Social Media Use Among International Students: Cultural Adaptation and Socialization

Abstract

The study aims to find out the purposes for which international students use social media and its effects on users in the course of adaptation to a new culture and social environment. In accordance with this aim, international students have been selected as the sample case from Kirklareli University which is located in the northwest of Turkey. In-depth semi-structured interviews have been carried out with 20 students who were contacted through the KLU Inter-national Student Club. In light of the obtained data, it has been concluded that international students have made some changes in the social media tools they use to adapt to their new social and cultural environment and their usage purposes. Besides, the research found that students have instrumentalized social media in the context of language learning, expanding their social environment, improving cultural interactions and maintaining cultural&social ties with the homeland.

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