The Uses and Gratifications of Social Media Interaction - An Applied Study on the Saudi Audience

Abstract

Many researchers have sought to develop and apply existing media theories to the study of social media phenomena. Among these theories are the Uses and Gratifications theory and the Media Dependency theory. Some argue that Facebook usage is not separate from common usage patterns, such as spending time, entertainment, relaxation, reducing daily stress, and seeking information. From this perspective, Facebook achieves a synthesis between the needs of both new and traditional media. Audience behaviors are purposeful actions aimed at fulfilling specific needs, such as communicating with others, building new relationships, sharing their activities, and seeking individuals who share similar intellectual orientations and lifestyle patterns. This study aims to uncover new research directions regarding the Uses and Gratifications theory in social networks that could lead to theoretical additions in the future. It has become more focused on issues of identity disclosure, friendship behaviors, and privacy on these networks. This study employed a descriptive approach and used an electronic questionnaire to collect study data, the questionnaire consisted of three main dimensions: the first dimension included items related to the level of cognitive awareness, the second dimension included items related to the level of affective awareness, and the third dimension included items related to the level of behavioral awareness, and was conducted on a random sample of 100 individuals from the Saudi audience aged 18 years and above who use social media.