Information seeking behaviour and international students: The role of social media in addressing challenges while abroad

• Main Authors: Hamid, Suraya, Bukhari, Sarah
• Format: Conference or Workshop Item
• Language: English
• Published: 2015
• Subjects: Z665 Library Science. Information Science
• Online Access: http://repo.uum.edu.my/15627/1/PID036.pdf; http://repo.uum.edu.my/15627/; http://www.icoci.cms.net.my/proceedings/2015/TOC.html
• Institution: Universiti Utara Malaysia

Social media are now becoming necessary tools for researchers, teachers and students in seeking for information. Past research conducted on information seeking behaviour highlighted the challenges of the international students and how they used social media to overcome their challenges while being abroad in new culture and unfamiliar surroundings.In order to understand how international students cope with the various challenges that they are facing, a systematic literature review (SLR) study on their information seeking behavior using social media was conducted. Results show that international students actively use social media to seek for information.Their interactions with (i) online contents, (ii) fellow international students, (iii) local students, and (iv) the local community have benefited them in overcoming their struggles.This research contributes in enriching our understanding on the types of information sought by international students in the respective host country, the role of social media in supporting information seeking process and how best universities could provide the necessary support.