Social media use and its impact on Palestinian women’s well being and self-empowerment
Keywords:
women, palestine, empowerment, social media, marginalized populations, social supportAbstract
Social media usage and its effects have been studied extensively in communication, psychology, and a wide range of disciplines. One relatively under researched area is the role and influence of social media on underrepresented groups, particularly women living under prolonged conflict and humanitarian crises. The current study focuses on the role of social media in influencing Palestinian women’s self-empowerment, the most socially marginalized group due to the ongoing conflict and issues related to gender exclusion in that region. Building on uses and gratification theory (UGT), this study surveys 364 Palestinian women in Gaza and the West Bank to examine the effects of social media on self-esteem, satisfaction with life, perceived social support, and loneliness. Findings indicate that young women are heavy social media users, especially Facebook. Both perceived social support and loneliness are related to Palestinian women’s social media use. Findings imply that despite the vastly researched and reported negative effects of social media, there are some positive effects, especially on marginalized populations.
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