When Instagram gets too much’: Exploring social media fatigue and its impact on students’ engagement with online learning”, Academy of Marketing Conference 2022, 5-7 July, University of Huddersfield.

Since early 2020 there has been a trend towards more interactive, two-way, real time online learning, with the claim that it facilitates a multitude of benefits, including the development of employability skills. However, there is a growing body of evidence suggesting that the heavy use of social media during the pandemic has led to “social media fatigue” (Zhang et al, 2021) especially among generation Z (Liu et al, 2021). Students may also be affected by “Zoom fatigue” (Ramachandran, 2021). This study aims to investigate if current Marketing students’ learning experience, particularly the intention to engage in online learning is impacted by these phenomena. The authors hypothesise that students’ social and behavioural characteristics, their technology and social media use, academic self-efficacy, their perceived level of social media and Zoom fatigue have an impact on learners’ intention to engage in online learning. In particular we expect self-efficacy to moderate the impact of social media and Zoom fatigue on learning experience. The study employs a mixed method approach consisting of a survey and focus group interviews based on using a sample of undergraduate and postgraduate Marketing students at two UK universities. (Work in progress)