It is my impression that if we study each segment separately, we will lose the gestalt. My children use multiple means of communication including IM, Chat, Blogging and - not so much - Message Boards. Within this context, I see an entirety of communication happening. Dr. Timothy Haupt, Psy.D. ----- Original Message ----- From: <air-l-request@listserv.aoir.org> To: <air-l@listserv.aoir.org> Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2005 12:02 PM Subject: air-l Digest, Vol 17, Issue 15

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Today's Topics:

1. Message board usage - and a reflection on changing research themes (David Brake) 2. I spoke too soon - some data re message board use (David Brake)

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Message: 1 Date: Sat, 17 Dec 2005 23:00:00 +0000 From: David Brake <d.r.brake@lse.ac.uk> Subject: [Air-l] Message board usage - and a reflection on changing research themes To: air-l-aoir.org@listserv.aoir.org Message-ID: <BC6579A4-B228-4229-B87D-5913277B7BA6@lse.ac.uk> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed

I've been asked to find out among other things what kinds of Internet bulletin boards are most used by young people and what proportion of young people visit them. I thought this kind of thing would be fairly easy to find out - after all bulletin boards/message boards/usenet were among the most studied forms of Internet use in the early days. But I am finding it surprisingly difficult to get this information as current surveys like the Pew and OxIS ones don't seem to track bulletin board use or virtual community participation at all (except insofar as it might be included in uses like "seeking sport information"). Is it because kids these days are all just using IM and writing Xanga blogs or do we only think this because we don't ask them about this kind of use any more?

Can anyone help with my statistical questions? And more generally does anyone else agree that as we keep chasing each new phenomenon (file sharing, IM, blogging, social network software) we risk losing track altogether of still extant and important practices (affinity group message board or mailing list use for example - or MUD use?) If these uses are indeed being displaced by other uses shouldn't we at least have a crack at measuring them so we can be sure they are gone so we can chart their decline as well as their rise?

--- David Brake, Doctoral Student in Media and Communications, London School of Economics & Political Science <http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/media@lse/study/ mPhilPhDMediaAndCommunications.htm> Also see http://davidbrake.org/ (home page), http://blog.org/ (personal weblog) and http://get.to/lseblog (academic groupblog) Author of Dealing With E-Mail - <http://davidbrake.org/ dealingwithemail/> callto://DavidBrake (Skype.com's Instant Messenger and net phone)

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Message: 2 Date: Sun, 18 Dec 2005 00:13:27 +0000 From: David Brake <d.r.brake@lse.ac.uk> Subject: [Air-l] I spoke too soon - some data re message board use To: air-l@listserv.aoir.org Message-ID: <CBE6E010-5D97-4D98-A3AB-871B86359A38@lse.ac.uk> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=WINDOWS-1252; delsp=yes; format=flowed

I spoke too soon! Some data is available after all. More would be welcome however as there still isn't much!

Livingstone, S. M. and M. Bober (2004) "Uk Children Go Online: Surveying the Experiences of Young People and Their Parents" ESRC London. http://personal.lse.ac.uk/bober/UKCGOsurveyreport.pdf reveals that of 12-19 year old regular internet users 17% contributed to message boards (doesn't separate out 'lurkers' from 'participants' though.

Survey data from Pew's first Teen and Parent survey in 2000 reveals 38% of 12-17 year olds go to ?web sites and bulletin boards where they can write their opinions about things?. Unfortunately, this question disappeared from (what seems to be?) Pew's only other survey data with teens in it - in 2004.

And while I think of it here are the other sources I checked unsuccessfully (but which other researchers interested in young people and Internet use may find handy):

Dutton, W. H., C. di Genarro and A. M. Hargrave (2005) "The Internet in Britain: The Oxford Internet Survey (Oxis)" Oxford Internet Institute Oxford. http://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/research/oxis/ OxIS_2005_Internet_Survey.pdf

Roberts, D. F., U. G. Foehr and V. M. A. Rideout (2005) "Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year Olds" Kaiser Family Foundation http://www.kff.org/entmedia/7251.cfm doesn't seem to have anything in it.

NetRatings Australia Pty Ltd (2005) "Kidsonline@Home: Internet Use in Australian Homes" Sydney. http://www.aba.gov.au/newspubs/internet.shtml

--- David Brake, Doctoral Student in Media and Communications, London School of Economics & Political Science <http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/media@lse/study/ mPhilPhDMediaAndCommunications.htm> Also see http://davidbrake.org/ (home page), http://blog.org/ (personal weblog) and http://get.to/lseblog (academic groupblog) Author of Dealing With E-Mail - <http://davidbrake.org/ dealingwithemail/> callto://DavidBrake (Skype.com's Instant Messenger and net phone)

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End of air-l Digest, Vol 17, Issue 15 *************************************