Americans Turn to the Internet for Recession Information

The economic downturn has hit millions of people and now it seems that many of them, at least in the US, are turning to the Internet to find answers or advice. A new study by Pew Research Center found that 69 percent of American adults searched online for information or advice regarding the recession last year. The research is part of the Pew Research Center's Pew Internet & American Life Project, which looks at how the Internet is affecting different areas of everyday life.

In total 88 percent of the Internet users in the US have searched for recession-related information online in the past year as the downturn has affected 52 percent of Americans. Among them 35 percent have had their investments lose more than half their initial value, while 27 percent have had a pay cut and reduced hours or benefits. Real estate was also hit hard, with 27 percent of home owners seeing their houses lose more than half their worth. Also, 14 percent of Americans have either been fired or lost their jobs because of the economic conditions.

When it comes to what exactly the users were looking for online, bargain hunting came out on top with 67 percent looking for the best deal on an item they intended to purchase. New jobs also interested a lot of people, with 41 percent looking at job listings in the past year. Searching for coupons also saw an increase, as 40 percent of those doing recession-related searches sought price-reducing coupons online.

But apart from just looking for information a large part were also contributing and expressing their opinions, with 30 percent of Internet users doing some sort of comment on the recession. Most people, 12 percent of those seeking information about the economy, tagged content relating to the economic downturn followed by 11 percent who have shared a photo, video or other media files connected to the recession. A further 9 percent left comments on stories or posts about the economic issues and 8 percent used social networks to look for new jobs.