Magnetism of WhatsApp among veterinary students

Date06 November 2017
Pages1259-1267
Published date06 November 2017
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1108/EL-04-2016-0086
AuthorDhiraj Kumar Malhotra,Sonia Bansal
Subject MatterInformation & knowledge management,Information & communications technology,Internet
Magnetism of WhatsApp among
veterinary students
Dhiraj Kumar Malhotra and Sonia Bansal
University Library, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University,
Ludhiana, India
Abstract
Purpose Instant messaging (IM) apps like WhatsApp have given an impetus to rapid sharing of
information through multimediamessages in this information age and their clear impact has been noticedin
the academic sector.The present study is conducted with the aim to understand the magnetism of WhatsApp
among veterinary students.The major purpose of the study is to analyse the use of WhatsApp for academic
proposeswith a special emphasis on its impact on studies.
Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from students of Guru Angad Dev Veterinary
and Animal Sciences University(GADVASU) using questionnaires as a tool. Questionnaires wererandomly
distributed among 100 postgraduate(PG) and 100 undergraduate (UG) students. In total, 78 PG and 77 UG
studentsresponded to the survey.
Findings More than 90 per cent of the students were using WhatsApp for academic purposes. More
UG students were using WhatsApp to chat, share images/videos and so forth for academic purposes as
compared to PG students. Nearly two-thirds of the students admitted that addiction to using WhatsApp
diverted attention from doing any other kind of activity. More than 75 per cent of the users were using
WhatsApp while studying at their home or hostel. About 28 per cent of the students said that the use of
WhatsApp had affected their studies, and more than 60 per cent of these students noticed a positive
effect.
Originality/value WhatsApp increases knowledge sharing, leading to enhanced creativity. Thus,
WhatsApp can contribute signicantlyto the academic community by users consciously controllingits use
and not allowingits addictive nature to divert attention fromtheir studies.
Keywords Impacts, Magnetism, WhatsApp, Veterinary students
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
The existence of information has no importance unlessit is made available to the right user
at the needed time. Developments in information and communication technology (ICT),
especially in mobile technology,have played an important role in making large amounts of
information readily available. These advancements in mobile technology have created an
information age, where information can be provided right into the users palms in a
convenient, easy-to-read/listen/view/watch manner, and in an inexpensive way. Mobile
technology has provided a platform that can benetthe have-nots section of the information
society with the help of multimedia-enabled mobile apps. Recently, various smartphone-
based instant messaging (IM) appshave been developed which have transformed our ways
of communicating. IM is real-time online communication between two or more people that
enables people to chat by rapidly exchanging text messages and share multimedia
messages via the internet (Foley, 2002). IM apps include Viber, WhatsApp, WeChat, Hike,
MessageMe, Nimbuzz and LINE. Amongst these, WhatsApp, a cross-platform mobile
messaging app, has become very popular, and it has more than 1 billion monthly active
users (Statista, 2016).
Magnetism of
WhatsApp
1259
Received12 April 2016
Revised10 May 2016
13June 2016
17April 2017
Accepted17 April 2017
TheElectronic Library
Vol.35 No. 6, 2017
pp. 1259-1267
© Emerald Publishing Limited
0264-0473
DOI 10.1108/EL-04-2016-0086
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/0264-0473.htm

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