Web 2.0 and Gen Y: the Hidden Truth

Talk of Web 2.0 has been around for a few years now. Newspapers, TV, Internet sites employ this term repeatedly. With respect to the 1.0 version, Web 2.0 represents a different mode of network behavior based on the active participation of and interaction among its users. There's also a widespread view that individuals belonging to so-called Generation Y, also known as Millennials, i.e. people now having between 20 and 35 years of age, hold the key to the secrets of the new Web: but is it really so? At SDA Bocconi's Learning Lab, we decided to conduct a study to verify the level of knowledge of the 2.0 phenomenon held by Gen Y youngsters. A preliminary analysis of the data gives pause for thought. First of all, it emerges that respondents have a rather superficial knowledge of the Web 2.0 pheonomen. They were able to correctly recognize logos of famous social networks, tell the difference between 1.0 and 2.0, what is meant by cloud computing, and what is a wiki collaborative environment, for instance. But regarding some typical 2.0 tools, such as RSS feeds and Google Docs, the percentage of correct answers dropped below 20% of the sample. We then asked interviewees to what extent they were equipped with digital technology. In particular, we asked whether they had: high-speed Internet (81.5% did), 3G/UMTS cell phones (74%), USB Internet access (63%), LCD/Plasma screens (67%), Pay-Per-View TV (48%). Is there a relation between the amount of techology you own and the level of Web 2.0 knowledge? To better answer this question, we divided the respondents in two groups, according to number of correct answers given, which we called "pioneers" and "traditionalists". The interesting datum is that there is no correlation, as might have been expected, between the fact of belonging to one of the two groups and the number of technologies to which one has access. In other words, owning a lot of technology does not necessarily imply fluency in Web 2.0. This result was also reported by a 2009 Nielsen study, according to which the always online Gen-Yer is but a widespread myth. Also, the same study stated that young Americans in the 12-24 age bracket, although they have access to broadband in the vast majority (90%) of cases, they spend online an amount of time (13 hours per month) which is less than half the time spent on the Internet by Generation X (aged between 35 and 54, who on average spend 40 hours per month online). The image of the always connected young person does not seem to mirror reality. Another interesting result of our study was that pioneers tend to practice more hobbies and leisure activities (travel, culture, sports) than traditionalists. The preliminary evidence points to the fact the being 2.0 is more a type of behavior based on online interaction than an actual knowledge of 2.0 tools. The typical iPhone-equipped twentysomething who is perennially on Facebook could turn out to be a lot less 2.0 than expected.