SOCIAL MEDIA AND STUDENT POLITICAL PARTICIPATION IN SELECTED TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS OF IMO STATE NIGERIA

Abstract

The study examined in-depth the effect of social media on the political participation of students in four tertiary institutions of Imo state Nigeria. Political participation in Nigeria has been characterized by dominance of gerontocrats and military governance before Nigeria embraced its nascent democracy in 1999. Students who are Youths have been marginalized in political engagements. Social media offers students opportunities to engage in political discussions and Campaign. But fewer or no studies have addressed student’s political participation using social media in tertiary institutions of Imo state. The objectives of the study were to determine how personal attitudes towards the use of social media influenced students’ political participations, the impact of subjective norms towards the use of social media for political participation by students and how behavioural control towards the use of social media influence student’s political participation etc. in Imo state namely; Futo, Poly Nekede and Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education, Owerri. The population of study was 81,355 which were gathered through online search and admission units of these schools, 398 respondents which comprises post-graduates and under- graduate students of the aforesaid tertiary Institution was sampled by use of systematic random sampling technique. Data were collected by the use of structured questionnaire, it was presented and analysed through descriptive statistics e.g. mean and percentage etc. and inferential statistics e.g. multiple regression analysis. The study was anchored on the theory of planned behaviour and uses and gratification theory. Findings show that information quality, personal altitude, subjective norms. Behavioural control significantly influenced political participation. The study recommends that policy makers should prioritize initiatives that promote transparency and access to reliable information thereby empowering students to make informed political decisions, mores so, educational institutions as focal of youth engagement must activate an environment that encourages open dialogue about political issues and emphasizes the relevance of civic responsibility etc.