PERSONAL VARIABLES AND ACADEMIC USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN CALABAR EDUCATION ZONE, CROSS RIVER STATE, NIGERIA

¹Abang, Kinsley Bekom, ²Otu, Stella Deborah Bokan, ³Otu, Bernard Diwa & ⁴Bekom-Abang, Marvelous O.

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to investigate personal variables and academic use of social media among secondary school students in Calabar Education Zone, Cross River State, Nigeria. To achieve the purpose of this study, three null hypotheses were generated to direct the study. The literature review was done according to the variables under study. Ex-post facto was adopted for the study. A sample of six hundred and thirty-four (634) respondents was randomly selected for the study. The selection was done through the census sampling technique. The questionnaire was the instrument used for data collection. The instrument was subjected to face validity by experts in measurement and evaluation in the Faculty of Education, University of Calabar. The reliability estimate of the instrument was established through the Cronbach Alfa reliability method. Independent t-test analysis and One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and independent t-test analysis were the statistical analysis techniques adopted to test the hypotheses under study. All hypotheses were subjected to testing at .05 level of significance with relative degrees of freedom. The results of the analysis revealed that Age, Gender, and Self-concept significantly influenced academic use of social media among secondary school students.  Based on the findings of the study it was recommended that Young individuals should be encouraged to work in the reference library, because they possesses the right energy for effective service delivery.