A national survey of 2,252 adults by the Pew Internet &
American Life Project has found that households with a married couple
and minor children are more likely than other household types -- such
as single adults, homes with unrelated adults, or couples without
children - to have cell phones and use the internet.
- 89% of married-with-children households own multiple cell phones, and nearly half own three or more mobile devices
- 70% of couples in which both partners own a cell phone contact
each other daily to say hello or chat; 54% of couples who have one or
no cell phones do this at least once a day. - 64% of couples in which both partners own a cell phone
contact each other daily to coordinate their schedules; - 47% of couples
who have one or no cell phones do this at least once a day. - 42% of parents contact their child/children on a daily basis
using a cell phone, making cell uphones the most popular communications
tool between parents and children.
- 66% of married-with-children households have a high-speed
broadband internet connection at home, well above the national average
for all households of 52%. - Both spouses and at least one child go online in 65% of married-with-children households.
- 58% of married-with-children households contain two or more desktop or laptop computers.
The survey shows that these high rates of technology ownership
affect family life. In particular, cell phones allow family members to
stay more regularly in touch even when they are not physically
together. Moreover, many members of married-with-children households
view material online together.
"Some analysts have worried that new technologies hurt family
togetherness, but we see that technology allows for new kinds of
connectedness built around cell phones and the internet," noted Tracy
Kennedy, author of a new report about the survey called "Networked
Families."
"Family members touch base with each other frequently with their cell
phones, and they use those phones to coordinate family life on the fly
during their busy lives.
" Kennedy added: "A lot of families treat the internet as a
place for shared experiences. They don't just withdraw from the family
to their own computer for private screen time. They often say, 'Hey -
look at this!' to others in the household."
Some 52% of internet users who live with a spouse and one or
more children go online with another person at least a few times a
week. Another 34% of such families have shared screen moments at least
occasionally.
Overall, respondents in this survey see much upside and little
downside in the way new technologies have affected the quality of their
communications with others.
When asked if the internet and cell phones had made family life
different for their current family compared with the family in which
they had grown up, 25% said their family today is closer than their
family when they were growing up, 11% said their family today is not as
close as families in the past, and 60% said that new technologies have
not made their family any more or less close than their family in the
past.
However, the benefits of the internet and cell phones are
somewhat counterbalanced in some families by their contribution to the
speed of modern life and their role in blurring the lines between
"work" and "home" life. Some 11% of employed internet users say the
internet has increased the amount of time they spend working from the
office, and 19% say it has increased the amount of time they spend
working from home.
"Families are becoming networks," argued Prof. Barry Wellman
of the University of Toronto and an author of the study. "Each
household member can be her own communications hub and that changes
things inside and outside the household. Family members are neither
isolated individuals nor traditional actors in Fun with Dick and Jane
homes. Rather, their households are active sites of the interplay of
individual activity and family togetherness."
In other findings of the study:
- In the face of busy schedules and many demands on their time,
Americans frequently prize their time with family members over
recreational activities and relaxation. While 55% of adults are very
satisfied with the amount of time they spend with their families, just
35% are very satisfied with the amount of time they are able to spend
on hobbies, clubs and other activities.
- Employment plays a key role in how Americans spend their time.
Individuals who are employed (whether full or part time) have lower
levels of satisfaction with the time they have available for family,
friends and relatives, hobbies and clubs, and relaxation.
- While 74% of all adults watch TV nearly every day, television
continues to lose ground to the internet--particularly among young
adults. Just 58% of 18-29 year olds watch TV almost every day, and 29%
say that they now watch less TV as a result of the internet.
- Internet users socialize just as frequently as non-users.
Indeed, even intense internet users (i.e. those who go online from home
several times a day) are no less likely to socialize with friends than
those who go online less frequently and those who do not go online at
all.