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Rainie, L., Purcell, K., Smith, A. (2011). The Social Side of the Internet. Pew Internet & American Life Research Center

The internet is now deeply embedded in group and organizational life in America. A new national survey by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project has found that 75% of all American adults are active in some kind of voluntary group or organization and internet users are more likely than others to be active: 80% of internet users participate in groups, compared with 56% of non-internet users. Moreover, social media users are even more likely to be active: 82% of social network users and 85% of Twitter users are group participants.

“One of the striking things in these data is how purposeful people are as they become active with groups,” noted Kristen Purcell, the research director at Pew Internet and co-author of the report. “Many enjoy the social dimensions of involvement, but what they really want is to have impact. Most have felt proud of a group they belong to in the past year and just under half say they accomplished something they couldn’t have accomplished on their own.”

“It is important to note that 25% of American adults are not active in any of the groups we addressed,” Aaron Smith, senior research specialist at Pew Internet and co-author of the report. “They often report they are time-stressed or have health or other issues that limit their ability to be involved. And about a fifth of them say that lack of access to the internet is a hindrance. Even in its absence, the internet seems to be a factor in the reality of how groups perform in the digital age.”



 

Authors

Rainie, Lee

Lee Rainie is the Director of the Pew Internet & American Life Project, a non-profit, non–partisan "fact tank" that studies the social impact of the internet. The Project has issued more than 250 reports based on its surveys that examine people's online activities...

Purcell, Kristen

Kristen Purcell is the associate director for research at Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project. She has a Ph.D. in Sociology from Rutgers University, where she specialized in mass media and cognition. At Pew, Kristen leads the design, implementation and analysis of...

Smith, Aaron

Aaron’s primary areas of research with the Project include the role of the internet in the political process, technology in civic life and online engagement with government. He has also authored research on mobile internet usage, the role of the internet in family life and demographic...

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