themselves visibly intoxicated make appropriate Facebook fare, while 32% say photos of themselves or others making obscene gestures are okay. That's despite the fact that two-thirds -- 63% -- claim to use Facebook as a career networking tool.

Still, the majority of the youngest women surveyed -- 54% of those 18-24 -- claim to not trust Facebook with their private information, while 89% agree you should never put anything on Facebook that you don't want your parents to see.

Showing the degree to which Facebook has become the gateway to the greater Web, nearly half -- 48% -- of all respondents now claim to get more news through Facebook than from traditional news outlets.

In addition, shedding new light on the dynamics of female social networking behavior, 50% of respondents believe they could rely on a "Facebook friend" for their help in a crisis; while 46% say it's okay to be Facebook friends with someone they don't like in real life.

According to a recent study from rich-media provider Unicast, women age 18-24 are more receptive to online advertising in various formats than the overall population -- and are particularly interested in localized information, surveys, social media formats and downloadable content.