Influence of social media use on micro-level social capital among students of University of Ibadan

Abstract

Scholars have argued on the possibility of social media use to increase and/or decrease social capital—a term that refers to benefits derived from social relationships and interactions at the individual level only, especially among university students. Therefore, this study examined the association between social media use and three subtypes (bonding, bridging, and maintained) of social capital among students of the University of Ibadan (UI), who have access to and belong to at least a social networking sites (focusing on Facebook and Twitter). Uses and Gratification Theory was adopted as the theoretical framework. The study deployed both quantitative and qualitative approaches by adopting a survey and Focus Group Discussion methods. The questionnaire and FGD guide were the instruments of data collection. Two hundred and seventy (270) constituted the sample size—two hundred and forty-three (243) participated in the survey, while 27 participants joined in the FGD sessions. The research adopted stratified, simple random, and purposive sampling techniques. Findings revealed a strong positive connection between the use of social media and bridging and bonding social capital but with lesser influence on bonding social capital as connections with close friends is less sensitive to the amount of communication when compared to bridging social capital. However, no connection among social media use and maintained social capital. Certain activities like directed communication and consumption on these platforms contribute to micro-level social capital. It is recommended that young adults should maximise the potentials of these social media platforms to accrue social benefits from their interactions with friends and families online.