A new study shows that significant numbers of Americans turn to the Internet to find information which they use to make important decisions.
A survey of more than 1,415 Americans conducted early this year says the World Wide Web is a source of information about education, health, investments and major purchases such as homes and cars.
The study was funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts, a philanthropic foundation named after the founder of an oil company (Joseph Pew of the Sun Oil Company).
More than a third (36 percent) of American Internet users who chose a school for themselves or their children in the past two years said the Web played an important role in the decision. Up to 27 percent said said information from the Internet helped them deal with major illness.
A quarter (25 percent) of the respondents who use the Internet said it helped them change jobs, and more than one out of five (22 percent) said it was important in finding a new place to live.
The longer someone uses the Internet, the survey says, the more likely it will be used for important life activities. But not all. Only 15 percent of American Internet users said the Web was important in starting a new romantic relationship, or ending it, or getting married. None of the respondents said the Internet was useful in getting a divorce. (voa)
