scholarly journals Social Networking Tools for Informal Scholarly Communication Prove Popular for Academics at Two Universities

2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 195
Author(s):  
Aoife Lawton
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Social Networking ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Scholarly Communication ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Social Bookmarking ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Humanities And Social Sciences ◽  
Social Networking Tools

Objective – To investigate the adoption, use, perceived impact of, and barriers to using social networking tools for scholarly communication at two universities. Design – Cross-institutional quantitative study using an online survey. Setting – Academics working in the disciplines of the humanities and social sciences at two universities: one in Europe and one in the Middle East. Methods – An online survey was devised based on a previous survey (Al-Aufi, 2007) and informed by relevant research. The survey was piloted by 10 academics at the 2 participating universities. Post pilot it was revised and then circulated to all academics from similar faculties at two universities. Three follow up emails were sent to both sets of academics. The data was analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software. Descriptive and inferential statistics were analyzed using ANOVA tests. Main Results – The survey achieved a 34% response rate (n=130). The majority of participants were from the university based in the Middle East and were male (70.8%). Most of the responses were from academics under 40 years of age. The use of notebooks was prevalent at both universities. “Notebooks” is used as a term to describe laptops, netbooks, or ultra-book computers. The majority reported use of social networking tools for informal scholarly communication (70.1%), valuing this type of use. 29.9% of respondents reported they do not use social networking tools for this purpose. Barriers were identified as lack of incentive, digital literacy, training, and concerns over Internet security. Among the non-users, barriers included low interest in their use and a perceived lack of relevancy of such tools for scholarly communication. The types of tools used the most were those with social connection functions, such as Facebook and Twitter. The tools used the least were social bookmarking tools. A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test indicated that there was no significant difference at the 0.05 level between the use of social networking tools at both universities, with the exception of using tools to communicate with researchers locally and with publishers at one of the universities. Both universities use tools for communication with peers and academics internationally. The responses were mainly positive towards the perceived usefulness of social networking tools for informal scholarly communication. Conclusion – The authors conclude that despite the small sample of the community of academics investigated, there is a general trend towards increasing use and popularity of social networking tools amongst academics in the humanities and social sciences disciplines. As technology advances, the use of such tools is likely to increase and advance among academics. The authors point to pathways for future research including expanding the methods to include interviews, focus groups, and case studies. Another angle for research of interest is interdisciplinary differences in the use of prevalent tools such as Facebook and Twitter.

Impact of social networking tools on scholarly communication: a cross-institutional study

2015 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 224-241 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Al-Aufi ◽  
Crystal Fulton
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Social Networking ◽  
Scholarly Communication ◽  
Perceived Usefulness ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Humanities And Social Sciences ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Social Networking Tools ◽  
Science Disciplines

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the extent to which social networking tools had an impact on academics’ patterns of informal scholarly communication in humanities and social science disciplines. Social networking tools, reinforced by proliferation and advances in portable computing and wireless technologies, have reshaped how information is produced, communicated and consumed. Design/methodology/approach – A cross-institutional quantitative study utilized an online questionnaire survey sent to 382 academics affiliated with humanities and social science disciplines in two different academic institutions: one that belongs to a Western tradition of scholarly communication in Ireland, and the other to a developing country in Oman. Descriptive interpretation of data compared findings from both universities. Frequencies, percentages and means were displayed in tables to enhance the meaning of collected data. Inferential analysis was also conducted to determine statistical significance. Findings – Overall findings indicate progressive use of social networking tools for informal scholarly communication. There is perceived usefulness on the impact of social networking tools on patterns of informal scholarly communication. However, nearly one-third of the respondents have never used social networking tools for informal scholarly communication. Institution-based data comparison revealed no significant differences on data except for few activities of informal scholarly communication. Research limitations/implications – Given that the number of study subjects was eventually small (total = 382) and that academics by their very nature are disinclined to respond to online surveys, results of the study may suggest non-response errors, and these may impact negatively on the acceptability of inferences and statistical conclusions. The results of the study are, therefore, unlikely to be useful for generalization, but they remain suggestive of a growing tendency among humanities and social sciences’ academics to use social networking tools for informal scholarly communication. Originality/value – Empirical findings provide a broad understanding about the potential of social networking tools on informal scholarly communication in areas of humanities and social sciences disciplines. Multi-disciplinary investigation and qualitative studies may further deepen our understanding of the impact of social networking tools on patterns of scholarly communication.

scholarly journals La Predicción Del Rendimiento Académico En Alumnos De Bachillerato. Estudio De Un Caso (Centro) En España

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (25) ◽  
pp. 111
Author(s):  
Miguel Ángel Broc
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Educational Institution ◽  
First Year ◽  
Ex Post ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Ex Post Facto ◽  
Humanities And Social Sciences ◽  
Lineal Regression ◽  
Humanities Students ◽  
Evaluation Patterns

This paper studies the assessment during the first year of baccalaureate in seventy-six students. In a public educational institution of Saragossa (Spain), no differences in academic achievement between men (forty) and women (thirty-six) were found, but between two main modalities (Sciences, thirty-five students, versus Humanities and social Sciences, with forty-one students), finding differences outstrip students Sciences throughout the year, equaling to end with their counterparts. This leads us to study the hypothesis of whether the ratings could be “inflated” by teachers in Humanities students. For this they were conducted by a retrospective design “ex post facto” an multiple lineal regression analysis, using as a dependent variable grades in the third final evaluation, and as independent, performance in the first and second assessment and all subjects, not including any other variables. The results show different prediction equations that explaining 87% and 88% of the variance in the final performance, in the two types of modalities respectively. The values predicted by the model resulting in a significant percentage of “inflation” in the ratings of 23% in the group of Sciences and 37% in the Humanities and Social Sciences. The mean scores of the subjects discussed in three different moments are analyzed and significant difference was observed in the three evaluations, emerging some evaluation patterns in the teachers. It intuits that the “rating inflation” could begin much earlier than in the preuniversity entrance course.

Impact of Social Networking Sites on Student Academic Performance

2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 35-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Youssef Harrath ◽  
Hadeel Alobaidy
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Academic Performance ◽  
Social Networking ◽  
Social Networking Sites ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Teaching Methodology ◽  
Student Academic Performance ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
University Of Bahrain ◽  
The Impact

The purpose of this research is to study the impact of Social Networking Sites on student academic performance. An online survey was conducted and 628 students of University of Bahrain replied. This research studies and explores the relationships between the use of SNS and students' academic performance. The survey questions (21) were grouped into 8 variables that identify the interest that the students draw from SNS. Furthermore, these variables aim to show the effects of SNS on students' academic performance and the futuristic online and offline paradigms that can enhance teaching methodology. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyse the collected data and find correlations between SNS and the students' academic performance. From this research it was found that the SNS have positive and negative impacts on student academic performance. At the end, the authors came up with fruitful recommendations on how to get benefit from the SNS to improve the learning process.

Predictors of ICT Use in Teaching in Different Educational Domains

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Rončević Zubković ◽  
Rosanda Pahljina-Reinić ◽  
Svjetlana Kolić-Vehovec
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Survey Methodology ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Pilot Project ◽  
School Level ◽  
Ict Use ◽  
Humanities And Social Sciences

This study explored the implementation of the information and communication technology (ICT) into teaching and learning processes in three educational domains (STEM, language education, and other humanities and social sciences). Specificaly, the aim of the current study was to explore the effects of teachers' attitudes towards ICT use in classroom, self-efficacy in the ICT use, and perceived school-level barriers on teachers' ICT use as well as possible domain specific differences in the assessed variables. The data were collected as a part of a larger study conducted within the first phase of the “e-Schools” pilot project (CARNet). An online survey methodology was employed involving a sample of nearly all teachers in 13 middle (N=256) and 7 high schools (N=275). The results revealed that perceived self-efficacy in ICT use proved to be the best predictor of the use of ICT based activities regardless of the domain. Perceived benefits of ICT use significantly predicted the use of ICT in STEM and humanities and social sciences, while school-level barriers negatively predicted ICT use in STEM and in language education. Comparison of educational domains showed that STEM teachers saw more benefits of ICT use in teaching than teachers in humanities and social sciences. STEM teachers perceived themselves as more competent in ICT use compared to other two groups. They also reported that they use ICT more often in lesson preparation and in classroom activities. However, teachers’ perception of possible risks and barriers of ICT use in education did not differ in three educational domains.

scholarly journals Role of Social Media in Diabetes Management in the Middle East Region: Systematic Review (Preprint)

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Turki Alanzi
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Social Networking ◽  
Diabetes Management ◽  
Management Tools ◽  
East Region ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Social Networking Tools ◽  
Middle East Region

BACKGROUND Diabetes is a major health care burden in the Middle East region. Social networking tools can contribute to the management of diabetes with improved educational and care outcomes using these popular tools in the region. OBJECTIVE The objective of this review was to evaluate the impact of social networking interventions on the improvement of diabetes management and health outcomes in patients with diabetes in the Middle East. METHODS Peer-reviewed articles from PubMed (1990-2017) and Google Scholar (1990-2017) were identified using various combinations of predefined terms and search criteria. The main inclusion criterion consisted of the use of social networking apps on mobile phones as the primary intervention. Outcomes were grouped according to study design, type of diabetes, category of technological intervention, location, and sample size. RESULTS This review included 5 articles evaluating the use of social media tools in the management of diabetes in the Middle East. In most studies, the acceptance rate for the use of social networking to optimize the management of diabetes was relatively high. Diabetes-specific management tools such as the Saudi Arabia Networking for Aiding Diabetes and Diabetes Intelligent Management System for Iraq systems helped collect patient information and lower hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels, respectively. CONCLUSIONS The reviewed studies demonstrated the potential of social networking tools being adopted in regions in the Middle East to improve the management of diabetes. Future studies consisting of larger sample sizes spanning multiple regions would provide further insight into the use of social media for improving patient outcomes.

scholarly journals Open Access in Humanities and Social Sciences

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eelco Ferwerda
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Open Access ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Scholarly Communication ◽  
Reward System ◽  
Successful Transition ◽  
Creative Commons ◽  
Stem Disciplines ◽  
Key Driver ◽  
Humanities And Social Sciences

See video of the presentation.Ferwerda will talk about the various ways in which the transition to OA is taking place within HSS and STEM disciplines. He will discuss the specific features of many HSS disciplines that need to be taken into account for a successful transition to OA. HSS has different publishing profiles, in some disciplines monographs are still the dominant format. Authors in HSS have different values and a different perspective on Creative Commons licenses. A key driver in the current publication culture is the reputation and reward system. In many countries the way research is funded is also an important issue. Ferwerda will also look at business models for OA publishing and discuss the models that may work for HSS. These and other issues will lead him to the conclusion that a successful transition to OA will require the involvement of all stakeholders in scholarly communication.

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