Effects of demographic variables on university students' digital media usage habits: An analytical study

The rapid development of digital media has transformed the media habits of young people, necessitating the examination of factors influencing university students' information acquisition and media preferences. Although there are relatively few studies focusing on the media preferences of undergraduate students, this research aims to make a unique contribution by focusing specifically on students from the Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences (FEAS). The primary objective of this study is to examine the relationship between the frequency of digital media usage among university students and various factors such as gender, family status, academic department, class level, and age. The study seeks to gain a deeper understanding of how these factors influence students' media usage habits, digital media preferences, and communication styles. To collect data, the study utilized a quota sampling method, targeting 500 FEAS students. Independent variables such as age, gender, and household income were considered to assess the levels of media usage. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS software, and T-tests and ANOVA were applied to examine the relationships between dependent and independent variables. The findings indicate that digital media usage among FEAS students varies significantly based on gender, academic department, and class level. Female students were found to use digital media more actively than their male counterparts, while students from social sciences departments reported reading news more frequently than students in other disciplines. Additionally, it was observed that as the class level increases, the frequency of digital media usage also rises.