Adolescents' perception and Attitudes Towards Social Media Networks in Egypt

The high penetration of social media networks – specifically the Facebook- and the role it plays in the lives of adolescents makes it a relevant topic of discussion and scientific research. It is now proven that social media networks constitutes an important part in the lives of adolescents, as they consider it an interesting and cool media.  They use the internet to express themselves away from any parental supervision. In Egypt, the introduction of DSL services had lead to increase in computer literacy and hours spent on the internet among the different social classes.  However, the Egyptian society is not fully aware of the risks that are associated with internet usage by children and adolescents, as most of the sample admitted that they are exposed to undesired websites when they navigate the net. Although Egyptian parents do not set any rules regarding their children internet usage, adolescents understand what is considered risky over the net and they take a neutral strategy when facing risks by just ignoring the whole experience. Social media networks for them are a means of self-expression and social interaction with others and it is a pleasurable way to spend leisure time.  They use Facebook for different personal and social communication reasons.
The Facebook played a role in creating the spirit of protest in Egypt.  It was social media networks that attracted adolescents to be part of this massive change, and encouraged them to give a hand in change despite their young age.
 
Limitations and recommendations for future research:
This research presented a descriptive survey of uses and gratifications of Facebook in Egypt.  The research was conducted on a limited sample of adolescents aged between 12-16 years old, in a limited number of high class districts in Cairo- the capital, so it needs to expand the sample geographically to encompass a variety of economic and social classes of adolescents, specifically with the increase in usage of Facebook in Arabic Language and the spread of new informal language in instant messaging and blackberry messaging that uses numbers and abbreviations.
Social media networks are rich area for research across different disciplines as sociology, psychology, political science. More research is needed to guide in designing policies that would safeguard children in different stages of cognitive development.
Finally, cross cultural studies of social media networks can shed light on social and cultural differences in internet usage and social communication patterns in different societies.