Facebook study reveals social media gender traits

By Will Parker on April 4, 2012 in Computing & Electronics, News

A new European study into Facebook usage reports that women, but not men, feel less happy and less content with their lives the longer they spend on Facebook. The study, carried out by Leif Denti at the University of Gothenburg, also revealed that women spend much longer than men on Facebook.

The new study adds to the burgeoning number of academic analyses into the world’s most popular online social destination. Previous studies have linked Facebook usage todepression, changes in brain size and obesity.

One of the most interesting statistics revealed in the new study is the large amount of time both genders spend on Facebook. On average, users logged on 6 times per day, with women spending a total of 81 minutes Facebooking, while men spent a total of 64 minutes. Around half of the study’s participants indicated that it is “difficult to stay updated and on top of things” without Facebook.

Other findings from the study include:

A majority of the respondents report setting their web browser to log onto Facebook at startup.
One third of the male respondents stated that they deliberately provoke others on Facebook. That is around double the figure for women.
Most updates are related to major events, positive events and good feelings. Only 38 percent of the participants reported writing about negative emotions and events.
Two-thirds of young users use Facebook to kill time.
Women who use Facebook more report feeling less happy and less content with their lives.