What Do ‘Lurkers’ Get Out of Twitter?
March 21, 2022 11:30AM CDT
(Photo illustration by Mary Turner/Getty Images)
What Do ‘Lurkers’ Get Out of Twitter?
Do you “lurk” on social media?
In 2021, Pew Research found that only about 25-percent of Twitter users produced 97-percent of all tweets; which means most Twitter users behave like “lurkers,” as infrequent tweeters, who just look at everything. That’s like saying “one out of four on Twitter post what four out of four people see.”
The data shows that age seems to be the biggest factor, for determining active tweeters or lurkers.
Frequent tweeters, defined as users who posted more than five tweets, or retweets, a month, tended to between the ages of 18 and 24.
Lurkers, who posted fewer than five tweets, or retweets – and made up roughly half of US users – tended to be between the ages of 30 and 49.
Pew reveals the top reasons lurkers use the platform: for entertainment, to stay informed, and to see a different point of view.
In fact, 76-percent of lurkers, in the survey, say they use the platform primarily to see what others are saying, rather than express their own opinions.
Past studies have correlated lurking with concerns over online privacy and anxiety.
Meanwhile, the Oxford Handbook of Cyberpsychology argues that lurkers are legitimate online participants.
See more, here: (PopSci)
- A 2021 study found about 75 percent of active Twitter users are lurkers, or post fewer than five tweets or retweets a month, and make up about half of US users
- The top reasons these lurkers gave for being on the platform: for entertainment, to stay informed, and to see a different point of view
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