In today’s not-shocking news, researchers have determined that teenagers like to text–a lot.

The new study by the Pew Center shows that the mobile phone has become the preferred mode of communication for American teens, with one in three teens sending more than 100 texts a day. Also in the category of not-shocking, the researchers found that older teenage girls are the most enthusiastic texters.

Some of the key findings:

• The study points out that cell phone ownership among 12- to 17-year-olds has spiked, going up from 45 percent in 2004 to 75 percent this year.
• With cell phones at their disposal, the teens were also more likely to text than call, although the majority still turned to an old-fashioned phone call when it came time to communicate with mom and dad.
• Half of the teens send 50 or more text messages a day, or 1,500 texts a month, and one in three sends more than 100 texts a day, or more than 3,000 texts a month.
• Older girls who text are the most active, with 14- to 17-year-old girls typically sending 100 or more messages a day or more than 3,000 texts a month.

When the teens aren’t texting, they report using their cell phones to listen to music and to take and share pictures with their friends. A whopping 83 percent used their phones’ cameras, but a relatively small number of teens said they sent and received sexually suggestive images by text (”sexts”). Just 4 percent of teens say they have sent a sexually suggestive nude or nearly nude image of themselves via text message, with older teens more like to receive “sexts” than younger ones.

If this study is making your nervous about your teen’s texting behavior–then you’re not alone. The study found that 64 percent of all parents snoop around on their kids’ cell phones and more than half have taken the device away to punish a child.

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Image: Wikipedia