AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF THE PROFILE OF THE SAUDI USER OF SOCIAL MEDIA (original) (raw)
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An Exploratory Study of the Profile of the Saudi User of Social Media 1
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The use of social networks is entering the era of maturity. The large technology vendors are all the more interested in getting involved in the Social Media game unable to afford being left out of these compact and huge potential markets. This exploratory quantitative study aims to reveal those demographics facts related with the usage of the social networks in Saudi Arabia that form the profile of the local user. The findings show a general agreement with the main conclusion of other public surveys in the country pointing to a heavy use of the social networks, at more than 85%. They also suggest that the younger the individual the more likely it is to get involved in the Social Media and in the case of female individuals, though slightly less in population, but seemingly more intense use of them. Education does not seem to affect the frequency of the use as long as the individual are at least basically educated. Likewise income and employment status only indirectly affect this use ...
Investigating the attitude of the average Saudi towards the Social Media
It could be easily claimed, that the use of social networks has entered the era of maturity after almost a decade from their birth. The large technology vendors are all the more interested in getting involved in the Social Media game unable to afford the case of being left out of these easy, compact and huge potential markets. Many studies see the light of publicity and they all are somehow associated with this matter. This exploratory and mainly qualitative study of several parts aims to reveal not just some demographics facts related with the usage of the social networks but to delve deeper into the hidden details of this usage and, possibly, shed light into the positive and negatives of this usage both from a users but also from a business's perspective. In this first part the effect of the personality of the average user on his/her attitude towards the Social Media is investigated. The scope of the whole study is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia mainly because of its particularit...
An Investigation of Social Media Use in Saudi Arabia
2012
Social media are new communication tools and exist in a range of forms that allow a user to connect and interact with others. Additionally, they offer a way to create a collaborative environment through participation and sharing information. Even though social media tools are widely used, it is not well understood how individuals’ concerns and motivations influence their use. This paper aims to investigate the use of social media among people in Saudi Arabia using a survey method to understand the impact of cultural restrictions on individual’s motivation, intention behaviour and their actual use in business. Based on the research results, users’ attitude and behaviour towards the use of social media are discussed.
Objectives / Methods: The study attempts to describe the effects of social networking in Saudi everyday life and consumer behavior. The data were gathered from a peer-moderated and pre-tested questionnaire (appendix) that was, then, made available on- and offline. Findings: The results suggest that Saudis are making very heavy use of the Social Media Networks mainly because they want or need (or both) to socialize and enrich their cultural life as much as possible given the general lack of other opportunities available especially in non-central cities. They don’t seem to care or understand the possible negative issues associated with the extensive use of social networking. Conclusions: These suggestions are meant to lead to more systematically organized studies in the near future from the local authorities in an effort to better facilitate the organization of the online social community in the country and form policies aiming to mitigate possible threats from over-engagement.
Growth Pattern of Social Media Usage in Arab Gulf States: An Analytical Study
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The impact of SNSs is tremendous on every aspect of life and people irrespective of region, gender and age are using it to get connected with their families and friends around the globe. This study aims to highlight the highly used SNSs across the Arab Gulf States comprising Iraq, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. The database of Stat Counter (http://gs.statcounter.com) was selected for tracing the use and growth of SNSs in this region. The findings show that the three most used SNSs in the Arab Gulf region are: Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. It is observed that Facebook is the leading social networking site used in the region until now, but Twitter is fast gaining market. Twitter is becoming popular among users and giving a tough competition to Facebook in almost all countries of the region except Iraq. In 2013, it has moved to 1st position in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, replacing Facebook. However, in some countries like the UAE and Qatar, Facebook is still going strong. The paper concludes that the intensive use of social media among citizens' of the Arab Gulf countries indicates that the internet has the potential to be a multivocal platform through which every segment of the society can have their voices heard. With limited availability of published literature in the field pertaining to the usage of social media by the people of the Arab Gulf countries, the paper aims to understand the practice, implication and importance of social media networks in this Muslim dominated region.
The Use of Social Media in Arab Countries: A Case of Saudi Arabia
Social media or what is called social websites has become a crucial method for communication development and a key driver in the way individuals and organisations across the globe create a collaborative environment. Despite the fact that social media are broadly used among individuals, it is not well understood how cultural issues and individuals motivations influence their social and professional use. This paper aims to explore and examine the use of social media among individuals in Saudi Arabia using a quantitative approach to investigate and understand the effect of cultural restrictions on individual's motivation , users' attitude, intention behaviour and their actual use. Based on the study findings, individuals' attitude and behaviour towards the use of social media are discussed followed by suggestions for future work.
The Internet usage across the world has increased manifold in the last decade. The trend is the same for the Arab world including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, a country with its own social and cultural inclinations and heritage. Recent statistics put the number of the Internet users in the kingdom at more than 18 million and the Internet penetration at more than 65% of the population in 2014. This study aims to identify the pattern of the Internet usage in the country. Based on a sample size of 990 respondents recruited through social media across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the study explores the relationship between the Internet usage and various demographic, social, economic, and behavioral factors. The results indicate that the average daily use of the Internet by social media users is significantly correlated to gender, age, marital status, employment and income but no significant relationship is found with the education level of users. Further, it was also investigated if there is any significant relationship between the average daily use of the Internet and online buying behavior. The results confirm that there is a significant relationship between the Internet usage and the online shopping habit of the users. The findings on the usage of the Internet by social media users are of commercial importance to the firms which provide products through online medium. Indeed, the E-Commerce is expected to foster economic growth, productivity, and competitiveness of the firms in the country. Additionally, the research will contribute to the existing literature on E-commerce and attract the interest of researchers mainly in the disciplines of Marketing and Social Sciences.
PROFILING THE AVERAGE SAUDI'S TRUST TOWARDS THE SOCIAL MEDIA
Journal of Theoretical and Applied Information Technology Impact Factor, 2019
It is claimed that the use of Social Media has entered the era of maturity in Saudi Arabia with an increasing number of studies focusing in examining the phenomenon. The aim of this quantitative study is to profile the average Saudi's attitude towards the Social Media and to investigate the level of trust of the local individual to the medium and study the motives or obstacles for revealing one's true identity online. The results point to a heavy use of the social networks and suggest that the younger the user the more likely it is to get involved in the Social Media. In the case of females, though slightly less in population, the use seems more intense. There is no indication education affects the frequency of the use as long as the individual has a degree at least higher than a secondary diploma. Likewise, income and employment status only indirectly affect the use since they affect the amount of free time one has to get involved with the Social Networks and the more one is connected with the Internet the heavier the use. As to trust the study shows Saudis are reluctant to accept the motivations for such an attitude but, on the other hand, they don't seem to agree with the proven concerns related to the threats associated with it.
Facebook in Saudi Arabia: Some Aspects of Facebook Usage by Saudi University Students
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This study, undertaken as part of a wider study of Facebook usage in Saudi Arabia, uses a self-report survey, and includes a thorough analysis of some aspects of Facebook usage by Saudi university students. The participants were 372 students (188 male and 184 female) at one university in Saudi Arabia. A self-reported survey was used to ask the participants where and how they like to access Facebook, the people whom they would not want to see their Facebook profile, and the number of Facebook friends they have. In addition, this study measures the differences between male and female university students in these variables. The study has revealed several significant results that contribute to the current knowledge of social network sites.