This page is part of a revealing, detailed ethnographic study of Internet use during the week of Jan. 12-19, 2001, by 24 upper-middle-class families in a small-town neighborhood. The data on this page was recorded by each individual family and affirmed during a daily in-person check-in by the individual researcher assigned to each. The research team included 25 Elon University students (one of whom preferred to remain anonymous) and the Elon University professor who led the study, Janna Anderson. (In a handful of families, some persons chose not to participate in the recording of data.)
Most frequent Internet activities by 42 adults who took part in the survey
1. Plan a vacation – 83%
2. Send e-mail attachments – 81%
3. Use e-mail to tell good news – 81%
4. Send/receive photos – 81%
5. Find/share jokes – 79%
6. Keep in touch with someone – 79%
7. Substitute e-mail for long-distance phone call – 79%
8. Buy goods/services – 79%
9. Comparison shop (not buy) – 76%
10. Get medical information – 74%
Least frequent Internet activities by adults who took part in the survey
1. Sell things – 0%
2. Be an activist for a cause – 2%
3. Send video with a Webcam – 7%
4. Download games – 10%
5. Plan a speech for a group – 10%
6. Use Internet for a home business – 10%
7. Meet folks in a chat room – 12%
8. Share info on a listserv – 12%
9. Take a class or course – 12%
10. Do homework – 12%
Most frequent Internet activities by 13 minors who took part in the survey
1. Do homework – 85%
2. Play games – 77%
3. Use instant messaging – 77%
4. Listen to music – 69%
5. Substitute e-mail for long-distance phone call – 69%
6. Use e-mail to tell good news – 69%
7. Keep in touch with someone – 69%
8. Find/share jokes – 69%
9. Send Internet greeting cards – 62%
10. Send/receive photos – 54%
11. Work on hobby/pastime – 54%
12. Learn about people in foreign cultures – 54%
To return to the homepage of this site go here: https://www.elon.edu/u/imagining/time-capsule/one-week/