Information seeking through social media: Impact of user characteristics on social media use

Abstract

Abstract The study investigated how college students, including both undergraduate and graduate students, use different social media platforms for the purpose of information seeking in the academic context. A Web survey was used to collect data. A total of 1,286 students participated in the study. It was found that most of the social media platforms were used for the purpose of information seeking, although Wikis was the one most frequently used. Significant differences between undergraduate and graduate students were found in the use of social media for information seeking. In the academic context, the undergraduates used Social Q&A, Media‐sharing sites, and Wikis frequently. On the other hand, graduate students used Blogs more often than the undergraduates. Significant gender differences were also found. Male students tended to use Wikis and Internet forums more often than female students. Furthermore, significant differences in disciplines were found. Students in science and engineering tended to use Wikis and Social Q&A more often, and Blogs and Microblogs less often, than did students in humanities and social sciences. Humanities students used Online reviews more often than students in science and engineering. Implications of the findings were discussed in light of information literacy and user services for college students.

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