By Yen Feng

GOSSIP is a hallmark of teen social life, and these days, the latest dish is not bartered along school corridors or between fries at McDonald's - it's all online.

At least, that is what a Straits Times survey of 100 secondary school students revealed.

Almost all, or 94 per cent, said they had a profile on at least one social networking site. Some had profiles on as many as seven sites.

Every day, these teens spend hours online finding out the latest about their friends.

They chat, share photos and broadcast to anyone with an Internet connection details of their lives - where they hang out, what they eat, and yes, whom they are dating.

After school, more than half said they visited Friendster or Facebook, among other such sites, at least once a day.

In some instances, students said they checked their profiles more than 10 times a day.

'It's an addictive habit,' said 15-year-old Sofia Akram, a Secondary 3 student at Holy Innocents' High.

'You can add people you don't know, and people can add you. As long as they look interesting, I want to find out more about them.'

Studies confirm the rapid and widespread adoption of profiles on social networking sites among teens worldwide.

In Britain, a report this year by Ofcom, a media watchdog, found that 49 per cent of young people aged between eight and 17 had an online profile. A Pew survey last year pegged that number at 55 per cent in the United States for Web users 12 to 17 years old.

Those teens are likely to have registered on Facebook. According to comScore, a research firm, users in that age segment jumped by 181 per cent between 2006 and last year.

Experts say teen users of social networking sites generally fall into two groups.

There are those who are 'deep' users - teens whose social lives exist largely online through chat applications, forums, blogs and websites dedicated to photos, music and videos.

These teens often create thoughtfully designed profiles that prominently display 'friends' who number in the hundreds or even thousands.

Some are so detailed as to include the owners' preference of flowers, their typing speed, dominant brain hemisphere, as well as mobile numbers and addresses.

'Shallow' users, on the other hand, have profiles that are light on content. Unlike 'deep' users, they do not spend more than a few minutes updating their webpage two or three times a week.

In Singapore, teens mostly fall into the first category.

A recent survey conducted by Fleishman-Hillard, a consultancy, found that young people in Singapore are Asia's most prolific social networking site users, spending roughly four hours and 10 minutes every day interacting with their friends online.

'In Singapore, both parents tend to be working. These kids may be the loneliest generation ever,' said Mr Alan Rambam, a senior vice-president at Fleishman-Hillard. 'Naturally, they will reach out for friends at any opportunity.'

Dr Chung Wai Keung, a professor of sociology at the Singapore Management University, attributed part of the social networking sites' popularity to the accessibility of technology here.

'Our society, as a whole, encourages the use of technology. So, it reinforces youth to replace face-to-face interaction with online interaction.'

Mums and dads worried about virtual worlds have reason to check on their teens: Social networking sites can invite unwanted attention if too many details - such as phone numbers and addresses - are published online.

In the Straits Times survey of teens and social networking sites, 81 per cent said they had received messages from strangers. Of these, 34 per cent wanted to meet them in person.

Because parental guidance can protect children, Dr Chung offered this advice to mums and dads: 'If you're concerned, take charge.'

But Dr Jung Younbo, a professor of computer-mediated communications at Nanyang Technological University, believed the benefits outweigh such concerns.

'Social networking sites allow teens to express themselves and receive positive feedback,' he said. 'Validation from his peers is essential during a teen's formative years.'

Sofia agreed. Mulling over which photograph of herself to put on her profile, she said: 'I'll pick one that my friends like. If not for Facebook, I would not be as interesting.'

This article was first published in The Straits Times on Aug 13, 2008.