Communication needs: Women and men tend to use different offline communication
strategies, probably due to socialization into different gender roles in society
(Holmes 1995), and hence have different communication needs. For instance,
females seem to share more personal information with close friends, whereas
males’ friendships tend to focus instead on shared experiences, such as sports,
and banter (Aukett et al. 1988; Elkins and Peterson 1993). In times of stress women
are more likely to desire communication, such as talking to friends or seeking
advice, whereas men are more likely to try to solve problems alone or to avoid
them. For instance, US women are more likely to seek psychiatric help for emotional
problems (Kessler et al. 1981) or medical help for health issues (see e.g.,
Galdas 2005). Hence, it seems that women have a greater need to use the Social
Web than men and to share private personal information and problems online.
Communication needs may not always be satisfactorily resolved online. Women
seem to be disproportionately victims (and perpetrators) of online abuse within
friendship or acquaintanceship circles, as with the case of cyberbullying (Chisholm
2006).