Abstract
The great popularisation of social media at the beginning of the 21st century has led to the production of many empirical studies in an attempt to explore the opportunities these platforms provide for different activities, such as learning and updating for professionals. This study aims to identify and summarise the main characteristics of research into social media and professional development published between 2013 and 2017. We analysed the years, journals, conceptual background, research methodologies, data collection tools, professional disciplines, educational contexts, types of social media and characteristics of social media that can generate learning opportunities. A total of 44 articles were selected and analysed from peer-reviewed journals. Findings revealed that (1) an upward trend with respect to research on social media and professional development; (2) surveys were the main research method for collecting data about social media; (3) health and education sciences are the most studied fields of knowledge; (4) there is a special interest in the study of social media in informal learning contexts; (5) Twitter is the most studied social media platform and (6) social media seems to be a sustainable support for professional development due to its open, social and flexible nature. Implications of findings for future research are also discussed.
Highlights
The intensive and widespread use of digital technologies by today’s society has modified and expanded the way in which people communicate and learn (Donelan 2016)
A distinction must be made between the kind of data obtained through, for example, Twitter or LinkedIn web analytics, and data obtained from content generated and shared on social media through, for example, Twitter posts, YouTube comments or Facebook chats (Figure 5)
Among the many characteristics to emerge from the set of studies, we would highlight opportunities derived from (1) the openness of social media, especially in terms of access to new ideas that allow people to keep up to date with diverse aspects of their profession, overcoming spatial, temporal and economic barriers; (2) the multiple communication and sharing options that these media allow by enabling different forms of interaction between users and (3) by being authentically situated in the professional field and familiar to most users; (4) the diverse types of personal or professional networks facilitated by social media and (5) the user-centred focus, especially conducive to self-directed and informal learning. These characteristics seem defining when thinking about social media for professional development and its applications for professionals’ learning and updating. This systematic literature review analysed and synthesised 5 years of research in social media and professional development, covering years and disciplines not covered in the previous literature review
Summary
The intensive and widespread use of digital technologies by today’s society has modified and expanded the way in which people communicate and learn (Donelan 2016). Nowadays, citizens use these technologies for multiple purposes, both in their personal and professional spheres (Hunter and Hall 2018). Social media have emerged as a prominent element of digital technologies that can be defined as global digital communication platforms These platforms, which connect large numbers of users producing and exchanging user-generated content, seem able to offer sustainable support for professionals’ lifelong learning, thanks to Technology (ALT), a UK-based professional and scholarly society and membership organisation.
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