Received:
2026-05-15 | Accepted:
2026-08-11 | Published:
2026-09-30
Title
Impact of social media use on digital inequality among students: a case study
Abstract
This study investigates how bridging social capital shapes digital inequality among undergraduate students at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), Ghana. It examines whether diverse inter-group networks predict digital access, skills, and purposive digital use. A quantitative cross-sectional survey of 412 stratified, randomly sampled UPSA undergraduates was conducted. Bridging social capital was measured using Williams's (2006) Internet Social Capital Scale and an adapted resource generator. Digital inequality was operationalised across three dimensions. Structural equation modelling with SmartPLS 4.0 and bootstrapped mediation analysis were applied. Bridging social capital significantly predicted digital skills (β = 0.341, p < 0.001) and purposive digital use (β = 0.297, p < 0.001), but not physical access. Digital skills mediated 63.7% of the total effect on purposive use. Income remained the dominant predictor of access-level inequality. The cross-sectional, single-institution design limits causal inference. Institutions should invest in peer mentoring and cross-departmental communities as cost-effective mechanisms for bridging digital skill gaps. This study provides original empirical evidence from sub-Saharan Africa, extending digital capital theory by positioning bridging social capital as an antecedent to digital capital accumulation in resource-constrained higher education settings.
Keywords
social capital, social media, Accra, University of Professional Studies, digital inequality, digital capital, higher education, Ghana, Sub-Saharan Africa, digital skills, students, social media
JEL classifications
O33
, R58
URI
http://jssidoi.org/ird/article/274
DOI
Pages
160-173
Funding
This is an open access issue and all published articles are licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
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