Gender differences in internet usage and task preferences

Although there has been much publicity about the Internet, empirical resear ch focusing on it is still relatively sparse. Much of the existent research on the internet has been predicated upon data collected in Europe and Amer ica. To date, there is a dearth of published studies on the internet in the Asian context. This study examines gender differences in internet usage in Singapore, a small island of 650 square kilometres in south-east Asia. Dat a were collected on internet users via a questionnaire survey placed on the World Wide Web. 1370 usable responses were received, of which 89% were mal es and 11% were females. Gender differences in terms of the demographic pro file of internet users, usage patterns, task preferences and factors affect ing an enjoyable Internet experience are examined.