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A Third of Online Users Admit to Oversharing Online, Study Says

by Amar Toor on May 18, 2010 at 03:30 PM

Embarrassing Facebook Overshares
It's three o'clock in the morning. You're seeing double, your mouth is parched, and you're prowling Facebook. For reasons that will only become apparent tomorrow, you're suddenly overcome with the urge to post a scandalous video on your co-worker's Wall. It seems like a great idea now, but come tomorrow morning, you're guaranteed to find yourself stricken with not only a pounding headache, but with a pit of regret festering in your stomach. Don't worry, though. You're not alone.

A recent Retrevo survey found that about a third (32-percent) of Web surfers have posted something online, only to sorely regret the decision later. The study revealed interesting demographic patterns, as well, with over half of users aged under 25 admitting to second-guessing an item they posted, compared to just 27-percent of those older than 25-years-old. Smartphones, according to Retrevo's figures, apparently make oversharing a lot easier, too, with a full 59-percent of iPhone owners admitting to feeling a sense of "poster's remorse." Among those who have crossed the line online, just 13-percent said they were able to remove the item in question, 3-percent said their digital Tourette's "ruined my marriage or relationship with someone," and 6-percent claimed it had led to problems in the workplace.

Our newfound chattiness may be a function of the way in which we've defined the Web as a social space. If only 3-percent of oversharers had their lives "ruined," and just 6-percent admit that it's even caused trouble at work, that would seem to imply a growing leniency with regard to online social norms (as long as you don't work at a pizza place, at least). It probably won't do a lot to ease those pangs of Sunday morning regret, but it should be somewhat reassuring to know that even if you do make a fool of yourself on Facebook, like real life, most people will understand. [From: Retrevo, via: HuffPo]

Tags: behavior, embarrassing, facebook, overshare, oversharing, sharing, SocialNetworking, survey, SurveyResearch, tmi, top, web

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