THE COMMUNICATIVE INFLUENCE OF PIDGIN ENGLISH ON SOCIAL MEDIA WRITING AMONG UNIVERSITY UNDERGRADUATES IN EKITI-STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

The study examined the communicative influence of Pidgin English on social media writing among undergraduates in four universities in Ekiti State. A descriptive survey research design, was used. The population comprised 52,042 undergraduates, with a sample of 525 students selected through multistage sampling. The Perception of Pidgin English among University Undergraduates Questionnaire (PCSCMUUQ) was employed for data collection. The validity of the instrument was acertained by scholars. The validity of the instrument was established by Cronbach Alpha method. Analysis involved descriptive and inferential statistics, including Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation, t-test, and simple regression. Key findings indicated significant correlations between Pidgin English use and social media writing skills. Recommendations included advising undergraduates to adhere to their chosen language on social media or use quotation marks when intentionally incorporating other codes to demonstrate compliance with syntactic rules.