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Comparing first and second generation digital natives' Internet use, Internet anxiety, and Internet identification
Richard Joiner1, Jeff Gavin, Mark Brosnan
1Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom. r.joiner@bath.ac.uk
Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking
|May 17, 2013
Summary
Second generation Digital Natives show more positive attitudes and higher Internet usage than first generation. They exhibit greater Internet identification and less anxiety, with email remaining popular but social media rising.
Area of Science:
- Digital Media Studies
- Human-Computer Interaction
- Generational Studies
Background:
- The digital landscape has evolved rapidly, necessitating an understanding of how different generations interact with the Internet.
- Digital Natives are individuals who grew up with digital technology, but generational cohorts may exhibit distinct behaviors and attitudes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the attitudes toward and usage patterns of the Internet between first-generation and second-generation Digital Natives.
- To assess differences in Internet experience, anxiety, and identification across these two generational cohorts.
Main Methods:
- A comparative study surveying 558 first-generation Digital Natives (born post-1980, surveyed 2002) and 458 second-generation Digital Natives (born post-1993, surveyed 2012).
- Utilized questionnaires measuring Internet experience, Internet anxiety, and Internet identification.
- Data collected during the first semester of the students' first academic year.
Main Results:
- Second-generation Digital Natives reported more positive attitudes towards the Internet compared to the first generation.
- Higher scores in Internet identification and lower scores in Internet anxiety were observed in the second generation.
- Second-generation Digital Natives demonstrated greater overall Internet usage, with email being the most popular activity for both, though significantly more for the second generation. Social networking sites were highly popular among the second generation.
Conclusions:
- Significant generational shifts in Internet attitudes and usage exist between first and second-generation Digital Natives.
- Second-generation Digital Natives are more integrated with and less anxious about Internet technologies.
- While email remains a core activity, social networking platforms have gained prominence among younger digital natives, with low adoption of Web 2.0 technologies by both groups.
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