Young Emiratis using social media intensely

James Buie and I presented a paper titled “Social Media Usage and the Changing Context in the United Arab Emirates” at the Gulf Research Meeting at Cambridge University in Cambridge, England, on 26 August 2014. Our presentation was given at the Cambridge University Press building. We participated in a workshop on social media in the Gulf led by Professor Doug Boyd of the University of Kentucky in the United States.

Using a survey given to more than 250 university students ages 18 to 32, Buie and Bulla found that 72 percent of the respondents use social media at least 21 hours a week. (The response rate for the survey was 67 percent.) Many said they used it as much as 35 hours per week. This means that these Emirati students spend more time on social media than in the classroom and studying for homework.

Socializing with friends was the main use of social media among the respondents. Communicating with family was the second greatest reason for using social media. Here is a typical response from those surveyed: “Social media give me insight on my friends’ and family’s life. It informs me on any updates in their lives, since I don’t get to see them every day.”

Respondents also see social media as a consumer tool. One respondent noted that she used social media for “updates about fashion, politics and news in general through reading tweets or checking Instagram. Also, I use it for shopping because there are a lot of online shops on Instagram.” Several respondents observed that consumer decisions were affected by what they read on social media.

The survey also showed that nearly 60 percent of respondents posted a photograph on social media at least once a week—with nearly 30 percent posting one per day. Nearly 80 percent said social media is either very positive or extremely positive.

The implications for the public relations profession is clear: PR practitioners need to keep in mind that the one of the best ways to reach young people today is via social media. And which social media are Emirati youth most likely to use? Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat were the most frequently used social media platforms/applications, the respondents said. Although Facebook has a high penetration rate in the UAE, most young people are not regularly engaged with it.

Several respondents in the survey enjoy the immediacy of social media. “I share instant moments by capturing them and sharing with others,” one respondent wrote in the open section portion of the survey. “Many of my Instagram followers actually enjoy my photo stream and constantly check for updates.” Another respondent wrote: “This instant communication reaches such a wide range of individuals, and that’s how I like to use social media.”

Another important finding is that social media usage in the UAE is constantly changing. Young Emiratis, who usually own multiple smartphones, are so wired that they keep up to date not only with the latest technology but most of the newest social media platforms. One survey respondent observed: “In the few past years my usage has become totally different. It was all about socializing with friends and tweeting useless things, but now it is totally different. It’s a gateway for me to share thoughts through Twitter and different apps. I read the news daily through social media and get involved in many volunteering events or activities that I explore through social media.” In other words, this person’s use of social media shows growth from selfish to unselfish reasons. One of the respondents said that she used social media in her volunteer work.

This also has implications for public relations. Many Emirati youths feel a strong need to give back to the community. Social media offers a channel for networking with like-minded people. It also is a way to connect to the public. Emirati students, and other citizens have, since 2013, used social media to organize dozens of charitable, volunteer efforts, as well as public service awareness campaigns. These include breast cancer awareness, “say no to drugs,” slow down and drive safely, UAE National Day home flag display, deaf awareness/learn sign language, stop illegal waste-dumping, choose public transportation, and donate to Syrian refugees. Such campaigns have been highly successful and deserve further attention from communication researchers and the PR industry.

The authors believe more focused research needs to be done on social media and cultural change in the UAE. Researchers need to look how intense social media usage is affecting traditional cultural activities, societal laws and rules, and personal behavior. The tension between the rather large discretionary income that many Emiratis have and the traditional mores of an Arab and Islamic society that only a generation ago did almost all of its communication face to face and orally is an area of concern and worthy of in-depth analysis. Furthermore, how can such a privacy-oriented society square itself with the public nature of posting visual images on websites like Instagram, YouTube and Keek?

In conclusion, young Emiratis are both heavy and savvy users of social media. They use social media for a variety of reasons: keeping up with friends and family, collecting and sharing news, deliberating on consumer choices, making vanity postings, doing homework, etc. … Indeed, many young Emiratis spend more time on social media that any other activity in their lives. Although this is the state of affairs in the country, at least with young people, this situation should give parents and society some sense of foreboding. Indeed, more than 20 percent of the respondents had concerns about negative use of social media. Should these young people be so dependent on their mobile phones and social media? An article in The National newspaper on 5 September 2014 titled “Children are becoming addicted to social media” quoted a psychiatrist in Sharjah who worries that too much time spent on the digital technological devices that are the homes of social media could harm young people’s health and development.