Students' Perceptions of Social Media Use as a Learning Tool in Dental Education: A Cross-Sectional Survey.

Purpose: This survey study aims to investigate the extent and purposes of using social media as a learning tool by dental students during their education process and to raise awareness among educators in this field. It is of interest whether social media platforms, such as YouTube, which are rich in theoretical and practical visuals in various professional fields, support the learning process in dental education as well, and what the attitudes of our students are toward this subject.

Materials and methods: In order to conduct the study, a survey consisting of Likert-type and multiple-choice questions was prepared to be administered to first-, second-, third-, fourth-, and fifth-year students of Faculty of Dentistry Muğla Sıtkı Kocman University. Printed survey forms were distributed to the faculty students who were invited through an announcement poster, collected by an independent assistant unrelated to the research, and delivered to the responsible researcher.

Results: The responses to the fully and accurately completed survey questions were analyzed using the SPSS 20 program, and the results were compared through Pearson's chi-square analysis based on N and % values.

Conclusions: Despite students expressing a clear need for formal academic education and perceiving social media as a supplementary resource, academic level, gender, and clinical phase play a critical role in shaping students' perceptions of social media as a learning tool. Also, prosthetic and restorative dentistry are the most preferred specialties for watching videos.