[Asis-l] Fwd: Pew Research: What We Search For

[Melissa Riesland]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Search Day
> [mailto:listsupport at internet.com]
> Sent: Thursday, July 25, 2002 6:42 AM

> SearchDay
> July 25, 2002 - Number 319
> 
>
> ===================
> 
> + What We Search For
> 
> The Pew Internet Project has released a
> fascinating report detailing just
> how important search engines are to web users,
> with some interesting
> statistics about the most common kinds of
> information people search for.
> 
> The report, based on extensive research,
> surveys, and analysis, says that
> more than eight in ten American internet users
> have gone to search engines
> to find information on the Web. Further, more
> than one in four, or about
> 33 million adults, use a search engine on a
> daily basis.
> 
> Fully 85% of American internet users have used
> an online search engine to
> find information on the Web. Only sending or
> reading email outranks
> search-engine queries as an online activity.
> 
> The study also examined individual differences
> and search engine use.
> Some of the key findings:
> 
> - Men are more likely than women to use a
> search engine on a typical day
> (33%, compared to 25% of women).
> 
> - College graduates are also more likely to use
> a search engine on a
> typical day (39%, compared to 20% of high
> school graduates).
> 
> - Internet users who have been online for three
> or more years are also
> heavy search engine users (39% on a typical
> day, compared to 14% of those
> who got access in the last six months).
> 
> Have you ever searched for information about
> yourself?  If so, you're not
> alone.  About one in four Internet users has
> typed their own names into a
> search engine to see what information about
> them is on the Web. About half
> found what they expected, but 24% of vanity
> searchers were surprised by
> how much information they found about
> themselves online, and 16% were
> surprised by how little information they found.
> 
> The report also examined how people search for
> health, government and
> religious information.  There's a lot of good
> information here, especially
> about the quality of information and
> satisfaction with online resources.
> 
> SearchDay readers likely won't be surprised by
> many of the findings in the
> report, though it's nice to see some hard data
> from a reputable source
> like the Pew Internet Project.
> 
> 
> Search Engines: A Pew Internet Project Data
> Memo
>
http://www.pewinternet.org/reports/toc.asp?Report=64
> The Pew Internet & American Life Project is a
> nonpartisan, independent
> research organization funded by the Pew
> Charitable Trusts to study the
> impact of the Internet on families,
> communities, health care, education,
> civic and political life, and the work place.
> 
> Daily Internet Activities
>
http://www.pewinternet.org/reports/chart.asp?img=Daily_Internet_Activities.j
> pg
> 
> A chart detailing the percentage of 64 million
> U.S. based internet users
> who do a specific online activity on any given
> day.
> 
> Internet Activities
>
http://www.pewinternet.org/reports/chart.asp?img=Internet_Activities.jpg
> Another chart detailing the percentage of
> Internet Users who have ever
> done a particular online activity. Using a
> search engine is the second
> most common activity, just behind email in
> popularity.
> 
> 


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