The role of social networks in the scholarly communication of students and faculty members of Iran University of Medical Sciences

Abstract

Introduction: Academic social networks have greatly influenced scholarly communication in the last decade. The purpose of this study was to determine the role of these networks in the scholarly communication of students and faculty members of Iran University of Medical Sciences. Methods: The study used a descriptive-survey method. The study population included post-graduate students and faculty members of Iran University of Medical Sciences. Using the stratified random sampling method, we selected 450 persons. A self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. Its validity was evaluated by six faculty members, and its reliability was estimated by using Cronbach's alpha, which was 0.96. The results were analyzed by the SPSS-19 software. Results: Information searching with a mean of 3.59, and information publishing and sharing with a mean of 3.38 were significant advantages of utilizing academic social networks for scholarly communications. Moreover, the lack of educational workshops were the most important deterrents in using these networks. Testing the hypotheses also indicated that there was a significant relationship between social network use and scholarly communication of students and faculty members. The mean scores of research collaborations, finding research topics, and information search among students were higher than those of faculty members. Finally, there was no statistically significant relationship between academic degree, age, and social network use. Conclusion: the results showed that the use of social networks in scholarly communication between users was effective. Thus, introducing the capabilities of the networks and conducting educational workshops can enhance the productivity of the networks in all scholarly communication dimensions. Received: 08/Oct/2021