The mass media use and social life of heavy, light, and nonusers of the Int
ernet and personal computers are compared based on a fall 1998 survey of 3,
993 nationally representative respondents age 18 and older. As in previous
surveys, no significant or consistent evidence of time displacement of such
media or social activities was found. Indeed, Internet users showed signs
of more active social lives than nonusers. These results reinforce the conc
lusion that personal computer/Internet use may have more in common with tim
e-enhancing home appliances such as the telephone than they do with the tim
e-displacing technology of television.