Grunwald Associates LLC
PHONE (301) 637-2740

Kids’ Social Networking Study : List of Topics

Kids & Social Networking
9-17 year olds queried

Childrens’ use of social networking sites technologies

  • How kids learn about new sites (19 different methods tested, including a detailed breakdown of the usually generic ‘word of mouth’ category)
  • Specific social networking sites used, frequency of use of each
  • Total time/week spent on social networking sites
  • Online communication activities engaged in at home and frequency
    • IM/Chat
    • Blogging
    • Music sharing
    • Video sharing
    • Multiplayer gaming
    • And more…
  • Online communication activities engaged in at school, frequency (16 different activities tested)
  • Online authoring activities engaged in and frequency
    • Starting/running a blog
    • Starting/running a website
    • Creating & uploading multimedia
    • Submitting stories
    • Submitting ideas or suggestions etc
    • And more
  • Specific handheld social networking activities and frequency
    • Texting
    • Music sharing
    • Sending Images
    • Sharing Applications
    • And more
  • Top topics discussed on social networking sites
  • Types of branded/advertising experiences kids regularly engage in

Kids’ expectations and requirements

  • Key features of social networking sites to create loyalty
  • Key reasons kids stop using social networking sites (14 reasons tested)
  • Attitudes about advertising placement locations and display methods in sites
  • Types of products kids want to see in social networking sites
  • Attitudes towards sponsors of specific content types (23 content types tested)
  • Attitudes about business models for social networking sites (teens only)

General media use

  • Time spent
    • Online
    • Watching TV
    • Watching DVDs/videos
    • Playing videogames
    • Listening to radio
    • Using handhelds
  • Adoption rate of new technologies
    • Wireless networks
    • DVRs
    • Location-based services, etc.)
  • Most common multitasking activities while watching TV (15 activities tested)
  • TV/Internet multitasking frequency
  • “Active multitasking” frequency (e.g. visiting websites mentioned on TV/ watching TV programming promoted online)
  • Multitasking mindshare (i.e. where kids are really focused during TV/online multitasking activity)

Rules and restrictions

  • Rules, restrictions on childrens’ Internet use at home
  • How rules are enforced
    • How technology is used to enforce rules
  • Rules, restrictions on childrens’ Internet use in school
  • Attitudes about school restrictions

Social networking issues

  • Incidence of potential social networking problems experienced
  • Problematic behaviors kids themselves have engaged in (19 different negative behaviors tested)

Parent-child communication

  • How parents and children are communicating—methods (phone, email, IM, in-person, etc.) and frequency
  • Communication about Internet and social networking (in general, as relates to safety)

Internet safety, literacy education

  • Locations child learns media literacy, Internet literacy, Internet safety

Available cross tabs

We expect to be able to provide data about how specific types of kids answer questions on all of the topics above based on the following parent, child, or family parameters

  • Age of child
  • Gender of child
  • Family income
  • Ethnicity
  • Geographic region
  • Level of influence on others offline (traditional influentials)
  • Online influencers, including:
    • “Networkers” (kids with large networks of friends online)
    • “Promoters” (kids who tell many others/week about new sites and features)
    • “Recruiters” (kids who bring many others/week to a favorite site or sites))
    • “Producers” (kids who regularly play authoring roles online)
    • “Editors” (kids who regularly rate or edit others’ content online)
  • Handheld influencers (frequent texters who text large numbers of others, kids who organize group events)
  • Practice of Safety Rules
    •  “Rule Breakers” (kids that engage in questionable behaviors)
    • “Conformers” (kids that follow internet use rules)
  • Heavy (vs. light) media consumers (in general)
  • Heavy (vs. moderate, light) users of social networking sites and tools
  • Frequent (vs. infrequent) multitaskers
  • Online (vs. mutual vs. TV)-focused multitaskers

Many others—such as heavy vs. light users of specific media, owners vs. non-owners of specific technologies, kids who talk about, or have interest in seeing ads for, specific product types on social networking sites, kids who use specific social networking sites or engage regularly in specific social networking activities, etc.—available as part of custom mining of the survey database.

View the Kids’ Social Networking Study overview, contact us for more information or continue to detailed topic lists for parents and school district administrators.


Parents & Social Networking

Parent-child communication

  • How parents and children are communicating and frequency
    • Phone
    • Email
    • IM
    • In-person
    • And more
  • Communication about Internet and social networking (in general, as relates to safety)

Internet safety, literacy education

  • Joint use of Internet, social networking sites (with child)
  • Rules, restrictions on childrens’ home Internet use
  • How rules are enforced
    • How technology is used to enforce rules
  • Attitude towards school Internet use policies
  • Locations child learns media literacy, Internet literacy, Internet safety

Childrens’ use of social networking technologies

  • Specific online social networking activities engaged in and frequency
    • IM/Chat
    • Blogging
    • File sharing
    • And more
  • Specific handheld social networking activities
    • Texting
    • Music sharing
    • Image and photo sharing
    • And more
  • Time spent using social networking sites (per week)
  • Incidence of social networking problems

Parental expectations and requirements

  • Key features of social networking sites to get parental buy-in (14 features tested)
  • Expectations about the benefits of social networking sites for children
  • Attitudes about business models for childrens’ sites
    • interest in specific social networking premium features
  • Attitudes about advertising placement locations and display methods in childrens’ sites
  • Attitudes towards sponsors of specific content types (21 content types tested)

Available cross tabs

We expect to be able to provide data about how specific types of parents answer questions on all of the topics above based on the following parent, child, or family parameters

  • Age of child
  • Gender of child
  • Family income
  • Ethnicity
  • Geographic region
  • Parental education level
  • Early adopter status (tech and general)
  • Level of influence on others (offline, online)
  • Level of influence on schools, school decision-making
  • Use of specific communication technologies
  • Child media consumption (in general)
  • Child use (level) of specific media (online, TV, videogames, DVD, handhelds, radio)
  • Level of academic achievement (of child)
  • And more
View the Kids’ Social Networking Study overview, contact us for more information or continue to detailed topic lists for school district administrators and kids.


School Districts & Social Networking

Internet & social networking education

  • Communication about Internet safety and social networking
  • Grade level when communication (about safety) begins
  • Safety rules taught
  • Media/Internet literacy topics covered
  • Grade level when Internet literacy education begins
  • School personnel responsible for teaching Internet safety, literacy

School Internet & social networking use policies

  • Internet use rules
  • Social networking use rules
  • How rules are enforced
  • Level at which rules are enforced
  • Consequences of rules violations

School use of social networking technologies--current & potential

  • Specific types of technologies or programs currently in use
  • Specific sites with official school presence
  • Features and services required for school buy-in/use
  • Attitudes towards social networking business models

School-home connections

  • School Internet use trends (increasing, decreasing)
  • Extent to which homework requires Internet use
  • Availability of school-provided services in the home

Social networking issues & problems

  • Level of concern about potential social networking issues
  • SN issues that have been significant problems in schools

School attitudes about social networking

  • Effectiveness as an educational tool
  • Effectiveness as a communications tool
  • Specific benefits expected from social networking
  • Current impact on educational process (positive, negative)

Available cross tabs

We expect to be able to provide data about how districts answer questions on all of the topics above based on the following district parameters

  • District size
  • Geographic region
  • Population density
  • SES profile
  • Installed technology (student to computer ratio, wireless network access)
  • Parental influence on decision-making
  • Professional (administrator/educator) participation in social networking programs
  • General technology attitudes (Internet use trends, % of budget for tech, school-home connections, etc.)
  • Others TBD by survey results
View the Kids’ Social Networking Study overview, contact us for more information or continue to detailed topic lists for kids and parents.