1.1 Introduction
The Internet has become a permanent fixture in Nursing Student's life nowadays. It is hard to envision a Nursing student who did not scan the news headlines and social media platforms for updates at least once a day. The modern age was was split between online and offline realms with the advent of social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. Social media refers to digital platforms that facilitate connections between individuals both locally and globally. It is employed to foster interpersonal relationships. Nursing Students can read books, observe pictures, listen to music, converse with one other even when they are on other countries, and do a lot more with their assistance. Social media has significantly streamlined our lives and made us more self-aware (Shensa et al., 2015).
This chapter will address the background information that motivated this study, the challenges that prompted it, its aim, and its objectives as a preface to subsequent sections of the study. Additional factors include the study's significance, scope, limitations, research questions and hypotheses, and the definition of technical terms.
1.2 Background of Study
The globe is commemorating today's advancements in information and communication technologies (ICTs), which have expanded the reach of communication. Without a question, modern communication technology has made the entire world a "global village." But as it stands, technology has both advantages and disadvantages, like any other currency. It makes individuals more knowledgeable, enlightened, and up to date with global events.
Technology makes improved methods of doing things available to humanity. Twitter, Facebook Messenger, Google Talk, WhatsApp Messenger, 2go Messenger, Blackberry Messenger (BBM), Google Talk, Google Messenger, iPhone, and Android devices are a few examples of social networking sites. According to Asemah and Edegoh (2012), the majority of individuals use these networking sites to communicate with both new and old acquaintances, as well as friends they've met online. The fast growth of technology has brought about a great deal of change in the world, making it the ideal medium for exploring vast fields of knowledge.
The internet is now the greatest communication channel because to its development. As a means of interaction and communication, social networking and blogging sites are visited by two thirds of the global internet user base. According to William, Boyd, Densten, Chin, Diamond, and Morgenthaler (2009), social networking sites (SNSs) are online communities of Internet users who wish to engage with other users about topics of mutual interest, whether from a personal, business, or academic standpoint. The idea of a global village has been made a reality by the millions of social networking sites, through which billions of people connect.
Social networking platforms have made remote contact possible and have yielded several benefits. A person's placement, whether in an academic setting or in a career, is significantly influenced by their academic accomplishment or quality. As a result, a lot of people are worried about how to improve their academic performance. Numerous research on the factors supporting academic achievement have been prompted by the emphasis on excellence in academia, which is also widely shared globally. It is inevitable that academic accomplishment will play a part in determining a person's life success, academic placement in schools and higher education, and employability in the workplace (Kyoshaba, 2009).
The use of social media by Nursing students and their academic achievement are directly correlated. But the negative aspects of technical advancement have led to problems like the erosion of moral principles, particularly among students who make up the bulk of users who connect on social networking sites. The goal of social networking sites on the internet is to create and maintain connections between individuals who have similar hobbies and/or interests. With so many social networking sites available online, students may feel pressured to put off doing their schoolwork and reading in preference to spending their time online chatting with friends. Nowadays, a lot of students are dependent on the craze for social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and others. The majority of Nursing students nowadays have Facebook profiles.
Perhaps it's not that far-fetched that the majority of them do poorly in school. If individuals do not know about the Facebook craze, they may need to think much more carefully before quickly blaming the low calibre of instructors (Oche & Aminu, 2010). Students today are so absorbed in social media that they spend over 24 hours online, according to Olubiyi (2012). Research indicates that students use social networking sites like Facebook for leisure, to kill time, to meet friends they already have or make new ones, despite the fact that these sites are now acknowledged as valuable educational resources (Ellison, Steinfield, and Lampe 2007).
According to the social information processing theory, which is a theory of interpersonal communication, the establishment of interpersonal connections online may take longer than that of face-to-face interactions, but once established, they have an equal impact. Given that friends from social media will start to affect one another, this implies that students' attitudes towards their studies will be influenced by their usage of social media to a greater extent.
Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Impact of Social Media Usage on the Academic Performance of Nursing Students in Calabar Metropolis.
1.3 Statement of Problem
Investigation revealed that the educational system in Nigeria is faced with so many challenges which have certainly brought about a rapidly decline in the quality of education. There is a deviation, distraction and divided attention between social networking activities and their academic work. It is observed that students devote more attention to social media than they do to their studies. Nursing Students' addictiveness to social networks, students' frequency of exposure to social network, social media network that the Nursing students are more exposed to and the influence of social media as a medium of interaction between students has been part of discussion in recent times and which have impacted on their academic performance.
Instead of Nursing students reading their books, they spend their time chatting and making friends via the social media and this might definitely have influence on their academic performance, because when you do not read, there is no way you can perform well academically. It is a common sight to see a student chatting in sensitive and highly organized places like church, mosque and lecture venues. Some are so carried away that even as they are walking along the high way, they keep chatting.
The manufacturing and distribution of equally sophisticated cellular phones has complicated the situation, as students no longer need to visit a cybercafé before they send and receive messages. Attention has been shifted from visible to invisible friends, while important ventures like study and writing might be affected in the process. This phenomenon has become a source of worry to many who believe in knowledge and skill acquisition. In recent times social media have been a major stay in the minds of students and the world at large thereby causing a lot of drastic measure by students, teacher and even educational administrators at large.
It is therefore of great importance to explore some of the trending issues facing students' academic performance as a result of social media. Students at all levels of learning now have divided attention to studies, as a result of available 7 opportunities to be harnessed from social media. Whether these opportunities promote studies is a question that needs to be answered. Thus, the problem this study investigates is the Impact of Social Media Usage on the Academic Performance of Nursing Students in Calabar Metropolis.
1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study
The aim of the study is to investigate the Impact of Social Media Usage on the Academic Performance of Nursing Students in Calabar Metropolis. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:
- To determine the social media network that the Nursing Students are more exposed to and the effect on their academic performance.
- To examine the level of Nursing Students' addictiveness to social media and the effect on their academic performance.
- To ascertain how the use of social media has effect the academic performance of the Nursing Students in Calabar Metropolis;
- To ascertain the impact of social media usage on academic performance of student nurses; and
- To determine the relationship between social media usages and demographic variables (age and gender) frequency of social media usage.
1.5 Research Questions
The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:
- Does the social media network that the Nursing Students are more exposed to affect their academic performance?
- Is there any relationship between social media usages and demographic variables (age and gender) frequency of social media usage?
- Does age of student nurses have significant influence on the use of social media?
- How does the use of social media has affects the academic performance of the Nursing Students in Calabar Metropolis?
- To what extent would Nursing Students' addictiveness to social network affect their academic performance?
- What is social media and why student nurses use it?
- How much time do Nursing Students spend using social media?
- What is the impact of social media on Nursing Students' academic performance?
