Survey: Nearly three percent of Australians check Facebook during “intimate moments”

While social networks continue to become more entrenched in many aspects of our lives, a percentage of Australians don't seem to mind checking out wall posts and status updates while spending personal time with their partner.

According to a recent survey conducted by digital and social media marketing company Tick Yes, approximately 2.8 percent of the respondents check Facebook and other social networks while “during intimate moments”, likely anything from foreplay to sexual intercourse. In addition, sixty-four percent of those people were male. Other recent studies between technology and sex found that a sizable amount of women would give up sex for Facebook and a third of Americans prefer a smartphone over sexual relations.

Three percent of Australians also check social networks while in a place of worship and over 20 percent check Facebook while in the bathroom. While the most popular places to check social networks include at work, while watching television and while on holiday, other typical places include in bed, during meals and while shopping. Approximately a fourth of the respondents use social media to network with business contacts and Australian men are twice as likely to network over a social network than women. About a fifth of the group use social networks to follow updates from their favorite brands and women between the age of 20 and 39 are the most likely to connect with any particular brand over a social network.

Approximately half of the respondents use social networks like Facebook and Twitter to discuss a new purchase and a fourth have used social media to ask a company representative for help in regards to general questions or customer service. While nearly half of the respondents believe that social media use has increased over the past year, only 4.9 percent believe that they are addicted to social media. Nearly a third of the group accesses a social network for at least two hours as day and nearly half use a mobile device like a smartphone or tablet to access social media. Facebook is the most popular social network among Australians and YouTube comes in second place.