ABSTRACT
Young consumers today are thoroughly engrossed in technology. From television to the Internet, videogames to personal computers, pagers to mobile phones, they demonstrate competence in a whole range of technologies at home, at school, and in the wider social world. We fi nd that the Facebook generation is as comfortable socializing online with friends as they are meeting in person (Ito et al., 2009; Livingstone, 2006). As early adopters and innovators, they are in many ways the defi ning users of digital media (Satofuka, Kantola, and Kono, 2009; Subrahmanyam, 2003). Clearly, the younger segment is exhibiting certain self-directed and networking behaviors and initiatives, which are the focus of our current study.
