Paper Info
Title
Imagined Facebook: An exploratory study of non-users' perceptions of social media in Rural Zambia.
Abstract
This article describes an exploratory study of Facebook non-users living in rural Zambia. Drawing on evidence from 37 group interviews with mobile phone owners, we discovered that the majority of our participants were aware of, or imagined' Facebook, despite never having seen or used the site. Our analysis of how participants perceive Facebook suggests that they are interested in the communication and income-generating possibilities access to the site may provide, but that barriers prevent them from acting on these interests. This study contributes to social media research by making visible the experiences of a population whose non-use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) results from economic, infrastructural, and linguistic sources, as well as from other, hitherto less-explored areas. We discuss the practical significance of these findings, offer future research suggestions, and comment on what our respondents have not yet imagined about Facebook.
Year
DOI
Venue
2017
10.1177/1461444815625948
NEW MEDIA & SOCIETY
Keywords
Field
DocType
Africa,Facebook,mobile phones,non-users,qualitative research,social media,Zambia
Social psychology,Population,Social media,Sociology,Cyberpsychology,Information and Communications Technology,Mobile phone,Qualitative research,Exploratory research,Perception
Journal
Volume
Issue
ISSN
19
7
1461-4448
Citations 
PageRank 
References 
4
0.41
14
Authors
2
Name
Order
Citations
PageRank
Susan Wyche19611.53
Eric P.S. Baumer264245.77