The Proliferation of Twitter Accounts in a Higher Education Institution

ABSTRACT

Social media networks in higher education have become effective tools. Students, instructors, staff, and society rely on social media to support educational activities, spreading information and news, and responding to user inquiries. Twitter, in particular, is considered one of the most influential social media tools in the education process. This has resulted in the emergence of many Twitter accounts affiliated with the same higher education institution. The purpose of this study was to identify the magnitude of this phenomenon and user attitudes toward it. The study was carried out at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University and included a digital exploration of all accounts that were released during the past decade and an online survey in which a sample of followers (1,200) and a group of account managers (116) participated. The results showed that multiple accounts did represent the higher education institution. Additionally,the study revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic increased the emergence of new accounts and the abandoning of existing accounts. Furthermore, users confirmed their confidence in these accounts for information and support;however, they believe that the proliferation of Twitter accounts is distracting and overwhelming. Finally, this paper reveals some recommendations and opportunities for future studies related to the subject. © 2022. All Rights Reserved.