Is the social media networking losing charm among the urban youngsters? A latest survey suggests so.
Youngsters in urban India have started experiencing social-media fatigue as they tend to log onto social networks like – Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Orkut, LinkedIn, Myspace, Friendster, Hi5, BigAdda and others less frequently than earlier when they had initially signed up, according to a recently concluded survey carried out by apex industry body – The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM).
ASSOCHAM conducted a survey under the aegis of ASSOCHAM Social Development Foundation (ASDF) to examine current usage trends vis-à-vis social networks among youngsters and time spent on these websites.
About 55 per cent of all the respondents across these cities said they have consciously reduced the time spent on social media websites and are no longer as active and enthusiastic about their favourite social networks as they had been when they had signed up.
Replacing the real with the virtual
A majority of all the respondents said that compulsive social networking has led to insomnia, depression, poor inter-personal relationships, lack of concentration, high level of anxiety, ignorance and rudeness in their general behaviour as they tend to replace real-life social interactions with online social media.
ASSOCHAM representatives interacted with about 2,000 youngsters (equal number of male and female) in the age group of 12 years to 25 years at urban centres of Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai and Pune during the months of October 2011 to December 2011.
Nearly 30 per cent of the respondents said they had deactivated or deleted their accounts and profiles from these websites and it is no longer a craze among them while many others said they had started maintaining a low profile on social networks as their privacy is being breached and peep in their profiles once in a blue moon.
About 75 per cent of the total sample said they had made a profile or an account on almost each of these websites which was a fad among them when these websites were just launched. But most of these said they barely use them anymore and prefer sticking to a singular site.
About 20 per cent of all the respondents said they hardly log on to social networking websites and prefer staying in touch with their folks via chat applications like BlackberryMessenger, Watsapp, Nimbuzz, Mig33, Google Talk and Yahoo Messenger on their mobiles and computers.
An interesting aspect that has emerged out of the survey was that young Indian women seem to flock social networks more frequently as compared to their male counterparts.
About 500 of all the respondents said they have extended the time spent on social networking by over an hour and regularly log on to keep a track of multiple social media sites to stay connected to their entourage. Of these nearly 65 per cent were females and most of them said they tend to log onto social media almost everyday.
Of nearly 200 interviewed in Delhi about 60 per cent said that fascination with social networking they used to enjoy initially has been fading of late and now they find it boring and sick to see constant senseless status updates and the same thing over and over again and have significantly reduced the time dedicated to the social media.
While about 30 per cent respondents in the city said that they have extended the time spent on networking online and access multiple social networks to keep their friends, peers updated and stay connected to them.
Over half of those interviewed in Delhi said that they indulge in social networking at home, school, college and while they are at work on their smart phones and excess of it has started telling on their mental and physical health and even their professional and personal lives.
“Although social networking is the most popular online activity, youngsters have started finding social media boring, confusing, frustrating and time-consuming as they surf these websites less frequently and are tend to surf other informative websites, send e-mails, search the internet and play games instead of accessing their accounts, hardly respond to comments and other material posted on their walls,” said the survey.
This article is very good...we should not waste out time and energy on social networking sites..which gives us nothing in return. The simple joy of meeting face to face and communicating is much more than virtual. People portray to be different on networking sites than what they really are.
Thanks to ASSOCHAM, we are beginning to see that the much ado about just another "Friend's Corner" is insufficient for human interaction. It is good for escapists. On the up side, the target audience on the Social Media in that specific age group 13 - 25 years, are captive audience for marketers and they are surely not going to accept these figures, because elsewhere, the results are showing different results, like in YouTube. Actually, the consumption of Social Media has moved to Mobile users across India, expecially Urban India. What with Smart Phones, 3G/4G, there is no turning back.
Mr.Vivek..ten years back there was no facebook,20 years back there was no computer,30years back there was no tv,40 years back there was no movie,50 years back there was no radio..the list can go long..does it give the real picture? The result of the survey is not surpaising,12-25 years the survey says.What serious social life you could ever expect in that age?The social network would help and play a serious role only if you find yourself far from your home and friends or relatives,or you get yourself a work and family and no means or time to reach them,remmeber it is not social circle but social network in the 'net', why do you do need a service in the net like facebook if you could meet your friends in the evening in a pub or in a bus!This has helped so many find their friends which couldnot have been possible by any other meanRremember 10 years back, there were things famous like yahoo chat,mirc where you could chat with strangers, its good that facebook doesn't permit that in them.
Does this survey take in consideration the time spent on social networks in smart phones?
10 years back we didn't have any of these sites, and the time we spend on these sites were in the real world ,probably being with our loved ones. We wrote letters which was so intimate.Nowadays you See a bus , a train and a vast majority of the youngsters have their ears plugged into their mobiles or they will simply be staring at the mobile and pressing keys ,some opening up their laptops( so disgusting). 10 years back we didn't have any of these .We talked to each other in bus , we interacted with people.10 years back children played in their backyards,the grounds , now they sit in front of computer or TV and play games in it. Slowly but surely we are slaved by the machines. So sad. I just crave it was TEN YEARS BACK now ...
A combination of both the real world and the virtual world could only
bring a lasting happiness .Each of them could be complementary to each
other rather than competitive . Learn to take the benefits of both the
world rather than getting biased with the views of a few persons . India
does not live in thousands , its certainly more than that .
This article should receive wide publicity. Thanks to ASSOCHAM for useful survey and to The Hindu for reporting it. Many people who are not comfortable with so-called 'social' networking are forced to continue/register as an account and active presence in these sites is considered a symbol for friendliness and social prestige. This mania is unnecessarily fuelled by celebrities. They shout, cry, and even sneeze through these sites.
Most of the European and American youth are already complaining of 'Facebook fatigue' and deactivating their accounts. Is it not the time for Indian youth to think seriously on this time-wasting and distracting activity? Let people take pride in saying that they deactivated their social networking accounts rather than posting tens of useless comments everyday for making their friends momentarily happy.
Not surprising. This underscores the importance of personal interactions and less reliance on technology.The benefits of social networking is oversold. We in the western world are coming to the same realization.
Please Email the Editor