It’s common knowledge that most young people prefer instant messaging, text messaging, and other forms of instant communication to email. Here’s a brief article about the phenomena in Korea.
See further discussion in Polyglot Conspiracy.
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Papyrus News 
I’m in my early 40s. I started using MSN messenger last year. I know it’s been around for a couple of years. However, I still prefer asynchronous communication to synchronous interaction. First, you won’t feel stressful when you check your email. Nevertheless, if someone in my MSN’s contact list pops up in my screen, it seems that I have to respond him/her immediately. Second, in order to save time, most synchronous interaction is colloquial and short. This kind of “fast-food communication” in a sense has detrimental impact on our communication skills. Finally, most young users of MSN messenger use a lot of abbreviation, ungrammatcial words (such as “i” instead of “I”), and incorrect usage in their writings.
I used MSN messenger for a project. Most users thought that it’s fun to have MSN-based synchronous interaction as a mode of English online class. However, most of them also felt that it’s not an effective English learning experience.
I set my Outlook to check emails for me every 20 minutes. To me, it’s almost like synchronous communication.
I wonder whether some educators have done research about the relationship between concentration and use of instant messengers. Any ideas?