Use of Social Media by Library and Information Science Students

Abstract

This study examined the use of social media by final year Library and Information Science students of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka. Three research questions guided the study. The study employed descriptive survey design using questionnaire to gather information. The sample size is one hundred and sixty-five (165) undergraduate LIS final year students in the Department of Library and Information Science, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka and Delta State University, Abraka. The data collected was analysed using mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions. The study findings revealed that the most used social media by final year LIS students are Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, YouTube and telegram while zoom, twitter, skype, myspace, blog and LinkedIn are least used. The final year LIS students used social media for different purposes such as; to obtain information for project writing, assignment, to supplement lecture notes, interacting with course mates/friends, socialization/entertainment and interaction with family members. The LIS students encountered various problems with the use of social media which include time management, distraction, addiction, encroachment on academic activities, high cost of internet connectivity and poor social media skills. The study recommended that the challenges of using social media should be tackle, so that students can properly use social media for information access