From Dabblers to Omnivores: A Typology of Social Network Site Usage

Authors: Eszter Hargittai and Yu-li Patrick Hsieh

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Citation: Hargittai, E. & Hsieh, Y.P. (2010). From Dabblers to Omnivores: A Typology of Social Network Site Usage. In A Networked Self. Edited by Z. Papacharissi. London: Routledge.

Outline

  • Introduction
  • Research on Social Network Site Uses
  • Frequency and Diversity of Social Network Site Uses
  • Typology of Social Network Site Uses
  • Methods
    • Data Collection
    • Independent Variables
    • Dependent Variables
    • Methods of Analysis
    • Sample Descriptives
  • Variation in Social Network Site Usage
  • Explaining Different Levels of Social Network Site Engagement
    • User Background Variables
    • Context of Use
    • Internet Experience
    • Diversity and Frequency of Social Network Site Usage Among SNS Users
  • Conclusion

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Jeremy Freese, Zizi Papacharissi, Klaus Weber, and the anonymous reviewers for helpful comments. They appreciate the support of faculty and staff at the University of Illinois-Chicago for making this study possible, namely, Mary Case, Ann Feldman, Tom Moss, and Karen Mossberger. Additionally, they are grateful for the generous support of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation through its Digital Media and Learning initiative. They thank the following people for their assistance with data collection and entry: Waleeta Canon, Gina Walejko, Soo An, Dan Li, and the group of undergraduate research assistants in the Web Use Project group during the 2006–2007 academic year. The first author is also indebted to the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University, the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University, and The Lenore Annenberg and Wallis Annenberg Fellowship in Communication. She thanks the support offered by Northwestern University’s Research Grants Committee, the School of Communication Innovation Fund, and the Department of Communication Studies Research Fund.

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