Study: worried online on the move
Die Schweizer Bevölkerung sorgt sich beim Zahlen mit Kreditkarten, bei politischen Meinungsäusserungen und um den Missbrauch persönlicher Daten. Die Online-Inhalte hingegen hält sie mehrheitlich für glaubwürdig. Dies zeigt das von der Universität Zürich erstmals durchgeführte «World Internet Project Switzerland».
77% of the Swiss population aged 14 and over use the internet, almost all of them at home. At work, 43% of users use the internet, which is 56% of the Swiss working population. 26 percent (20 percent of the Swiss population) are also online on the move, mainly using smartphones. "The average Swiss user uses the internet for three quarters of an hour per day," explains Prof. Michael Latzer from the IPMZ at the University of Zurich, under whose direction the study was conducted. The proportion of so-called light users is high: around half of both women and the 60+ generation spend five hours or less a week on the Internet. According to the study, there is practically no gender gap between women and men.
From message search to contact exchange
In Switzerland, the Internet is used for a wide variety of media. For example, it is used for digital orientation: 92% of internet users use search engines, 75% search for news, 73% consult online encyclopaedias and 68% look for health information. In terms of digital recreation, 66% of Internet users visit video portals, 54% listen to music and 43% listen to radio broadcasts. 37% watch time-shifted television, 35% watch live television and 33% play games online.
78% of internet users search for product information, 74% obtain information about travel, 65% compare prices and 63% buy and pay online. These applications can be summarized under the term digital economy.
Email, for example, is considered digital socializing and is used by 96% of online users. Half (54%) are on social networks - more in private networks (46%) than in professional networks (23%). 43 percent use instant messaging, 31 percent make phone calls on the Internet and 10 percent use dating sites. 59% of Internet users upload photos, 34% participate in discussion forums, 29% upload music videos and 14% upload their own videos. These activities can be described as digital creation.
Information more important than entertainment
"The internet is considered more important as a source of information than as a source of entertainment," says Prof. Latzer. But in terms of Swiss society as a whole, the Internet is behind the traditional mass media as a source of both information and entertainment. For Internet users, however, the Internet is just as important a source of information as other media such as newspapers, radio and TV. But Internet users also prefer to entertain themselves by watching TV or listening to the radio.
At least half of the content on the Internet is rated as credible by three quarters of the Swiss population. They differentiate between professional content and user-generated content: While most of the content on the SRG website and the websites of governments and authorities is considered trustworthy, less than half of the content on social media is.
Concerned about control and abuse
39% of the Swiss population are or would be very or extremely concerned if a credit or debit card were used online. A further 33 percent would be somewhat concerned, while only 12 percent are not at all concerned. 29% of internet users feel that their personal data has been misused or passed on. They are far more concerned that their internet behavior is being controlled by companies (43%) than by the government (28%). For all questions on concern, these worries increase with age: in the older generation, the proportion of those concerned is twice as high as in the younger generation.
Great scepticism towards digital democratization in Switzerland
The study also showed that internet users are generally more politically active than non-users. However, political activity on the Internet decreases when the demands on political activity increase. For example, the Internet is used more for searching for information than for political discussions. Two thirds of online users also continue to discuss political issues exclusively offline. The Internet is not trusted very much: Only a fifth (22 percent) of the Swiss population believe that it is safe to say whatever you think about politics on the Internet. There is also strong scepticism regarding the positive effects of using the internet on democratization: only a small minority in Switzerland believe in digital democratization. The most likely assumption (20 percent approval) is that politics can be better understood. Only 11 percent believe in more participation. Less than half of the population believe that people should be allowed to freely criticize their government on the Internet. 29% reject free criticism of the government online. 41% are against the expression of extreme opinions online. 31% think it is okay for extreme opinions to be expressed online.
