Social Isolation and New Technology
The Pew Internet & American Life Project has just issued a new report on Social Isolation and New Technology. While a 2006 study argued that since 1985 Americans have become more socially isolated and that the size and diversity of their discussion networks has declined, this study finds that those using digital technologies are actually more socially engaged with a greater diversity of people than those who are not using technology.
According to this latest survey, Americans are not as isolated as has been previously reported. In fact, people’s use of the mobile phone and the internet is associated with larger and more diverse discussion networks. And when examining people’s full personal network, internet use in general and use of social networking services such as Facebook in particular are associated with more diverse social networks.
Check out the study, which shines a new light on the use of mobile devices and social technologies. And as 85% of adult Americans now have cell phones and 32% use mobile devices for information seeking, it is important for libraries to look to these new arenas as areas where they can serve users.