More and more parents are joining Facebook, so be careful what you say, kids

By Lulu Chang July 18, 2015

more parents on facebook using often shopify buy button — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Remember the days when Facebook provided some respite from the prying eyes and overly concerned nagging of our parents? Suffice it to say, those days are gone. Whether it’s due to Facebook’s aging (and increasingly child-bearing) user base or simply a matter of parents becoming hipper over the years, a new Pew Research Center study reveals that a growing number of parents are using Facebook either to provide or receive “parenting-related information and social support.” In fact, according to the study, Facebook and social media at large is now viewed as “a source of useful information and as one parenting tool among a collection of options.” So start purging your profiles, kids. There’s a new cop in Facebook town.

The report notes that of the 91 percent of parents (defined in this study as those with children under the age of 18) who use the Internet, a whopping 75 percent of them are active on some form of social media, with Facebook being the most popular option (whether you have a child or not). Applying their maternal and paternal instincts online just as they would offline, parents are said to “try to respond to the good news others post, answer others’ questions or receive support via online networks. This is true for all kinds of personal matters they encounter — not just parenting posts,” making them one of the more engaged demographics on the platform.

Recommended Videos

So just how engaged are they? Stunningly, the study found that 94 percent of respondent parents have shared, posted, or commented on Facebook at some point during their lives. Mothers, however, are reported to be more likely to use Facebook than fathers — whereas 37 percent of moms say they’re on Facebook frequently, only 20 percent of dads can say the same thing.

Still, as a whole, parents are now incredibly active on Facebook, with a larger proportion of parents than non-parents logging on and interacting with content on a daily basis. As per Pew’s findings, 75 percent are daily users of Facebook, and 51 percent find themselves browsing their news feeds several times a day. In contrast, only 67 percent of non-parents check Facebook every day, and only 42 percent go on multiple times a day.

While one might assume that parents and older Facebook users as a whole use the platform to keep up with old friends (in addition to checking up on their children), Pew reports that parents are actually more likely to be friends with their own parents and their neighbors (i.e., people who they’re probably already in pretty close contact with), than average. But then again, they are also slightly more likely to be Facebook friends with people they’ve never met in person.

In any case, one thing is clear: If you’re on Facebook, chances are your mom and dad are too. So proceed with caution, Facebook friends. You never know what authority figure may be lurking around the corner.

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Fascinated by the effects of technology on human interaction, Lulu believes that if her parents can use your new app…

Social Media

When is the best time to post on Facebook?

A smartphone with the Facebook app icon on it all on a white marble background.

Knowing when to publish your Facebook posts to gain maximum exposure is important if you're trying to bring more attention to your brand or business. But figuring out the best timing can be a bit tricky as there's no real clear-cut answer that works for every Facebook page. And that's because the optimal timing for different Facebook pages will vary depending on the browsing/viewing habits of their respective audiences.

In the guide below, we'll answer a few of your questions about when to post on Facebook (generally), and we'll mention some ways to figure out the best publish times for your specific Facebook page.
Is it better to post in the morning or at night?

Social Media

Instagram appears to be down. Here’s what we know so far

Instagram being used on an iPhone.

Instagram appears to be down right now for a lot of people and so you're if you're having trouble accessing it or its features, you're not alone.

As per usual, frustrated Instagram users came to Twitter to vent their frustration at not being able to access or use IG. And user reports on Downdetector have confirmed that the photo and video sharing app was experiencing an outage. It's worth noting, however, that some users on Downdetector have already reported that Instagram is back for them, though they also report that the app is still glitchy or buggy.

Social Media

You can now use the Add Yours sticker on Reels for Facebook and Instagram

A series of three mobile screenshots on a gray background showing the new Add Yours sticker for Facebook Reels.

As of today, Facebook and IG creators have six new features they can use for their Reels content. But of the six, the most intriguing feature is support for a sticker prompt that was first used and popularized in Instagram Stories.

Meta announced via a Facebook video post that, in addition to all of its other new Reels-focused features, it would now offer support for its Add Yours sticker prompt in Reels for both Instagram and Facebook.