Everyday life, online: U.S. college students’ use of the Internet

Authors

  • Steve Jones University of Illinois at Chicago
  • Camille Johnson-Yale University of Illinois at Chicago
  • Sarah Millermaier University of Illinois at Chicago
  • Francisco Seoane Perez University of Leeds

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v14i10.2649

Keywords:

Internet, college students, higher education, new media

Abstract

The goal of this study was to learn about how college students are using the Internet and to compare their use of it to that of college students as reported in 2002 by replicating and extending previous research. A survey of college students at 40 U.S. higher education institutions was conducted, along with observations and interviews at several Midwestern universities. For comparison to the general population a nationwide telephone survey was undertaken. The study found that Internet use had predictably increased but that college students continued to prefer using multiple methods of communication to stay in touch with friends and family. College students continue to be early adopters of new Internet tools and applications in comparison to the general U.S. Internet-using population. For U.S. college students, Internet technologies have become so ubiquitous as to seem invisible.

Author Biographies

Steve Jones, University of Illinois at Chicago

professor of communication

Camille Johnson-Yale, University of Illinois at Chicago

visiting lecturer in the department of Communication at the University of Illinois at Chicago

Sarah Millermaier, University of Illinois at Chicago

Master's candidate in the Department of Communication at the University of Illinois at Chicago

Francisco Seoane Perez, University of Leeds

PhD candidate at the Institute of Communications Studies, University of Leeds

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Published

2009-09-25

How to Cite

Jones, S., Johnson-Yale, C., Millermaier, S., & Seoane Perez, F. (2009). Everyday life, online: U.S. college students’ use of the Internet. First Monday, 14(10). https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v14i10.2649