A third of men on Facebook provoke others

Stockholm, April 3 (IANS) Women spend 81 minutes daily on Facebook, writing more about emotions and relationships, while men devoted 64 minutes per day. What's more, a third of male respondents reported provoking others on the site - about twice the figure for women, says a new study.

One quarter of the respondents use Facebook to brag. People with low income or low education in the surveyed group, who spend more time on Facebook, also felt less happy and content with their lives.

These are some of the results of Sweden's largest Facebook study ever, involving more than 1,000 people in the 18-73 year group from June to September 2011, a project led by Leif Denti, doctoral student of psychology at the University of Gothenburg.

The study found that the average user spends 75 minutes daily on Facebook, logging on 6.1 times per day; women write more about emotions and relationships; 70 percent log in every time they start their computer or web reader; 26 percent feel ill at ease if they do not get to log in regularly, 67 percent of young users use Facebook to kill time; 38 percent share negative information in their status updates, according to a Gothenburg statement.

Facebook is a habit-forming activity, 85 percent of the respondents use Facebook as part of their daily routine. Almost half of them indicated that it is difficult to stay updated and on top of things without Facebook, and one quarter responded that they would feel ill at ease if they didn't get to log in on a regular basis.

"Facebooking may become an unconscious habit. A majority of the respondents log in every time they start their web browser. This may even develop into an addiction," says Denti.