Nigerian culture and globalisation: Influence of TikTok video contents on the promotion of Nigerian cultural values among Nigerian students

Abstract

There have been arguments on the cultural shift to dominant Western cultural values which is eroding Nigeria's core values such as language, greetings and dressing. The invention of social media is one of the products of globalisation, therefore, this study investigated the use of Tiktok, a leading modern social media, for promotion of Nigerian cultural values in the era of globalisation and cultural imperialism among Nigerian students. Hinged on Uses and Gratifications and Cultural Imperialism theories, this study adopted the survey method, using questionnaire as instrument of data collection and focusing on undergraduate students of Adekunle Ajasin University (AAUA), Ondo, Nigeria. Using the Taro Yamaro sample size formula, 376 students were selected as the sample size while the multi stage sampling technique was adopted, using stratified, simple random, and purposive sampling techniques at different levels to select AAUA students who use TikTok. Findings revealed that exposure to video content on TikTok by AAUA students has led to cultural imperialism with many young adults imitating Western dressing pattern, eating foreign food, and adopting religious practices. However, TikTok has provided a platform to effectively promote some Nigerian language and music which in turn promote Nigerian language and music culture, thereby preserving and promoting some Nigerian cultural heritage. Based on findings, it is therefore recommended that Nigerians should leverage the social media uncensored nature to consciously showcase and preserve core cultural values by creating content that highlights, preserve and promote Nigerian core cultural values globally, mitigating cultural imperialism’s impact.