Is everybody really doing it?
Statistically speaking, no. But there is enough evidence to show that the majority of the population is using some form of social media and the numbers are rising. In the most general sense across all demographics, 65% of North Americans are actively involved. (Perrin, 2015) Globally the numbers do drop off to roughly 37% but that stat can be misleading as there was a 21% increase recorded in January 2017. (Chaffey, 2017)
Simon Kemp's 2017 Digital Yearbook provides some fantastic data on both internet and social media usage. I found it surprising that 91% of Canadians are online accessing the internet as I did not think the number would be that high. (Kemp, 2017)
Based on the numbers that Kemp provides non-users are in the minority. Although the 2017 Digital Yearbook doesn't go into great detail about what platforms are the most popular or most used, Statista provides a convincing argument for what you should be using if you don't want to be left behind.
Facebook is the clear winner of popular use, surprisingly Twitter is farther down the list than I thought. It would be interesting to determine what platform is the most influential in decision making of individuals. Whether it be for consumerism, marketing, or political influence the results would would be fascinating. It could be assumed that simply by the numbers Facebook would be the most influential, but that might not necessarily be the case. One of the other platforms might be a more effective tool to influence populations.
Personally, I am not actively on any of the platforms listed. I do have a Pinterest account, have used Skype on the rare occasion, and I am a regular consumer of internet content.
Generally there are three areas of content that I access daily. News, classifieds, weather, in that order. I typically check all three areas, three times per day for an average total of 60 minutes a day or less. My internet usage hasn't overwhelmingly improved my quality of life or taken away from it at this point. I suppose it could if I let it. The opportunities are endless, gambling, shopping, gaming, social creeping/updating, but they haven't been temping enough for me and it is unlikely that they will ever be.
I think that there is a reoccurring theme in my investigation of digital life. We really need to improve our digital awareness about what is good, bad, acceptable, unacceptable, realistic, and reasonable. Our level of awareness also need to be shared with our students and children in order to keep them aware of what the realities are in the "real world" away from online life.
Chaffey, D. (2017, May 17). Global Social Media Statistics Summary 2017. Retrieved July 25, 2017, from http://www.smartinsights.com/social-media-marketing/social-media-strategy/new-global-social-media-research/
Perrin, A. (2015). Social media usage. Pew Research Center.
We Are Social Singapore Follow. (2017, January 26). 2017 Digital Yearbook. Retrieved July 24, 2017, from https://www.slideshare.net/wearesocialsg/2017-digital-yearbook