A new study from Pew Internet Project reveals that a number of people are planning to reduce the amount of time they spend on Facebook this year. In fact, more than 60 percent of respondents say they have already taken a voluntary break for at least several weeks since first signing up for the service.
Data from the study shows that nearly 30 percent of people plan to take a break from Facebook at some point this year. The reasons are aplenty, with more than 20 percent saying they are simply too busy with real-life activities. 10 percent said they have lost interest in Facebook, the same percentage of those polled said there was an absence of compelling content, nine percent were fed up with excessive gossip and drama while eight percent said the site consumed too much time.
As PC Mag theorizes, Facebook is slowly becoming the worn-out toy that gets tossed aside to make room for new things. Nearly 35 percent of respondents said they spend less time on the site now than they did a year ago. 28 percent said Facebook is simply less important than it was last year.
Pew Internet Project director Lee Rainie said the data shows that people are trying to make new calibrations in their life to accommodate new social tools. The director says a lot of people are now questioning how important updates from friends really are - weighing the pros and cons of social network usage in an effort to determine if the time invested is worth what they get out of it.