New Survey from Rebtel Finds Facebook Causes Most Stress Among Americans and Nearly Half Prefer Not to Be Checked-In at All

San Francisco, USA & Stockholm, Sweden – Rebtel, the world’s largest mobile VoIP company after Skype, today announced findings from its recent survey, which measured user satisfaction with social networks and communication services.
 
According to the study, Facebook causes the most stress among mobile users, with a large base of Americans preferring not to be included in check-ins. Overall, 45 percent of users said they mind when others include them in their location updates and check-ins, with 70 percent citing the main reason as being that they don’t like to broadcast their location, followed by 65 percent who said they don’t like their activities being made public, and 22 percent indicating they don’t want others to see who they are with.
 
The study also linked feelings associated with heavy and light social media use. On days where users turned to social media less, the largest number of respondents (12 percent) reported feeling that they were ‘missing out’, where 10 percent of respondents who visited a social network more often than usual indicated ‘boredom’ as a primary reason.
 
Here’s a breakdown of the survey responses:
 
What social networks cause you the most stress?
 
Facebook – 18.7%
LinkedIn – 3.4%
Twitter – 3.2%
YouTube – 1.8%
MySpace –  1.1%
Foursquare – .7%
Tumblr –  .5%
Reddit ­­– .4%
Instagram – .3%
Pinterest – .1%
None have an effect on my stress – 68.9%
Other – 1%
 
What social networking sites have the most negative effect on your mood?
 
Facebook – 19.4%
Twitter – 4.7%
LinkedIn – 4.1%
MySpace – 3.6%
YouTube – 2.9%
Instagram – .8%
Pinterest – .7%
Foursquare – .6%
Tumblr –  .4%
Reddit ­­– .3%
None have an effect on my mood – 61.3%
Other – 1.3%
 
What social networking sites have the most positive effect on your mood?
 
Facebook – 45.9%
YouTube – 17.5%
LinkedIn – 6.5%
Twitter – 4.0%
Pinterest – 1.7%
Instagram – 1.4%
Reddit ­­– 1.3%
Foursquare – .3%
MySpace –  .3%
Tumblr –  .1%
None have an effect on my mood – 19.6%
Other – 1.3%
 
On a day where you check into your social media account more than normal, how do you feel?
 
Bored – 10.6%
Happy – 9.1 %
Calm – 6.9%
Stressed – 6%
Anxious – 4.7%
Like I’m Missing Out – 3.1%
Relieved – 2.7%
Sad – .8%
No Effect – 54.7%
Other – 1.5%
 
On a day where you check into your social media account less than normal, how do you feel?
 
Like I’m Missing Out – 12.3%
Calm – 9.1%
Happy – 7%       
Relieved – 3.9%
Bored – 3.7%
Anxious – 3.4%
Stressed – 1.3%
Sad – .5%
No Effect – 58%
Other – .8%
 
What motivates you to use location-based social networks?
 
I want friends and family to know where I’ve been – 34.6%
I want to receive offers from retailers – 22.9%
I want to show off where I’ve been – 16.1%
I want to alert people I am close by – 15.1%
I want to earn points and badges – 11.2%
 
What communication method gives you the most satisfaction when communicating with family, friends or colleagues?
 
Talking on the phone – 59.7%
Video chat – 22.5%
Social Media – 6.6%
SMS – 5.8%
Instant Messaging – 2.4%
IP-messaging (Kik, Whatsapp, etc) – 2.1%
Other – .9%
 
Do you mind when others include you in their location updates and check-ins?
 
Yes – 45%
No – 55%
 
“Our social media report helps paint an interesting picture of our evolving communications tastes and preferences, and how even routine activities such as checking friends into locations, can have an adverse affect on our relationships,” said Rebtel CEO Andreas Bernström.
 
Survey Methodology
This survey was conducted online by Rebtel using SurveyMonkey and surveyed U.S. Rebtel users ages 18 and older. The survey was comprised of responses from 1,632 mobile device owners. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For additional survey methodology, or to inquire about additional information, please contact Eric Gonzalez at eric@vscpr.com.
 
About Rebtel
Rebtel is the world’s largest mobile VoIP company after Skype. Today, Rebtel is growing rapidly with more than 20 million callers and a run rate of over 1 billion minutes per year. Rebtel users call through  smartphone or desktop applications   to make  free or cheap international calls.  The company is profitable and reached $80 million in revenue in 2012. For more information go to  www.rebtel.com .

Contact Information

Eric Gonzalez

PR Contact

VSCpr

(1) 415-272-0836

eric@vscpr.com