13 Things to Know About Teens and
Technology
Lee Rainie, Director, Pew Internet Project
July 23, 2014
ACT – College Enrollment Planners
Chicago
Email: Lrainie@pewinternet.org
Twitter: @Lrainie
Dispelling myths
1) No playbook for new environment
2) No sure cure for making contact
3) Teens are not an alien species
Teens are more _____
Stupid
Narcissistic
Privacy indifferent
Materialistic
Anti-social
Mean
Especially savvy ‘digital natives’
What is different about them does tie
to technology
4) Teens have tech-saturated lives
• 95% use internet / ~ three-quarters have broadband at home
74% access internet on mobile device – 25% “cell mostly”
internet users
• 78% have cell phones / 47% have smartphones
– 80% have desktop/laptop
– 23% have tablet computers
• 81% use social networking sites
– 76% use Facebook - 24% use Twitter
– Approx. from young adult data: a quarter of teens use
Instagram; 1 in 7 use Pinterest; 1 in 10 use Tumblr
5) This has networked information
• Pervasive / portable /
persistent
• Personal via new filters
• Participatory / spreadable
• Linked
•
•
•
•
Replicable and editable
Immediate
Timeless / searchable
Given meaning via networks /
algorithms
Implications for learners
and information seekers
6) Information is a ‘third skin’
7) Teens have a new attention layer –
“continuous, partial”
8) Teens have a fifth lobe
9) Teens participate in the ‘fifth estate’
10) There is a Yin and Yang story when it comes
to the way this affects teens’ research
Online survey of 2,462 Advanced Placement and
Writing Teachers
77% of teachers
surveyed say the
internet and
digital search
tools have had a
“mostly positive”
impact on their
students’
research work
87% agree
these
technologies
are creating an
“easily
distracted
generation with
short attention
spans”
76% of the
teachers in this
study strongly
agree “the
internet enables
students to
access a wider
range of
resources than
would otherwise
be available”
76% strongly
agree that
internet “search
engines have
conditioned
students to
expect to be
able to find
information
quickly and
easily”
65% agree to
some extent
that “the
internet makes
today’s students
more selfsufficient
researchers”
83% agree that
the “amount of
information
available online
today is
overwhelming
to most
students”
90% agree that
“the internet
encourages
learning by
connecting
students to
resources
about topics of
interest to
them”
71% agree that
today’s digital
technologies
“discourage
students from
using a wide
range of sources
when
conducting
research”
Grading students’ research skills
Excellent
Ability to use appropriate and
effective search terms and
queries
6%
Understanding how online
search results are generated
5%
Ability to use multiple sources
to effectively support an
argument
3%
Ability to assess the quality and
accuracy of information they
find online
3%
Patience and determination in
looking for information that is
hard to find
Very good
Good
Fair
36%
20%
19%
26%
9%
21%
39%
26%
11%
29%
29%
26%
12%
Poor
20%
37%
24%
6%
1%
15%
35%
43%
7%
Ability to recognize bias in
online content
1%
0%
20%
38%
50%
33%
100%
What is the future of learning?
-- Shana Ratner (1997) “Emerging Issues in Learning Communities”
Old:
Learning as transaction
Knowledge is
objective and
certain
New:
Learning as a process
Knowledge is
subjective and
provisional
What is the future of learning?
-- Shana Ratner (1997) “Emerging Issues in Learning Communities”
Old:
Learning as transaction
New:
Learning as a process
Learners receive
knowledge
Learners create
knowledge
What is the future of learning?
-- Shana Ratner (1997) “Emerging Issues in Learning Communities”
Old:
Learning as transaction
New:
Learning as a process
Knowledge is organized Knowledge is organized
in stable, hierarchical
“ecologically”structures that can
disciplines are
be treated
integrative and
independently of one
interactive
another
What is the future of learning?
-- Shana Ratner (1997) “Emerging Issues in Learning Communities”
Old:
Learning as transaction
We learn best
passively, by
listening and
watching
New:
Learning as a process
We learn best
actively doing
and managing
our own learning
What is the future of learning?
-- Shana Ratner (1997) “Emerging Issues in Learning Communities”
Old:
Learning as transaction
New:
Learning as a process
Our “intelligence” Our “intelligence”
is based on our
is based on our
individual
networks
abilities
How will hyperconnected Millennials live?
http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2012/Hyperconnected-lives.aspx
Vote for …
Millennials’ future
• In 2020 the brains of multitasking teens and young adults
are "wired" differently from those over age 35 and overall it
yields helpful results. They do not suffer notable cognitive
shortcomings as they multitask and cycle quickly through
personal- and work-related tasks. Rather, they are learning
more and they are more adept at finding answers to deep
questions, in part because they can search effectively and
access collective intelligence via the Internet. In sum, the
changes in learning behavior and cognition among the
young generally produce positive outcomes.
… or …
Millennials’ future
• In 2020, the brains of multitasking teens and young adults
are "wired" differently from those over age 35 and overall it
yields baleful results. They do not retain information; they
spend most of their energy sharing short social messages,
being entertained, and being distracted away from deep
engagement with people and knowledge. They lack deepthinking capabilities; they lack face-to-face social skills; they
depend in unhealthy ways on the Internet and mobile
devices to function. In sum, the changes in behavior and
cognition among the young are generally negative
outcomes.
Millennials’ future
Change for the better
52%
Change for the worse
42%
11) Theme - Supertaskers
12) Theme – New winners/losers
13) Theme – The distracted are toast
6 media zones
1) STACKS
How it works
• Motive – learning, mastery, productivity
• Content – actionable info, how-to
sensibility, links and other resources
• Device – desktop / laptop
• Engagement – full attention – vertical
reading
• Influentials – trusted brands and known
experts (professional and amateur)
• ~ Mindshare – quarter to a third of media
time
Implication for message makers
• Engagement strategy
– Search optimized / findable
– Acting as information sherpas
– Problem solving mindset
– Cut and paste
– FAQs
– How-to videos
– Feedback friendly
2) SIGNALS
How it works
• Motive – real-time awareness
• Content – headlines, new information, first
impressions matter most
• Device – smartphone, tablet
• Engagement – glancing OR galvanized
• Influentials – brands
• ~ Mindshare – < 5% of media time
Implication for message makers
• Engagement strategy
– News, especially scoops
– Deals
– Location enabled
– Insights from analytics
3) SNACKS
How it works
• Motive – killing time, beating boredom
• Content – gamified, bite-size headlines, linkdense
• Device – smartphone
• Engagement – distracted, quick-twitch
• Influentials – brands, quality of social network
• ~ Mindshare – 5%-10% of media time
Implication for message makers
• Engagement strategy
– Apps
– Immediate connection
– Predictable and compelling home screen
– Grabby copy / activity
– Clear and consistent Return on My Attention
4) STREAMS
How it works
•
•
•
•
Motive – catching up / checking in / curiosity
Content – news (broad definition), social updates
Device – any / all
Engagement – continuous partial attention /
horizontal scans / sharing
• Influentials – editors, social networks
• ~ Mindshare – quarter to a third of media time
Implication for message makers
• Engagement strategy
– Apps
– Smart curation
– Customizable filters
– Compelling ecosystem of content
– Tagging and saving for future immersion
– Social network mediated
– Serendipity encounters
5) SOCIALS
How it works
•
•
•
•
•
Motive – friend grooming
Content – social, personal, entertaining
Device – all
Engagement – partial, browsing
Influentials – super-networkers / primary nodes
in the network
• ~ Mindshare – 10% of media time
Implication for message makers
• Engagement strategy
– Social networks are gatekeepers
– Spreadable content
– Treat central network nodes like traditional media
influences
– Enable participation and feedback
5) SYNTHESIZED SPACES
How it works
•
•
•
•
•
Motive – my permissions
Content – personalized, anticipatory
Device – my surroundings
Engagement – immersive, invisible
Influentials – my past behavior, analytics,
algorithms
• ~ Mindshare – most waking hours
Implication for message makers
• Engagement strategy
– Selective product placement and messaging
– Permission-based monitoring / interactions
– Careful of privacy sensitivities
– Careful of too much “monetization”
Marketing
Myopia
What business are you
really in?
-- Theodore Levitt
Harvard Business Review (1960)
Be not
afraid