Female college students are twice as likely as their male peers to use social networking sites like Facebook (their favorite) and MySpace (ranked second), according to a market research survey from Anderson Analytics. The findings, reported in Advertising Age this week, examined the likes, dislikes, and media preferences of college students between the ages of 18 and 24. The same article mentioned that older women are more reticent than younger ones about networking with each other and sharing information on the internet...
The findings are reminiscent of generational differences in friendship found a decade ago by researcher and investigative journalist Sandy Sheehy in her book, Connecting: The Enduring Power of Female Friendship (HarperCollins, 2000). Her landmark study of female friendships found that while some ground rules governing friendships were shared by all women regardless of age, others were age-related.
Women born prior to 1940 placed their relationships with men and family ahead of their female friendships and were more likely to be guarded in discussing personal or family problems with other women. Those born after 1950 were more likely to make their friends a priority in their lives (equal to that of romance and family) and were more open in talking about and sharing their problems with them.
Taken together, the two reports suggest an inverse correlation between age and intimate friendship, both real and virtual.
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