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SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE AND PREFERENCE AMONG STUDENTS IN TERTIARY

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© UNAAB 2022 Arts

SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE AND PREFERENCE AMONG

STUDENTS IN TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS
1I. AKINWALERE, 2K. G. ADEOSUN

1MassCommunication Department, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye

*2Communication and General Studies Department, Federal University of Agriculture,
Abeokuta
*Corresponding Author: adeosunkehinde68@gmail.com Tel: +234

ABSTRACT
The study analysed the social media usage and preferences among students of the Nigerian Institute
of Journalism, Ogba, Lagos State. A survey was carried out through which 200 pieces of questionnaire
were administered to gather primary data. Findings indicated that 80% used the Social Media plat-
forms to seek information; 59.5% preferred using all the Social Media while 20.0%, 13.5% and 7.0% of
the respondents preferred Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp respectively. Findings revealed that
87.0% of the students used Social Media very often. 54.0% of the respondents faced the challenges of
rumour and mis-information while 26.5% and 19.5% faced lack of social currency and civility, respec-
tively. 40.5% of respondents stated that the social media caused distractions while 19.5% affirmed that
social media influenced cyber bullying. 13.5% added that the use of social media led to morals deca-
dence, and 6.5% ascertained that social media wasted their time. The study concluded that students
should monitor how much time they spend using social media. The study therefore, recommended that
social media should be used for purposes that would benefit both the students’ academic and social
activities.

Keywords: Academic, Communication, Dis-information, Influence, Mis-information, Technology

DOI

INTRODUCTION such as writing. With these developments,

Communication is a basic human need and the role of the media in the society became
for that reason, man has always found a more and more significant. John Dewey
means of meeting this need. The media, (1938) emphasised the role of media in edu-
which is an umbrella term for various cation. Communication is now more accessi-
means of communication, has become an ble with the aid of technology. Examples of
integral part of human life around the mass media that aim to reach large popula-
world. The earliest forms of personal media, tions include print, radio and television.
speech and gestures, had the benefit of be- What was previously only possible for media
ing easy to use and did not necessarily need companies to do was made possible by the
complex technology. The weaknesses of not development of comparatively affordable,
being able to communicate to large audienc- personal media technologies like blogging,
es led to the development of mass media, podcasting and Internet video. Although

J. Hum. Soc. Sci. Crtv. Arts 2022, 17: 41–49 41

I. AKINWALERE, K. G. ADEOSUN

these media outlets are still regarded as new, routine for journalists and the people in our
in some parts of the globe they are just as society (Akinola, et.al, 2016).
much a part of the society as the traditional
media. The phrase "new media" may no Social media are either web-based or mobile
longer be used in a few years because these applications that allow individuals or organi-
forms are ingrained in our everyday activi- sations to create and engage with user gener-
ties and their fusion with traditional media ated and sharing of contents in digital envi-
may erode their novelty. ronments (Deil-Amen, 2016). Al-Bahrani
and Patel (2015) defined social media as vir-
Social media is a form of electronic com- tual platforms that allow participants to in-
munication which facilitates interaction teract with each other, develop communities
based on certain interests and characteris- and share information and ideas. Modern
tics. They are media for social interaction day classrooms allow students access these
using highly accessible and scalable publish- technologies and use them to accomplish
ing techniques that adopt web-based tech- their day-to-day educational goals. Students
nologies to transform and broadcast media who choose to use these media in class-
monologues into social dialogues. They also rooms sometimes find themselves using
support the democratisation of knowledge them occasionally for other activities, like
and information and transform people from accessing social media whether the instructor
content consumers to content producers is aware or not. The study of Fried (2008)
(Alejandro, 2010 cited in Akinola, et.al, on ‘the effects of in-class laptop use’, report-
2016). ed that 43.0% of students surfed the net,
68.2% reported instant messaging, and
Social media are very useful in human life. 81.0% reported checking emails.
They have been used for shopping, elec-
tronic mails, education, entertainment and A report published by the Pew Research
business activities. They play vital roles in Center in November 2016 observed that the
transforming today’s society. They include use of social media has been steadily increas-
social networking sites and blogs where ing since 2005 (Greenwood, et.al, 2016).
people can easily connect for interaction From 2005 to 2016, there has been a 64.0%
with one another. Social media also refer to increase in the use of at least one social me-
Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, dia website by U.S. adults. There was a
Google+, Tumblr, Instagram, gaming 79.0% rise in the use of social media by U.S.
sites and blogs and many other relatively adults between the ages of 18 and 29 (Social
inexpensive and widely accessible electronic Media Fact Sheet, 2017). The five social
tools that assist anyone to publish and ac- media platforms measured included Face-
cess information, collaborate on a common book, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and
font or to build relationship. Since the LinkedIn. Facebook has consistently re-
emergence of social networking sites like mained the most used social media, with
Twitter and Facebook, they have served 54.0%of U.S. adults using Facebook in 2005
as key tools for disseminating news, assist- to 68.0% using the platform in 2016. Ezeah
ing journalists and their organisations to (2013) observed that 89.0% of students
perform high-wired acts. These sites are make use of social media. This indicates that
being visited daily and have become a daily students spend more time on social media.

J. Hum. Soc. Sci. Crtv. Arts 2022, 17: 41–49 42

 SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE AND PREFERENCE AMONG STUDENTS IN...

Kaplan (2012) stated that social media has this high level of Internet usage would only
different influences on students and can occur to this extent if students believe that
affect them either positively or negatively. social media offers some values that they
Majority of the users of social media are cannot find elsewhere.
within the age range of 1–29 (7.0% in 2005
and 86.0% in 2016), the age group that is Any visitor to a campus of higher institution
traditionally associated with studentship can observe that college students are almost
(Kolhar, et.al, 2021). Kolhar, et.al. (2021) always within arm’s reach of some types of
studied the “Effect of social media use on technology. From this background, it can be
learning, social interactions and sleep dura- deduced that the biggest factor promoting
tion among university students”. It was dis- the comfort with the use of technology
covered that 97.0% of the students used among students may be age, although it is
social media. It was observed that social possible that a native country may also be a
media was only used for academic reasons factor (Kennedy & Judd, 2011; Levy &
by 1% of the students. 43% used these Stockwell, 2006; Wang, 2005).
websites to pass the time by browsing, com-
pared to 35.0% who used them to com- The new media include internet websites,
municate with others. Additionally, 57.0% such as Myspace, Facebook, WhatsApp,
had a social media addiction. Additionally, Twitter, Instagram among others and oth-
74.0% spent their leisure time on social me- er sharing sites like blogs that have an im-
dia sites, 66.0% felt more drawn to social mense impact on Nigerian youths. Social
media than to academic pursuits, and 52.0% media use has therefore become a prominent
reported that using social media had affect- part of life for many young people today.
ed their learning activities. Based on utilisa- Most people engage in social media without
tion, Snapchat (45.0%), Instagram (22.0%), considering the likely consequences (Yahaya
Twitter (18.0%) and WhatsApp (7.0%) were and Ayodeji, 2019). Students have become
the most widely used apps. Additionally, at addicted to the social media that they cannot
about 1 am and 2 am, 46.0% and 39.0% go 2–3 hours without checking and updating
reported they went to bed, respectively. their profiles on these social networks while
About 68.0% blamed social media use for attending classes at the detriment of other
keeping them up later than usual and 59% activities. Students today seem to be becom-
reported it had impacted their social con- ing alarmingly obsessed with social network-
tacts. ing, a trend that, if not properly managed,
could adversely impact their academic, social
Current literatures suggest that students use and spiritual lives. Many worried parents
online technologies for everything from have expressed their deep concern that they
social interaction and entertainment to hardly ever managed to get their childrens'
keeping up to date with current events and attention because they seemed to have be-
completing school assignments (Blake, come engrossed in the fascinating world of
2008; Conole, 2008). Lusk (2010) opined social networks. Some young people are such
that students use the social media for e- social freaks that they have created a dream
learning and to enhance their communica- and illusion world for themselves that is cut
tion skills by using the social media to im- off from reality. If the dangerous tendency
prove their learning skills. It is logical that of social media network "obsession" is al-

J. Hum. Soc. Sci. Crtv. Arts 2022, 17: 41–49 43

I. AKINWALERE, K. G. ADEOSUN

lowed to continue, it could worsen Nigeria's (Anderson, 2019). Fake news has received a
already failing educational system. It may lot of notice recently. Fake news is not a re-
not be too far-fetched for students to per- cent phenomenon, but new media have
form badly in school today. While poor made it easier for it to spread widely. Sites
teachers can easily be held responsible, one like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube offer a
may need to consider other possibilities if favorable environment for the production
they have not heard of the term "Facebook and spread of false information (Hilary &
frenzy." A young person chit-chatting is a Dumebi, 2021). Therefore, the study tends
common sight in reverent and well- to answer the following research questions:
organised settings like churches, mosques,
and lecture halls. Some people get so car- 1. Which of the social media platforms is
ried away with their conversation that they preferred by students of the Nigerian Insti-
continue to stroll along the busy street. Visi-tute of Journalism?
ble friends have received less attention than 2. How often do the respondents use their
invisible friends and essential activities likepreferred social media?
study and writing have suffered as a result. 3. What are the various uses that the re-
This phenomenon has become a source of spondents adopt the social media platforms
worry to many who believe in knowledge for?
and skill acquisition (Osharive, 2015). 4. What are the challenges encountered by
respondents on the use of social media?
Facebook is useful in keeping social con- 5. What types of influence do the social me-
nections, which led them to spend more dia have on respondents?
time using the site, which helped them ad-
just more successfully to College life. They MATERIALS AND METHODS
interacted with their on-campus peers more The study was conducted in the Nigerian
on Facebook, which helped them adjust to Institute of Journalism in Ogba, Lagos State.
College life and their satisfaction with it. Three journalism training centers were estab-
Despite the fact that students are constantly lished in Lagos, Kenya and Tanzania at the
using social media, it is critical that they time of their founding in 1963 with assis-
strike a good balance between the time they tance from the International Press Institute
spend online and the time they devote to (IPI). The Poynter Institute of Media Studies
their academic work (Yang and Brown in St. Petersburg, Florida, the United States,
(2015). also provided manpower support to the
school (Akinreti, 2021).
The widespread use of social media as an
integral part of commercial, entertainment Simple random sampling technique was used
and educational activities is one of the most to select 200 respondents from age 18 and
important and profoundly altering develop- above across all academic levels of the Insti-
ments of the twenty-first century. The use tute for the study. Data were collected on
of social media frequently results in the loss the preferred social media platforms, fre-
of data management. The use of social me- quency of use, usage and influence of using
dia promotes both authorised and unau- social media on their education through a
thorised uses of data that are generated for well-structured closed-end questionnaire.
both private and public purposes Data were collected and analysed using de-

J. Hum. Soc. Sci. Crtv. Arts 2022, 17: 41–49 44

 SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE AND PREFERENCE AMONG STUDENTS IN...

scriptive survey design (frequency and per- gram, 7. 0% respondents preferred

centages counts) statistics. WhatsApp, while 59.5% preferred using all
the Social Media. Therefore, it can be de-
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION duced that, the preferred social media among
Research Question 1: Which of the social respondents are Facebook, Instagram and
media platform is preferred by undergradu- WhatsApp respectively. Facebook is the
ates of the Nigerian Institute of Journalism? most preferred social media that students use
(Table 1). This supports the conclusion and
Findings indicated that 20.0% of the re- findings of Popoola (2014) whose research
spondents preferred Facebook, (Table 1), work showed that Facebook has the highest
13.5% of the respondents preferred Insta- number of users among students.

Table 1: The Preferred Social Media Platform among NIJ Undergraduates

Variables Frequency Percentage (%)
Facebook 40 20.0
Instagram 27 13.5
WhatsApp 14 7.0
All 119 59.5
Total 200 100.0

Source: Field Survey, 2019

Research Question 2: What are the vari- knowledge educationally or to know what is
ous uses that students of the Nigerian Insti- going on around them. This result agrees
tute of Journalism adopt the social media with Lusk (2010) who opined that students
platforms for? use the social media for e-learning and to
enhance their communication skills by using
About 80.0% of the respondents used the the social media to improve their learning
social media to seek information, 6.5% of skills. The outcome also agrees with Kolhar,
the respondents used the Social Media to et.al (2021) that most students used social
express themselves while 13.0% of the re- media. Some of them use social media for
spondents used Social Media to make academic, to pass away time by browsing and
friends (Table 2). It can be deduced that others used social media to communicate
more of the respondents use the social me- with others.
dia to seek information to either add to

J. Hum. Soc. Sci. Crtv. Arts 2022, 17: 41–49 45

I. AKINWALERE, K. G. ADEOSUN

Table 2: Uses of Social Media by the Respondents

Variables Frequency Percentage (%)
To seek information 161 80.5
To express yourself 13 6.5
To make friends 26 13.0
Total 200 100.0
Source: Field Survey, 2019

Research Question 3: How often do un- (2013) who observed that most students
dergraduates of the Nigerian Institute of make use of social media. The outcome also
Journalism use the social media platforms? agrees with Kolhar, et.al (2021) that most
About 87.0% of the respondents make use students used social media; and that they
of the Social Media very often (Table 3). blame social media use for keeping them up
This implies that students spend more time later than usual.
on social media. Findings agree with Ezeah

Table 3: Frequency of Usage of Social Media by the Respondents

Variables Frequency Percentage (%)

Very Often 174 87.0
Often 26 13.0
Total 200 100.0
Source: Field Survey, 2019

Research Question 4: What are the chal- information while 26.5% and 19.5% face
lenges encountered by students of the Nige- lack of social currency and civility respective-
rian Institute of Journalism on the use of ly (Table 4). The finding agrees with Hilary
social media? & Dumebi (2021) that social media plat-
forms like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube
54.0% of the respondents affirmed that offer avenue for the production and spread
they face the challenges of rumour and mis- of false information.

Table 4: Challenges Affecting the Use of Social Media

Challenges Frequency Percentage (%)
Rumor/Misinformation 108 54.0
Lack of civility 39 19.5
Lack of social currency 53 26.5
Total 200 100.0
Source: Field Survey, 2019
J. Hum. Soc. Sci. Crtv. Arts 2022, 17: 41–49 46
 SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE AND PREFERENCE AMONG STUDENTS IN...

Research Question 5: What Types of in- study agrees with Kaplan (2012) who stated
fluence do the social media have on stu- that Social Media has different influences on
dents of the Nigerian Institute of Journal- students and can affect them either positively
ism? or negatively. The outcome also agrees with
About 19.5% of the respondents affirmed Osharive (2015) that students today seem to
that the social media have the influence of be becoming alarmingly obsessed with social
cyber bullying, 40.5% of the respondents networking, a trend that, if not properly
opined that the social media causes distrac- managed, could adversely impact their aca-
tions, 13.5% of the respondents chose lack demic, social and spiritual lives. Some young
of morals (Table 5). It is obvious that the people are such social freaks that they have
social media distract students either while created a dream and illusion world for them-
they are in classroom or at home during the selves that is cut off from reality.
time they are doing their home works. The

Table 5: Influence of Social Media on Undergraduates of NIJ

Variables Frequency Percentage (%)
Indifferent 14 7.0
Cyber bullying 39 19.5
Waste my time 13 6.5
peer pressure 13 6.5
Distraction 81 40.5
Lack of Morals 27 13.5
Others 13 6.5
Total 200 100.0
Field Study, 2019

CONCLUSION Based on the findings of the study, the fol-

In conclusion, undergraduates should moni- lowing recommendations are suggested:
tor how much time they spend using social 1. Social media should be used for purposes
media. While social media can be beneficial that will benefit both students and educa-
in terms of its academic ability to create dis- tional institutions instead of satisfying enter-
cussion boards amongst classmates, Face- tainment purposes alone.
book pages can be useful for advertising 2. The amount of time students spend on the
school programmes among other benefits. social media platforms should be monitored
Social media can also be beneficial for social and utilised well.
adjustment amongst undergraduates. De- 3. Social media law should be enforced
spite the fact that students are constantly against violations such as libel, slander, im-
using social media, it is critical that they personation, false accusations, and wrong
strike a good balance between the time they information and among others.
spend online and the time they devote to 4. Social media should be programmed to
their academic work. have positive influence on youths.

J. Hum. Soc. Sci. Crtv. Arts 2022, 17: 41–49 47

I. AKINWALERE, K. G. ADEOSUN

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(Manuscript received: 18th February, 2022; accepted: 8th November, 2022).

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