The Impact of Social Media on Intercultural ‎Communication as Perceived by University Students of ‎the Sultanate of Oman

نوع المستند : المقالة الأصلية

المؤلفون

1 Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, College of ‎Arts & Humanities, A'Sharqiyah University, Oman

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Humanities, College of ‎Arts & Humanities, A'Sharqiyah University, Oman

10.21608/ejev.2025.465792

المستخلص

From the perspective of Omani university students, the study sought to shed light on how social media use affects cross-cultural interactions. The study sample used a descriptive methodology and included Nine Hundred and Forty-Eight (948) students from three Omani universities. The findings showed that, from the perspective of Omani university students, social media significantly influenced cross-cultural communication. Omani university students' contributions to cross-cultural interactions on social media were moderate in terms of communication and involvement but high in terms of cultural sensitivity, cultural adaptation, and tolerance for diversity. The findings also revealed several drawbacks to social media use in cross-cultural communication, chief among them being the potential for presenting an inaccurate picture of a society's culture and highlighting its flaws, which could skew it. Lastly, the findings showed that male students contributed more than female students to social media communication with foreign cultures. Compared to men, women displayed a greater degree of cultural awareness. Compared to graduate students, undergraduates were better at adjusting to new cultures.