Paper long abstract:

In internet usage studies, the study of European youngsters' internet usage practices showed how online practices are embedded in their everyday life. One can talk about digital gradation, where being involved in some practices is a prerequisite for getting involved in others. The complexity increases from private-oriented practices (services and information retrieval) to socially oriented practices (commenting, sharing with peers etc.) to participatory practices, which are directed to participating in public and institutional spheres. At the same time, the increasing complexity of usage practices is not an exclusive pattern in internet usage. Majority of young people are not much involved in online content creation at all. Although the participatory potential of the internet is stressed, the usage in terms of online content creation practices highlights internet as a means of practicing one's creativity, as a tool for self-expression and as an environment of a rather limited array of cultural consumption.