Facebook for intercultural communication: The foreign students’ experience

Computer-mediated communication is an integral part of how people communicate in today’s modern society. The impact of social media on intercultural competency is a new territory that is beginning to interest scholars and researchers. Part and parcel of a foreign university student’s experience in a...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Raja Zainal Hassan, Raja Rodziah, Hassan, Nor Azlili, Sallehuddin, Iza Sharina, Abdul Aziz, Nik Norazira
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Universiti Utara Malaysia Press 2020
Subjects:
Online Access:https://repo.uum.edu.my/id/eprint/28142/1/JIS%20%2016%202020%2025-37.pdf
_version_ 1803629413564153856
author Raja Zainal Hassan, Raja Rodziah
Hassan, Nor Azlili
Sallehuddin, Iza Sharina
Abdul Aziz, Nik Norazira
author_facet Raja Zainal Hassan, Raja Rodziah
Hassan, Nor Azlili
Sallehuddin, Iza Sharina
Abdul Aziz, Nik Norazira
author_sort Raja Zainal Hassan, Raja Rodziah
collection UUM
description Computer-mediated communication is an integral part of how people communicate in today’s modern society. The impact of social media on intercultural competency is a new territory that is beginning to interest scholars and researchers. Part and parcel of a foreign university student’s experience in a host country are managing cultural differences. Understanding how foreign university students use computer-mediated communication will provide insights into the impacts of social media (Facebook) on intercultural learning experiences. The aims of this study are: 1) to analyse the experience of foreign university students in using Facebook to communicate with their local peers 2) to examine Facebook usage pattern(s) among foreign university students in Malaysia, and; 3) to determine the level of intercultural competency among foreign university students in Malaysia. The study employs the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (ISS) developed by Chen and Starosta (2000) in analysing how foreign university students in Malaysia use Facebook as part of a platform in learning and coping with cultural differences. This study analyses data from a survey of 210 foreign university students in Klang Valley, Malaysia. The findings from this study illustrated that the majority of foreign university students enjoy communicating with their local peers who are from different cultures using Facebook. The findings highlight that foreign university students are confident when communicating with their local friends and they are culturally competent. This is examined from the online interactions with their local peers and the Facebook usage pattern developed from their experience.
first_indexed 2024-07-04T06:37:28Z
format Article
id uum-28142
institution Universiti Utara Malaysia
language English
last_indexed 2024-07-04T06:37:28Z
publishDate 2020
publisher Universiti Utara Malaysia Press
record_format dspace
spelling uum-281422021-02-03T05:59:31Z https://repo.uum.edu.my/id/eprint/28142/ Facebook for intercultural communication: The foreign students’ experience Raja Zainal Hassan, Raja Rodziah Hassan, Nor Azlili Sallehuddin, Iza Sharina Abdul Aziz, Nik Norazira PL Languages and literatures of Eastern Asia, Africa, Oceania Computer-mediated communication is an integral part of how people communicate in today’s modern society. The impact of social media on intercultural competency is a new territory that is beginning to interest scholars and researchers. Part and parcel of a foreign university student’s experience in a host country are managing cultural differences. Understanding how foreign university students use computer-mediated communication will provide insights into the impacts of social media (Facebook) on intercultural learning experiences. The aims of this study are: 1) to analyse the experience of foreign university students in using Facebook to communicate with their local peers 2) to examine Facebook usage pattern(s) among foreign university students in Malaysia, and; 3) to determine the level of intercultural competency among foreign university students in Malaysia. The study employs the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (ISS) developed by Chen and Starosta (2000) in analysing how foreign university students in Malaysia use Facebook as part of a platform in learning and coping with cultural differences. This study analyses data from a survey of 210 foreign university students in Klang Valley, Malaysia. The findings from this study illustrated that the majority of foreign university students enjoy communicating with their local peers who are from different cultures using Facebook. The findings highlight that foreign university students are confident when communicating with their local friends and they are culturally competent. This is examined from the online interactions with their local peers and the Facebook usage pattern developed from their experience. Universiti Utara Malaysia Press 2020 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en https://repo.uum.edu.my/id/eprint/28142/1/JIS%20%2016%202020%2025-37.pdf Raja Zainal Hassan, Raja Rodziah and Hassan, Nor Azlili and Sallehuddin, Iza Sharina and Abdul Aziz, Nik Norazira (2020) Facebook for intercultural communication: The foreign students’ experience. Journal of International Studies (JIS), 16. pp. 25-37. ISSN 1823-691X http://jis.uum.edu.my/index.php/current-issues
spellingShingle PL Languages and literatures of Eastern Asia, Africa, Oceania
Raja Zainal Hassan, Raja Rodziah
Hassan, Nor Azlili
Sallehuddin, Iza Sharina
Abdul Aziz, Nik Norazira
Facebook for intercultural communication: The foreign students’ experience
title Facebook for intercultural communication: The foreign students’ experience
title_full Facebook for intercultural communication: The foreign students’ experience
title_fullStr Facebook for intercultural communication: The foreign students’ experience
title_full_unstemmed Facebook for intercultural communication: The foreign students’ experience
title_short Facebook for intercultural communication: The foreign students’ experience
title_sort facebook for intercultural communication the foreign students experience
topic PL Languages and literatures of Eastern Asia, Africa, Oceania
url https://repo.uum.edu.my/id/eprint/28142/1/JIS%20%2016%202020%2025-37.pdf
work_keys_str_mv AT rajazainalhassanrajarodziah facebookforinterculturalcommunicationtheforeignstudentsexperience
AT hassannorazlili facebookforinterculturalcommunicationtheforeignstudentsexperience
AT sallehuddinizasharina facebookforinterculturalcommunicationtheforeignstudentsexperience
AT abdulazizniknorazira facebookforinterculturalcommunicationtheforeignstudentsexperience