Trends in Social Media Use among University Students During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Background : The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in social media usage among teens and young adults which may be helpful or harmful. This study aimed to investigate the use of social media and trends among diploma in pharmacy students at UiTM Cawangan Pulau Pinang, Kampus Bertam. Method : A cross ‑ sectional study was conducted whereby data was collected through an online survey and completed questionnaires by 189 respondents (18-22 years old) undertaking diploma in pharmacy in and off campus. Data were analysed using Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet for descriptive statistics and frequency analysis. SPSS version 28.0 was used to analyse the inferential statistics i.e. the Kruskal-Wallis test. Results : The analysis of the collected data revealed that the majority of the respondents were female and considered themselves moderate users of social media, with an average of four social media accounts. The study also found that social media consumption among pharmacy students at UiTM Cawangan Pulau Pinang increased during the pandemic compared to the average time spent before. The data showed that a significant percentage of students spend several hours on social media, with the most commonly reported problems being distraction from studying and addiction. These findings raise concerns about the negative effects of social media usage on academic performance and well-being. Conclusion: Overall, the study provides valuable insight into the habits and exposure of


Introduction
Social media can be defined as a group of internet-based applications that allow users to create, share, and exchange information, ideas, and content in a virtual community or network. These platforms typically include features such as user profiles, discussion boards, messaging, and multimedia sharing capabilities. Examples of social media platforms include Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and TikTok. Social media can be used for a wide range use media and what they hope to get out of it, to help improve media products and services. The questions in this section are divided into five categories of answers: Diversion, Cognitive needs, Affective needs, Personal integrative needs, and Social integrative needs. The survey was distributed through a WhatsApp group and a total of 189 respondents completed it by the end of January 2022. Table 1 shows the socio-demographics of the respondents who participated in the survey. There were a total of 189 respondents, with 150 (79.4%) identifying as female and 39 (20.6%) identifying as male. The table also shows the distribution of ages among the respondents, with the majority being 20 years old (36.5%, or 69 individuals) followed by those who are 21 years old (30.7%, or 58 individuals). There were 25.4% (48 individuals) who were 19 years old, and only a small number of respondents who were 18 or 22 years old (3.7%, or 7 individuals each). Out of a total of 189 respondents, 102 (54.0%) reported residing at home and 87 (46.0%) reported residing on campus. The reason for the above distribution is that many students are on campus while others who are not on campus are undergoing clinical training.

Pattern of Social Media Use
The data in the table provides information on the social media patterns of a sample of 189 students. The device that was most commonly owned by Diploma in Pharmacy students is a smartphone, which was owned by 187 individuals. Following this, laptops were found to be owned by 90 individuals. On the other hand, the devices that were least commonly owned were tablets and PCs, with only 29 and 10 individuals respectively owning them. Subsequent analysis on the pattern of use involved dividing the data into several categories, which included the category of user, the total number of social media accounts per student, frequency of time used to check social media, time spent on social media, increase in time spent on social media, and the length of time the students have been using social media.   Based on the time spent on social media, the majority of students (37.57%) spend 3-4 hours on social media, while 23.81% and 9.52% spend 5-6 hours and 7-8 hours respectively. A smaller group of 4.23% spends more than 9 hours on social media. The responses based on different time frames -morning, evening, night, and weekends -show that most participants (32.28%) have observed an increase in social media usage during weekends. Night-time usage also showed a significant increase, with 30.16% of participants reporting an increase. On the other hand, 29.63% of participants stated that their social media usage has remained the same every day. However, only a negligible proportion of participants reported an increase in social media usage during morning hours (1.06%). In conclusion, the data suggests that there has been a noticeable increase in social media usage during specific times, particularly on weekends and at night. This pattern is concerning as it has been reported that young adults who spend long amounts of time using social media are more likely to experience sleep disturbance (Pirdehghan et al., 2021).  Less than 1 year 1-2 years 3 -4 years 5 -6 years 7 -8 years > 9 years participants reported owning an account for less than a year, while the majority of participants (27.51%) have owned an account for 5-6 years. Participants who have owned an account for 3-4 years and 7-8 years were also prevalent, with 17.99% and 24.87%, respectively. A small percentage of participants (7.94%) have owned an account for 1-2 years, while 21.16% have owned an account for more than 9 years. These findings suggest that the majority of participants are experienced social media users who have been using social media for a significant amount of time. Furthermore, the data indicates that a large majority of students are regular social media users who spend a significant amount of time on it each day. The longer students have been using social media, the more likely they are to spend more time on it. The data provided above shows that the majority of students (81%) use social media to pass time when they are bored, followed by gaining knowledge (79%), and staying in touch with friends (88%) and family (84%). A significant proportion of students (70%) reported that social media helped them in their research and studies, and 47% reported using it to search for jobs, online businesses, or scholarships.

Reason for Social Media Use
Interestingly, a large proportion of students (57%) reported that social media helps them feel less lonely, indicating that social media use may be a coping mechanism for loneliness. Additionally, a smaller percentage of students (44%) reported that social media allows them to find companionship, and 37% reported that it enables them to find more interesting people than in real life, indicating that social media may be a way to expand their social network. On the other hand, a smaller proportion of students reported using social media for negative reasons such as to escape worries (38%), to express their anger to others who will sympathize (8%), and to gain favourable approval among friends (6%). It is worth noting that a small percentage of students (7%) reported that people can use social media to judge them, indicating potential concerns around privacy and security.
All-in-all, the data indicates that Diploma in Pharmacy students primarily use social media to fulfil their social and informational needs, with a minority of students utilizing it for negative purposes. This finding is consistent with research that emphasizes the potential benefits of social media for teenagers during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in terms of mitigating the effects of physical distancing measures (Hamilton et al., 2020;Rajkumar, 2020).

Figure 7: Reasons for using social media among Diploma in Pharmacy students
Upon further analysis of the five categories (Diversion, Cognitive needs, Affective needs, Personal integrative needs, and Social integrative needs), it became evident that Diploma in Pharmacy students primarily utilize social media to fulfil three main needs i.e. cognitive, social integrative needs and as a diversion. These needs include gaining knowledge, seeking job opportunities, staying in touch with friends and family, and finding companionship. Social media is also used for diversion and affective needs, such as passing time, escaping worries, and expressing emotions. However, personal integrative needs, such as self-image and gaining approval from friends, are not prominent reasons for using social media among these students. The statistical analysis of the data between the groups was conducted using the Kruskal-Wallis test and found to be significant (p<0.05). Out of the 189 participants, 37% reported no problems with their social media usage. However, a considerable percentage (63% in total) of participants reported facing problems due to their social media usage. The most commonly reported problem was distraction from study, with 33.3% of participants reporting this issue. Addiction to social media was the next most commonly reported problem, with 18.5% of participants reporting that their social media usage was addictive. Other problems reported by participants included an effect on time management (7.9%) and less rest (3.2%).
Overall, the data suggests that a significant proportion of participants faced problems due to their social media usage, particularly in terms of distraction from study and addiction. These findings are consistent with prior research that has linked excessive social media usage to negative impacts on academic performance and well-being (Twenge et al., 2020;Gómez-Galán et al., 2020). Based on a study by Gómez-Galán et al (2020) on social network consumption and addiction among college students during the COVID-19 pandemic, it was found that university students are more likely to have problems with excessive use of social media and a lack of personal control than an obsession with social media. In a recent study conducted by Saputri & Yumarni (2023), it was found that there is a significant relationship between social media addiction and depression among university students in Indonesia. A possible explanation for the psychological stress associated with social media use could be the extensive coverage of COVID-19 (Huckins et al., 2020). which is affected in part by the way social media is programmed (O'brien et al., 2020). Therefore, it is important for individuals to be aware of the potential negative consequences of social media usage and to take steps to limit their usage if necessary.
In conclusion, this study was able to achieve its objectives of identifying the most popular social media platforms used by university students during the pandemic, investigating the factors that influence university students' social media consumption, and identifying the problems that university students encounter while using social media. The results of the study show that social media use among university students during the pandemic has increased significantly, with Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp being the most popular platforms. The main factors that influence social media consumption among university students are entertainment, communication, and academic purposes. However, the study also revealed some negative aspects of social media use, including addiction, distraction, and mental health problems. Overall, these findings suggest that there is a need for university students to develop a more balanced approach to social media use, taking into account the potential benefits and risks.

Contributions
This research on trends in social media use among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic makes significant theoretical and contextual contributions to the existing knowledge in this field. Firstly, the study examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on social media usage among university students, which is a timely and relevant topic given the current global situation. The research findings provide insights into how the pandemic has influenced social media use and shed light on the emerging trends in this area. Secondly, the study adds to the existing literature on social media use among university students, particularly in the field of health promotion. By identifying the reasons behind social media use and the problems associated with it, the study contributes to a better understanding of the role of social media in the lives of university students. The research also highlights the need for interventions that promote healthy social media use, which can have a positive impact on the mental health and academic performance of university students. Overall, the theoretical and contextual contributions of this research are significant, as it addresses a gap in the literature and provides valuable insights into the emerging trends in social media use among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic.