Using and Not Using Social Media: What Triggers Young People’s Practices on Social Network Sites?

There is a large body of research on the ways young people use ICTs (boyd and Ellison, 2007; boyd, 2009; Peter, Valkenburg and Fluckiger, 2009; Baym, 2010; boyd and Marwick, 2011; Trültzsch and Wijnen, 2012), much of which focuses on the risks and opportunities related to ICTs and the well-being of young people (Livingstone, 2008; 2009; Kalmus, et al., 2009b; Livingstone, et al., 2011; Livingstone, Ólafsson and Staksrud, 2011; Kalmus, Siibak and Blinka, forthcoming). These studies suggest that differences in internet use practices among young people can be explained, to some extent, by socio-demographic factors, while others indicate that media literacy could have an important role to play in young people’s new media usage practices and preferences (e.g. Schmidt, Paus-Hasebrink and Hasebrink, 2009; 2011).