Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

Ahmad Waqas Dar, Aqib Hussain, Haider Bin Tariq, Oneeza Cheema

National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST)

 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

Keywords: Social Media, Communication, Academic performance, Grades, Online

education/DL, COVID-19

Introduction

Social Media is defined as a collective term for all and any applications as well as websites

with a focus on primarily communication and interaction but also content-sharing,

community-based input, and collaboration. According to a recent survey in January 2020,

approximately 37 million social media users existed in Pakistan which was a 7% increase

from that in April 2019, out of this a majority share of users were students. The exponential

increase in the use of social media has brought forward numerous consequential changes in

the dynamics of a student's life. (datareportal.com) Most noteworthy platforms include

Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, YouTube, and very recently TikTok. What started

as a niche activity has turned out to be a worldwide phenomenon with a significant global

impact. The advent of smartphones has made these platforms all the more accessible

especially for students. Social media with its increased accessibility is not only used on an

individual level but on a professional level too and now in recent times in the wake of a

pandemic, it is being used as an academic tool.

Research Objective

Since our youth is the future of the country, the building blocks of the nation, therefore, it is

essential to research what is the impact of social media on the academic performance of our

young generation which is the purpose of our research paper. We will research and address

along the way any changes brought forward by the pandemic and critically analyze any

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

changes in the dynamics of social media usage due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Our prime

objectives for this paper are as follows:

1. What is the relationship between academic performance and the use of social media?

2. How do students perceive the impact of social media on their academic engagement

and performance?

3. What is the relationship between each of the following three variables on the use of

social media, and perception of the impact of social media on academic engagement:

 Number of hours (social media),

 Number of study hours

 GPA

Literature Review

We will divide our research into three main themes thus increasing the efficiency and

effectiveness of our analysis. These three main themes are the creation of academic

opportunities by Social media, the negative influence of social media on academics, and

Social media usage in the current pandemic.

Creation of Academic Opportunities by Social Media

A few pieces of research state that social media does create unique learning opportunities for

students even if the effectiveness may be at a lowly level. Camilia, Sajoh, & Dalhtu (2013)

conducted a study of how Nigerian students perceived and interacted with such tools as they

surveyed 536 students out of which only 32% believed it had a negative impact whereas a

quarter of these students believed it impacted positively on their academic performance. The

social media sites in question for this survey are mainly Facebook and YouTube. Another

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

research i.e., Wodzicki, Schawmmlein, and Moskluik (2012) referred to the potential in the

development of the self-directed skills in students as social media serves as a mutual platform

between like-minded students that can exchange ideas constructively, builds knowledge

through formal and/or informal activities and etcetera. Moreover, Facebook was concluded

by Rambe (2012) as a collaborative “safe” “third space” facilitating student expression

alongside developed learning communities and stimulated knowledge construction. An

experimental study carried out by Junco, Heiberger, & Loken (2011) concluded that as long

as students allocated their time effectively there was little to no negative impact on their

academic performance due to social media.

Negative influence of social media on academics

A plethora of studies believe that social media has a significant negative influence on a

student’s academic performance and this trumps the positive effects as it is used more for

socialization rather than academic activities. Raacke and Bonds-Raacke (2008) surveyed

college students who were in their 20s about the nature of their social media (Facebook

account) usage and the results showed that only 10.9% of them used it for academic pursuits

whereas 96% used it to keep in touch with friends. Another study, Junco (2013), ran a linear

regression analysis to observe the relationship between GPA, Facebook Activity, and time

taken for class preparation for a sample of 1839 students. The results of this study concluded

that their GPA was pointedly negatively correlated to the amount of time spent on Facebook.

Numerous studies like Michikyan, Subrahmanyam, & Dennis, 2015 and Fogel, and Nutter-

Upham (2011) scrutinize social media platforms as escapes from the pressures of academic

and social life and assert these platforms are predominately a strategy for guiltless

procrastination.

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

Social media usage in the Current Pandemic

The outbreak of COVID-19 has forever altered the dynamics of the world where everyone

has adapted to a new reality where social distancing is the new normal. This has resulted in

an influx of more active social media users as outdoor activities have become next to non-

existent. Educational institutes also have adopted new forms of teaching as most of them are

now in distance learning mode. These apprehensive times have increased the need for not

only innovation but accessibility too and that is where social media comes in. There is little

literature regarding the impact of the pandemic on social media and the academic

performance of students. However, we would use this as an opportunity to research and

analyze the ever-changing dynamics of the academic world and address these issues in our

paper and we hope it will add value to the literature already available for future references.

Conceptual Framework:

Author/Date Topic Method Context Findings

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

Ularo (2017) Gender Usage Quantitative Difference in Research from Pew research center
of Social Media Active Social showed that 70 percent of female
Media users teenagers use social media and that only
amongst Males 54 out of the 70 are active members and
and Females. post photos on different social media
platforms, as compared with males with
54 people, only 40 out of the 54 are
active members

Boogart Impact of Females spent significantly more time

(2016) Facebook on Relationship on Facebook. Students with a GPA of
campus life Quantitative
between time 2.99 or less reported being longer on
spent on Facebook than those with a higher GPA.
3134 students at
Facebook and Also, students who are in their first and
four universities
several second years of undergraduate study
demographic spend more time using Facebook than
variables. those in their third year – the majority of
the third-year students (almost 70%)
spent less than 30 minutes on day using
it.

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

Camilia, How students Quantitative Positive Effect of The majority of students (91%) spent
Sajoh, & interacted and social media on less than 4 hours a day on social
Dalhtu perceive these 536 Nigerian students’ networks. A quarter of the students
(2013) social media students academics reported that they believed that social
tools media impacted their academic
Facebook was the performance positively, 32% indicated
most popular that it impacted it negatively; the rest
social network though it had no effect. About 75% of
site, followed by the students reported that they used it
“2go” and for academic assignments.
YouTube

Wodzicki, Potential of
Schawmmlei social media to Give students a platform to explore
Qualitative
n and develop Positive Effect of subjects and gather information through
Moskluik students’ self- social media on accessing existing data on the web or
(2012) directed learning students’ interacting with like-minded students to
skills academics constructively exchange ideas and build
knowledge through informal and formal
activities.

Rambe Ethnographic Quantitative Positive Effect of The results of the study showed that 165
(2012) approach to social media on participants posted 154 wall posts,
examine the Examined the students’ 121discussion board posts, and 139
impact of social Facebook postings academics. posts to the administrator ‘s inbox over
media on of students and two semesters. Rambe concluded that
meaningful instructors enrolled Facebook constituted a collaborative
learning and in an Information “safe” “third space” that facilitated
pedagogical Systems course student expression, the development of
strategies within the South learning communities, and encouraged
African context knowledge construction.

Examined the Quantitative Positive Effect of Analysis of Twitter postings also

Junco, impact of twitter reflected that high level of engagement
Heiberger, & social media on
on university Experimental students’ on behalf of students and faculty. They
Loken (2011) students’ Design ANOVA concluded that social media has no
academics.
engagement and negative impact on student academic

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

GPA Testing performance if they learned to allocate

their time effectively.

Methodology

1) Research Design
The research was based on mixed methods of research. Different approaches and
platforms were used to gather both quantitative and qualitative data. Thus, a sequential
explanatory design was used where qualitative and quantitative data is collected in two
phases over a period.
Mixed Method:
“A mixed method research design is a process for collecting, analyzing, and adding both
quantitative and qualitative methods in a single study or a series of studies to interpret a
research problem”.
According to Creswell (2012), “The grounds for this approach is the quantitative data and
results gives a general picture of the research problem; more analysis, precisely through
qualitative data collection to clarify the general picture.”
From the approach above, quantitative and qualitative data were gathered consecutively,
the former through an approved survey and the latter through a focus group.
The data of set were analyzed distinctly and the quantitative results were accumulated with
the help of the qualitative observations. By following this method, we tried to comprehend
both quantitative and qualitative data to attain quantitative results from a population in the
first step, and then analyze these findings with the aid of detailed qualitative findings in the
next step.

2) The Context

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

This research study emphasizes both undergraduates and post-graduates mainly from Pakistan. All
these students had access to social media and were using it for not only recreational purposes but
also for professional communication and academic purposes. This indicates that all the students in
the sample were well able to contribute to the input data of the research and were primary source
of data. The focus group consisted of five individual samples respectively.

3) Population of the Study

All the registered students of undergraduate and post-graduates at different universities in Pakistan
are considered the population for this research study. In which, 118 are the registered
undergraduate from the total population and postgraduate students majored in
Business/Finance/Marketing, Social Sciences, Engineering, Computer science, Art and Architecture,
naval sciences, Sciences, Medicine and media studies. With the help of this survey, we obtained
numbers and percentages of all registered undergraduate students. The goal of attaining this
information was to estimate the representativeness of the sample of students participating in the
study. The following table shows the number of students from different majors.

Business/Finance/Marketing 70
Social Sciences 7
Engineering 18
Computer Science 6
Art and Architecture 7
Naval Sciences 1
Sciences 2
Medicine 5
Media Studies 2

4) Sampling

For the quantitative part of the study, a survey was done to collect data such as major, CGPA,
engagement of social media etc from 118 students. The purposeful sampling technique was applied.
We selected different students with diverse backgrounds of study to collect the qualitative data for

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

this study, we sent forms to these students and a questionnaire was sent to a focus group of 5
people.

Research Instrument

The quantitative instrument for this study is the survey. The characteristics we obtain from the
given sample through questioning, allowing the researcher to extract data from a particular group of
people, is a called survey. This approach is suitable since it allows the researcher to create the range
and distribution of some social characteristics, and to determine how these features might be
related to certain behaviour patterns or attitudes. Focus groups can be used to gather common
understanding from numerous individuals as well as to get different opinions from a certain group of
people.

5) Data Collection and Analysis Procedures

Data collected by the google forms platform was shifted into MS Excel. Before calculating
statistics and frequencies we cleaned the data as some samples were not complete. After
cleaning the data, we developed pie-charts to analyze Likert scale responses in percentages.
These pie charts were further tabulated with respective questions and their relevant
percentage responses. In this way, we were able to study the response of students and
analyzed their trends.

Some questions being quantitative like CGPA, the number of study hours per week and
number of hours spent on social media platforms daily were analysed by calculating relevant
Pearson correlation values i.e. Pearson correlation between CGPA and study hours and
CGPA with social media usage. These regression statistics helped us study the correlation
and decide on a hypothesis respectively.

For the qualitative approach, we made use of survey questions. We created a focus group of five
individuals only to get a slight idea of certain students and to further refine our research analysis.
These individuals were contacted through email and WhatsApp respectively. They had to provide
brief answers to three subjective questions related to social media usage and academic

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

performance. These responses were carefully studied, and further analysis was built on
respectively. These responses are tagged according to focus group and participant numbers e.g.
(1,P1).

Findings and Discussion

This portion of the research study will give answers to our questions based on quantitative

data, derived facts, and qualitative information.

Quantitative Analysis

Q1) To what extent for academic-related purposes do undergraduate students in

Pakistan’s universities use social media?

Ans)

See Exhibit 1.

To answer this question, we developed five statement questions for the collection of relevant

data. Most of the responses recorded include strongly agree and agree opinion. For example,

most students agree that they make use of social media for academic discussions (Agree

40.2%). Similarly, 55.6% of students have strongly agreed that they use WhatsApp or any

other alternative to pass on information to friends and colleagues. Students are also of the

opinion that they use social media to clear concepts and get help in their assignments and

projects

(Agree 45.3% - Agree 32.5%). Lastly, around 48.7% of students have admitted that they

have made groups on social media such as WhatsApp for specific courses.

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Statement Strongl Agree Neutra Disagre Strongly
Effect ofy Social
Agree Media on Academic
l e Disagre
Performance
e
I engage in academic 12% 40.2% 29.1% 13.7% 5.1%
discussions on social 14 47 34 16 6
media platforms

I make use of WhatsApp 55.6% 29.9% 8.5% 0.9% 5.1%

or alternatives to share 65 35 10 1 6
information with me
classmates

Sometimes I use social 28.2% 45.3% 14.5% 6% 6%

media to understand 33 53 17 7 7
what I have been taught
in class

We have a social media 48.7% 35.9% 6% 5.1% 4.3%

group for some of our 57 42 7 6 5
courses

I have to use social media 23.1% 32.5% 21.4% 18.8% 4.3%

extensively because most 27 38 25 22 5
of my course
assignments/
projects are in the form of
blogs/online presentations

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

Q2) How do students perceive the impact of social media on their academic engagement

and performance? We made use of six statements to study the impact of social media on the

academics of students in Pakistani universities. Most students opted for the options of

strongly agree and agree on these questions. A large number of students believe that social

media usage takes away their studying time ( Agree 43.6% - Strongly agree 18.8%).

Similarly, students get distracted from social media ( Agree 35.3% - Strongly Agree

25.9% ). Students mostly responded neutrally when asked about the impact of social media

on their studies positively or negatively i.e. ( Positively 4.2%) (Negatively 45.3%). When

asked about the concentration and social media usage, most students agreed they lost their

concentration ( Strongly agree 26.5%). Lastly, a lot of students have admitted that their

social media usage is far greater than the time spent on studying (Strongly Agree 29.1% -

Agree 37.6%) respectively.

Statement Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly

Agree Disagree

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

The time I spend online 18.8% 43.6% 22.2% 12.8% 2.6%

on social networks takes 22 51 26 15 3
away from my time studying

Online social networks 25.9% 35.3% 20.7% 14.7% 3.4%

distract 30 41 24 17 4
me from studies

6% 21.4% 46.2% 22.2% 4.3%

Social media has affected my 7 25 54 26 5
GPA positively

4.3% 22.2% 45.3% 23.9% 4.3%

Social media has affected my 5 26 53 28 5
GPA negatively

26.5% 47% 14.5% 9.4% 2.6%

Once I interrupt my study 31 55 17 11 3
time with social media,
I lose concentration

2.6%
The hours I spend online 29.1% 37.6% 22.2% 8.5% 3
on social media are more 34 44 26 10
than the hours I spend
reading university stated
content

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

Q3) What is the relationship between academic performance, academic effort, and the

use of social media?

Three variables to be studied are the following :

a) Number of hours spent on social media

b) Number of hours spent studying

c) CGPA

We will collect the number of hours spent on social media that will tell about social media

usage, the number of hours spent studying will equate to academic effort and lastly, CGPA

will tell us about academic performance.

CORRELATION BETWEEN GPA, NUMBER OF STUDY HOURS AND NUMBER

OF HOURS ON SOCIAL MEDIA

What is your How many hours How many

current CGPA? Do you spend studying
per week? you spend on social
media daily?

What is your current CGPA?

-Pearson Correlation 1 0.2278 0.0370
-N 118 118 118

How many hours do you spend

studying per week?
-Pearson Correlation 0.2278 1 -
0.00764
-N 118 118 118

How many hours do you spend

on social media daily?

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

-Pearson Correlation 0.0370 -0.07646 1

-N 118 118 11

Findings

The important statistics i.e., Pearson correlation, N, and significance were observed

respectively. If we interpret results of CGPA correlation with hours of study, then it can be

concluded that they are positively related with significance i.e. r = 0.2278, N = 118. Also,

there is a weak correlation between CGPA, and the number of hours spent on social media

i.e. r = 0.0370, N = 118. This means that if students spend more time studying then their GPA

will appreciate positively while if the social media usage is increased then CGPA will

decrease respectively. The number of hours spent studying per week and the number of hours

spent on social media does not correlate as per statistics.

Qualitative Results

For qualitative analysis we came up with three questions:

Q1) What is the effect of social media usage on academic performance?

Almost all the samples mentioned that social media have negatively affected their academic

performance. According to sample (1, P3), “Social media usage, it has affected the student, I

sleep deprived, usually late in class and unable to complete assignments on time. My

academic performance is altogether low.”

Also, sample (1, P2) oddly mentioned that academic performance has been increased as all

the syllabus content is available online which is very convenient.

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

Q2) The relationship between study hours and social media hours affects academic

performance. Comment

Students have had mixed opinions on this statement. Some students think that over-usage of

social media tends to get lower CGPA'S.

An interview sample (1, P2), “Under the virtual teaching system, I have to spend a lot more

time on social media to get my work done but that also means that the temptation to aimlessly

scroll through social media strikes much more often. I must force myself to maintain

discipline and manage my time well”.

Q3) The use of social media for academic-related purposes. Comment with your

personal experiences.

Most students are of the view that social media is essential for academic purposes. The course

books and assignments are readily available online. Moreover, students can easily contact

their colleagues and get help with certain problems. This is a great help in the time of the

Covid-19 pandemic when classes are being held online.

According to our first interview sample (1, P1), "Group discussion and study sessions are

essential for performing well in my degree. With the lockdown currently in place, social

media allows me to interact with my friends and hold such discussions virtually. This has

helped me adjust to the online teaching system adopted this year."

Conclusion

The majority of the students in this study gave a more affirmative response to using social

media platforms to complete assignments and obtain academic help. The data collected from

empirical results show an overall inclination of students towards the usage of social media for

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

academic-related purposes especially considering the external environment of a pandemic

where the majority of schools have shifted to online modules. A high proportion of the

respondents found social media as an avenue for connecting with peers and professionals and

as a source of transferring information. The formation of WhatsApp groups and the two-step

flow interactions between students and teachers as well as students and students helped in

making the respondents feel like one big academic community.

However, the use of social media has been labeled as a distraction from academics which

significantly affects the CGPA as mentioned in our study hence this usage needs to be

disciplined. It affects the physical as well as mental health of students thus giving way to

problems in concentration and reducing the time to study and sleep. From the responses

gathered in this study along with statistical inferences it can be concluded that in a pandemic

situation, social media when tailored to the specific academic needs can be considered a great

tool in helping students adjust to online modules as well as help in improving their academic

performance of undergraduate and postgraduate students.

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

References

Camilia, O., Sajoh, I., & Dalhatu, B. (2013). The Effect of social networking sites usage on

the studies of Nigerian students. The International Journal of Engineering and Science (IJES),

2(7), 2319-1805.

Wodzicki, K., Schawmmlein, E., & Moskluik, J. (2012). “Actually, I wanted to learn”:

Study-related knowledge exchange on social networking sites. The Internet and Higher

Education, 15(1), 9-1

Rambe, P. (2012). Constructive disruptions for effective collaborative learning: Navigating

the affordances of social media for meaningful engagement. Electronic Journal of E-Learning

10(1), 132-146.

Junco, R., Heiberger, G., & Loken, E. (2011). The effect of Twitter on college student

engagement and grades. Journal of computer assisted learning, 27(2), 119-132

Junco, R. (2012). The relationship between frequency of Facebook use, participation in

Facebook activities, and student engagement. Computers & Education, 58(1), 162- 171.

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

Michikyan, M., Subrahmanyam, K., & Dennis, J. (2015). Facebook use and academic

performance among college students: A mixed-methods study with a multi-ethnic sample.

Computers in Human Behavior, 45, 265-272.

Raacke, J., & Bonds-Raacke, J. (2008). MySpace and Facebook: Applying the uses and

gratifications theory to exploring friend-networking sites. Cyberpsychology & behavior,

11(2), 169-174.

Appendices

Appendix-1

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

Appendix-2 (Focus Group Questions)

Q1) What is the effect of social media usage on academic performance?

Q2) The relationship between study hours and social media hours affects academic

performance. Comment

Q3) The use of social media for academic-related purposes. Comment with your personal

experiences

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 Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance

22