Attitudes of health professional educators toward the use of social media as a teaching tool: Global cross-sectional study

Background: The use of social media in health education has witnessed a revolution within the past decade. Students have already adopted social media informally to share information and supplement their lecture-based learning. Although studies show comparable efficacy and improved engagement when social media is used as a teaching tool, broad-based adoption has been slow and the data on barriers to uptake have not been well documented. Objective: The objective of this study was to assess attitudes of health educators toward social media use in education, examine differences between faculty members who do and do not use social media in teaching practice, and determine contributing factors for an increase in the uptake of social media. Methods: A cross-sectional Web-based survey was disseminated to the faculty of health professional education departments at 8 global institutions. Respondents were categorized based on the frequency of social media use in teaching as “users” and “nonusers.” Users sometimes, often, or always used social media, whereas nonusers never or rarely used social media. Results: A total of 270 health educators (52.9%, n=143 users and 47.0%, n=127 nonusers) were included in the survey. Users and nonusers demonstrated significant differences on perceived barriers and potential benefits to the use of social media. Users were more motivated by learner satisfaction and deterred by lack of technology compatibility, whereas nonusers reported the need for departmental and skill development support. Both shared concerns of professionalism and lack of evidence showing enhanced learning. Conclusions: The majority of educators are open-minded to incorporating social media into their teaching practice. However, both users and nonusers have unique perceived challenges and needs, and engaging them to adapt social media into their educational practice will require previously unreported approaches. Identification of these differences and areas of overlap presents opportunities to determine a strategy to increase adoption.