FollowThe popularity of texting is rising, and the amount of American teenagers who are texting just keeps increasing. Teenage girls take the lead with an average of 4,050 texts per month, according to the most recent Nielson report.
Wow! That’s a lot of…
hi
hey
what u doin?
nuthn
Me 2
c u l8r
Deep conversations!
My 15-year-old does plenty of this. I don’t think she’s broke the 2500 texts in a month mark… which is really comforting to me, but probably distressing to some mom across the country whose daughter is at the 6,000+ mark, making up for my daughter’s shortfall!
Nielson notes an 8 percent jump in texting in the last year (using data from monthly cell bills of more than 60,000 mobile subscribers as well as survey data from over 3,000 teens.). Here’s a glimpse:
If it seems like American teens are texting all the time, it’s probably because on average they’re sending or receiving 3,339 texts a month. That’s more than six per every hour they’re awake – an 8 percent jump from last year… No one texts more than teens (age 13-17), especially teen females, who send and receive an average of 4,050 texts per month. Teen males also outpace other male age groups, sending and receiving an average of 2,539 texts. Young adults (age 18-24) come in a distant second, exchanging 1,630 texts per month (a comparatively meager three texts per hour).
It’s funny to see that 65+ mark not even registering. I know there’s gotta be something there, because my dad (69 this year) sends a few texts a month– not many, but a few. He’ll receive texts from my kids and text back. I don’t know how common that is (my kids just have a rockin grampa!!!)
Click here for the whole report from Nielson.
Posted in Smartphones/Cell Phones, Youth Culture | | Leave A Comment
Got a 7th grade girl in youth group who hit the 13,000 mark last month (probably sent and received??) Mom and Dad are having the conversation!
13,000. That’s insane. That’s where mom and dad need to make sure the phone is off at night.
One look at the bill lets parents know when those texts are happening. Parents need to set guidelines- like the phone is off at night- or no phone. I would only need to look at a bill once to say, “Oh, 2:00 a.m.??? Give me the phone!”
I am curious where this will lead. What is next? The graph does not go below 13 years old. How are parents and youth workers setting boundaries? I was talking to a parent today, who is also a friend, and his comment seems to be very common. “We gave our daughter her cell phone earlier than we planned to for peace of mind.” I sense at some point there has to be a shift away from overprotectiveness and over indulgence.
Chip… it’s funny to see this pressure on parents. My son (the oldest) didn’t get his phone until almost 15. My older daughter (middle child), wanted it at 13… it was a huge discussion. Then my youngest (11 at the time) was constantly letting us know that she was the ONLY one of her friends without a cell phone. We told her she had to wait til she was 13, holding off almost 2 years. But when she got straight A’s three months before her birthday, I took her out and surprised her. (Happy day) 🙂
I think that the texting has gone too far. We are dealing with some of our teens texting while the service is going on. People dont approach them and say anything because of who their parents are. Now thats too much!