Findings of the Online The Harris Poll, conducted between March 31 and April 1, 2009, show that 51% of Americans do not use Twitter or have a MySpace or Facebook account. 48% of adults have either a
MySpace or Facebook page, with 16% of adults updating their page at least once a day. While the media may have found Twitter, only 5% of Americans are currently using it.
There are some
substantial differences in who is and who isn't using these social networking sites, says the report:
- 74% of those aged 18-34 years old have a Facebook or MySpace account but
this quickly drops off the older one gets. Only 24% of those 55 and older have an account
- 8% of 18-34 year olds use Twitter, 7% of those 35-44 use it, 4% of those aged
45-54 and just 1% of those 55 and older
- Men and women use Twitter at the same levels (5% each), but women are more likely to have a Facebook or MySpace account (52% versus
45%)
- Two in five people with a high school degree or less have a Facebook or MySpace account compared to 55% of those with some college and 52% of those with at least a college
degree.
There has been some discussion about whether these social networking sites may, at some point, become a threat to search engines such as Yahoo! or Google. Right now, that
doesn't seem to be an issue, concludes the study, as 45% of adults believe the sites are popular, but they won't pose a real threat to the domination of search sites while just one in ten say
they may become a threat. 46% of Americans are not at all sure. Even among the largest users of the social networking sites, 18-34 year olds, 62% say they will not become a real threat to the search
engines.
Future Of Search Sites (All Online Adults; % of Age Group) |
| Age Group |
Respondent Opinion | Total | 18-34 | 35-44 | 45-54
| 55+ |
Facebook or MySpace will never pose any real threat
to the domination of search sites such as Google or Yahoo | 45% | 62 | 46 | 39 | 28 |
Social network sites are becoming so dominant that they may become a real threat to search sites like Google or Yahoo | 9 | 7 | 9 | 6 | 11 |
Not at all sure | 46 | 31 | 45 | 55 | 61 |
Source: Harris Interactive, April 2009
Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding |
While the younger age groups are all about the social network sites, they haven't yet migrated to
Twitter. The report concludes that if they had found it before the media had, there is a stronger possibility they would be increasing their usage, but they may already be looking for the next big
thing.
Online Social Network Usage - By Age & Gender (All Online Adults;
% of Age Group) |
| | Age
Group | Gender |
Network Usage | Total | 18-34 | 35-44
| 45-54 | 55+ | Male | Female |
Have a Facebook or MySpace account | 48% | 74 | 47 | 41 | 24 | 45 | 52 |
Update Facebook or MySpace account at least once a day | 16 | 29 | 17 | 10 | 3 | 14 | 18 |
Use Twitter (Net) | 5 | 8 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 5 |
Follow people on Twitter | 5 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 5
|
Use Twitter to send messages | 3 | 4 | 5 | 1 | * | 3 | 2 |
None of these | 51 | 25 | 50 | 59 | 76 | 54 | 47' |
Source: Harris Interactive, April 2009 Multiple responses allowed; * indicates less than 0.5% |
Online Social Network Usage - By Education (All Online Adults; % of Group) |
| | Education |
Network Usage | Total | HS or less | Some College | College Grad+ |
Have a
Facebook or MySpace account | 48% | 40 | 55 | 52 |
Update Facebook or MySpace account at least once a day | 16 | 14 | 18 | 16 |
Use Twitter (Net) | 5 | 3 | 7 | 6 |
Follow people on Twitter | 5 | 3 | 6 | 6 |
Use Twitter to send messages | 3 | 1 | 4 | 4 |
None of these | 51 | 59 | 43 | 47 |
Source: Harris Interactive, April 2009 Multiple responses allowed; * indicates less than 0.5% |
For additional information from Harris Interactive, please visit here.