Pew Internet Report - "The Strength of Internet Ties"

The 2006 report, “The Strength of Internet Ties,” by Jeffrey Boase, John B. Horrigan, Danny Wellman, and Lee Rainie examines the Internet’s impact on people’s social networks and relationships. It addresses the question, “Does the Internet strengthen or impair communities?” and the answer is that it’s transforming communities. There is little debate that connecting via the Web has become a part of daily life, but people also continue to communicate by landline phone, cell phone, and in-person. In fact, “the more that people see each other in person and talk on the phone, the more they use the Internet (Boase, Horrigan, Wellman, & Rainie i).”

The Internet and e-mail allow for people to stay connected with diverse networks of people from various locations. It’s as easy and cheap to e-mail or instant message (IM) somebody overseas as the next-door neighbor. Many individuals also use the Internet to get advice from various people within their networks; they don't have to rely on resources from one community, and this refers to “networked individualism (ii).”

The 2004 Social Ties survey, a study which this report is largely based on, classifies people in a person’s network as either a core tie or a significant tie. The core ties category consists of people who are very close to the individual. Also, the individual has frequent contact with the core ties and would seek their advice. The significant ties category is made up of people who fall between acquaintances and core ties. The individual has occasional contact with these people and would also ask them for help with an issue. People in this category are important because they often have more specialized roles. In either case, people communicate with these networks in several ways: in-person, landline phone, cell phone, IM, and e-mail (iii).

However, e-mail does play a more significant role for those who have large networks. As a person’s network grows, the percentage of people in the network who are contacted weekly via e-mail stays steady at 20%. All other forms of communication decline. This isn’t surprising because it’s easy to send a message to multiple people at the same time. Also, e-mail can be sent at anytime from almost anywhere (iii).

One of the key aspects of the 2004 Social Ties survey involved how people used the Internet to get help on major issues in their lives. It asked respondents if they received advice from a core or significant tie on any of these eight issues: moving, changing careers, purchasing a computer, making a financial decision, looking for information pertaining to a medical condition, caring for somebody with an illness, installing drywall in the home, and deciding on a political candidate. The results were that 85% of Internet users received help with an issue from a core tie, while 72% of non-Internet users received help from a core tie. The percentages decreased with significant ties – 49% of users received assistance on an issue and 40 % of non-users received assistance. Those who used the Internet most likely received help more often because they generally have larger social networks (iv–v).

This article was very interesting, but it was packed with statistics. Here are some additional facts from the reading that I thought were noteworthy:

• Internet users and non-users have the same median # of core ties (15), but Internet users have more significant ties (pg. 9).
  
• Generally women, those who are well-educated, and older people have more core ties; people who are well-educated and those who have professional occupations tend to have more significant ties (9).


• On average, Americans have “weekly in-person contact with a median of five core ties and four significant ties (13);” they have a landline phone conversation with five core ties and two significant ties; they have a cell phone conversation with two core ties and zero significant ties (13);

Perhaps I found this article so interesting because it surprised me. Going into the reading, my hypothesis was that the more people use e-mail and IM, the less that they have face-to-face and phone conversations. In fact, it’s the opposite. These online communication devices simply supplement the more traditional forms of human interaction, and in result it’s easier to communicate effectively with more people (Thank you Facebook). The article also points out that the time people spend online typically takes the place of sleeping and watching TV, and not more social activities (3).

Last week, when I read Todd Kappelman’s article, I thought of the Internet when he explained Marshall McLuhan’s theory of extensions and amputations. I assumed that although the Internet does extend social networks, it takes away the relationship with a real person. The evidence from this report actually shows that the more that people see each other, the more likely they are to e-mail one another. At first, this fact surprised me, but then I thought of many of my personal conversations that usually end up with me saying something like, “Let me e-mail you those pictures,” or “I’ll have to send you that link.” The Internet makes it easy to share random information that you don’t always have at your fingertips.

Another great thing about online communication is that it helps me to stay connected to my standard ties. Actually, I probably wouldn’t have any contact with 90% of my standard ties without it. For me, those who fall under this category are the people who I lived with in the dorms my freshman year at the University of Toledo, the dozens of co-workers that I had throughout college, my childhood friend who moved away when I was in the first grade, etc. Now that I think about it, most of my standard ties were core ties at one point in my life, but for whatever reason we lost touch. Thanks to Facebook and e-mail, I’ve been able to reconnect with many of these types of people. A few of my standard ties have even moved to the Chicago-area recently. Prior to their move, they contacted me online, and now that they are here, we have scheduled to meet in-person.

One other thought regarding core and significant ties – I typically ask my core ties for advice on an issue in-person or over the phone first. Usually, I will then seek a second opinion from one of my standard ties via e-mail or IM (since most do not live in the Chicago-area). There are a variety of people in my standard ties category: a pharmacist, mechanic, lawyer, etc., and I’m able to receive more specific information on an issue from one of them.

After examining my personal life, I now see that I integrate e-mail, IM, phone conversations, and in-person encounters to manage what I consider to be a large social network. However, I’m more likely to use phone and in-person conversations with my core ties and e-mail and IM with my standard ties.

Works Cited

Boase, Jeffrey, John B. Horrigan, Barry Wellman, and Lee Rainie. "The Strength of Internet Ties." Pew Internet & American Life Project. 25 Jan. 2006. 2 Oct. 2009. http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2006/The-Strength-of-Internet-Ties.aspx>.