use of whatsapp as an organizational communication
101
USE OF WHATSAPP AS AN ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION PLATFORM: A CASE OF KENYA’S SAFARICOM TECHNOLOGY DIVISION by KARIUKI NAOMI FAITH WARIARA A Thesis Submitted to the School of Science and Technology in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree of Master of Arts in Communication UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY – AFRICA August 2017
-
Upload
khangminh22 -
Category
Documents
-
view
1 -
download
0
Transcript of use of whatsapp as an organizational communication
USE OF WHATSAPP AS AN ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION
PLATFORM: A CASE OF KENYA’S SAFARICOM TECHNOLOGY DIVISION
by
KARIUKI NAOMI FAITH WARIARA
A Thesis Submitted to the School of Science and Technology in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements of the Degree of
Master of Arts in Communication
UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY – AFRICA
August 2017
i
USE OF WHATSAPP AS AN ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION
PLATFORM: A CASE OF KENYA’S SAFARICOM TECHNOLOGY DIVISION
by
KARIUKI NAOMI FAITH WARIARA
A Thesis Submitted to the School of Science and Technology in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements of the Degree of
Master of Arts in Communication
UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY – AFRICA
SUMMER 2017
ii
Declaration
I, the undersigned, declare that this is my original work and has not been submitted to any
other college, institution or university other than the United States International
University-Africa as part of qualification for Masters in Communication degree.
Signed: ________________________ Date: ____________________________
Kariuki Naomi Faith Wariara
iii
Approval
This project has been presented for examination with my approval as the appointed
supervisor.
Signed: _______________________ Date: ____________________
Prof. Nancy Muturi
Supervisor
Signed: _______________________ Date: ____________________
Dr. Stephen Kimotho
Program Director, Journalism
Signed: _______________________ Date: ____________________
Prof. Jimmy K. Macharia
Dean, School of Science and Technology
Signed: _______________________ Date: ____________________
Amb. Prof. Ruthie Rono
Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academic Affairs and Student Affairs
iv
Copyright
Copyright © 2017
by
Kariuki Naomi Faith Wariara
v
Acknowledgments
I would like to acknowledge those that made this project viable. I most sincerely
appreciate all my lecturers at USIU-A who filled in a knowledge gap that existed within
me and from whose efforts this piece of work hold together. I would like to acknowledge
the support that I received from Dr. Kioko Ireri in the initial stages of this work. You
have always inspired me to be a great researcher. Special thanks go to Prof. Nancy
Muturi whose dedication and support in ensuring that the project was completed on time
is invaluable. You were simply God-sent. Your intellect, dedication and in-depth
guidance in ensuring that I produce quality work cannot be taken for granted.
My special gratitude goes to my entire family who stood by me and encouraged me to
press on. Special thanks go to my mum for ensuring that I got a good foundation in
education. You are simply amazing. To my husband, Joseph, your great support in this is
highly appreciated. Thanks for always being there for me through thick and thin. To my
sons, Joseph and Joseph, you challenged me in your own ways and disappointing you
was the last thing I would do. To the expected one, thank you for making it easy for me!
To my sister Susan, you always stood by me and increased my faith that this can be
achieved and I should not give up. You are the best sister anyone would wish for.
For the respondents who took their time to answer my research questionnaire and
especially in a timely manner, may God bless you. To my colleagues in the MACS class,
thank you for your indelible cooperation. May you always achieve what you desire in
life. Lastly, I am grateful to God for the opportunity that he availed to me and for the
assurance that I can always depend on Him. What can I do without you?
vi
Dedication
To God my all-time Father, in whom I live, I move and have my being. The favors I get
from you are amazing and unfathomable.
vii
Table of Contents
Declaration .......................................................................................................................... ii
Approval ............................................................................................................................ iii
Copyright ........................................................................................................................... iv
Acknowledgments................................................................................................................v
Dedication .......................................................................................................................... vi
Table of Contents .............................................................................................................. vii
List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... ix
List of Figures ......................................................................................................................x
Abstract .............................................................................................................................. xi
CHAPTER 1 ......................................................................................................................13
INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................13
Background of the Problem ...........................................................................................13
Statement of the Problem ...............................................................................................19
Purpose of the Study ......................................................................................................22
Research Objectives .......................................................................................................22
Research Questions ........................................................................................................23
Significance of the Study ...............................................................................................23
Scope of the Study .........................................................................................................25
Definition of terms .........................................................................................................26
Plan of the Study ............................................................................................................27
CHAPTER TWO ...............................................................................................................28
LITERATURE REVIEW ..................................................................................................28
Theoretical Framework ..................................................................................................28
Literature Review...........................................................................................................33
Formal Communication in Organizations ......................................................................33
Informal Communication in Organizations ...................................................................34
Socialization in Organizations .......................................................................................36
Social Media as a Means of Communication in Organizations .....................................37
WhatsApp as a Communication Platform......................................................................39
Organizations as Social Systems ...................................................................................42
Conceptual Framework ..................................................................................................45
CHAPTER THREE ...........................................................................................................47
METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................................47
Research Design.............................................................................................................47
viii
Research Approach ........................................................................................................47
Target Population ...........................................................................................................48
Sampling Design ............................................................................................................48
Data Collection ..............................................................................................................50
Response Rate ................................................................................................................51
Validity of Research Instruments...................................................................................53
Reliability of Research Instruments ...............................................................................53
Measurements ................................................................................................................54
Operationalization of Variables .....................................................................................54
Methods of Data Analysis ..............................................................................................55
Ethical Issues .................................................................................................................56
CHAPTER FOUR ..............................................................................................................57
RESULTS ..........................................................................................................................57
Demographic Characteristics .........................................................................................57
How Technology Division Staff use WhatsApp ............................................................59
Motivation for Adopting WhatsApp in Safaricom Technology Division .....................62
Gratifications Obtained from WhatsApp Usage ............................................................65
WhatsApp Users Level of Satisfaction ..........................................................................66
WhatsApp Usage Satisfaction by Demographics ..........................................................69
CHAPTER FIVE ...............................................................................................................75
DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS .....................................75
Discussion of Key Findings ...........................................................................................75
Limitations .....................................................................................................................78
Implications....................................................................................................................79
Conclusions ....................................................................................................................79
Recommendations ..........................................................................................................82
REFERENCES ..................................................................................................................84
APPENDICES ...................................................................................................................90
Appendix 1: Implementation budget .............................................................................90
Appendix 2: Research Questionnaire Letter ..................................................................91
Appendix 3: Questionnaire ............................................................................................92
Appendix 4: USIU-A Research Approval Letter ...........................................................99
Appendix 5: NACOSTI Research Approval Letter .....................................................100
ix
List of Tables
Table 3.1 Sample size table for various departments ....................................................... 50
Table 4.1 Respondents’ demographic characteristics ...................................................... 58
Table 4.2 Hours per week spent on WhatsApp ................................................................. 59
Table 4.3 Hours that colleagues are anticipated to be online .......................................... 60
Table 4.4 Respondents motivation to use WhatsApp ........................................................ 63
Table 4.5 Needs that are gratified by WhatsApp in Safaricom technology division ........ 66
Table 4.6 Needs satisfaction frequency ............................................................................ 67
x
List of Figures
Figure 2.1 The Formality Dimension of Communication (Fish et al., 1990). .................. 35
Figure 2.2 Conceptual Framework ................................................................................... 46
Figure 4.1 Category of information sent to a colleague in 24 hours ................................ 61
Figure 4.2 WhatsApp influence in decision making .......................................................... 62
Figure 4.3 WhatsApp satisfaction level per age bracket................................................... 70
Figure 4.4 Satisfaction level per education level .............................................................. 71
Figure 4.5 Satisfaction per level of work experience ........................................................ 72
Figure 4.6 Satisfaction level by gender ............................................................................. 73
Figure 4.7 Satisfaction level per marital status category ................................................. 74
xi
Abstract
The use of technology in communication has proliferated in the last decade, more so with
the advancement of mobile technology which has made information dissemination and
reception more instantaneous. With the advancement in mobile communication
technology, platforms have come up and have been adopted by many who find them
appealing. One of these platforms is WhatsApp, whose adoption rate has enormously
grown from its inception in 2009, with the current number of users surpassing 1 billion in
over 180 countries (WhatsApp, 2016). In Kenya, 49% of mobile users have WhatsApp
(Adika, 2014). Its use has penetrated even into institutions and organizations. Therefore,
with the current growth rate, the need to understand the usage and the satisfaction that
users are getting from it cannot be overlooked. Based on the uses and gratifications
theory (Katz, 1959), the current study examined the motivations for WhatsApp usage and
the gratifications gained from using it within Safaricom’s technology division although it
is not an official communication platform. Data were gathered through a survey that was
carried out within the division, to collect data from the 461 respondents with a response
rate of 66% (N=302). The findings revealed that the users were highly motivated to use
the platform (M=3.52) to communicate internally and that the platform satisfies their
cognitive, affective, tension-free, personal-integrative and social integrative needs, of
which the latter were the most satisfied (Mean = 2.95). Additionally, the study revealed
that the need to stay in touch with colleagues and collaborate with others were the
pressing needs that the users had and are gratified with WhatsApp usage. However, the
findings showed that there was no significant relationship between the various
demographic characteristics and satisfaction level (p>0.05). From the study’s finding, the
xii
researcher concludes that WhatsApp usage brings gratification to the users therefore
making it attractive for use by the employees. This gratification is attributed to the
features that WhatsApp offers as a medium of communication, which include
instantaneity, capability of sending messages in both graphics and texts and its boundary-
less communication capability.
Key Words: WhatsApp, mobile technology, motivation, satisfaction
13
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Problem
Communication within organizations is a phenomenon that researchers have tried to
bring comprehension on especially due to the fact that information does not flow in a
vacuum. The senders and recipients of information are based in a social context that regulates
and manipulates how information is sent and who exchanges information with whom
(Kossinets, Kleinberg, & Watts, 2008). This in itself creates complexity in the
communication process. Organizations find themselves in this complexity since they operate
within a social context and regardless of the communication systems that they put across,
they are still faced with the challenge of getting to know the best way to communicate with
their stakeholders (Aula, Poutanen, & Siira, 2016).
Communication plays a vital role in the survival of any organization. Knowing how
to communicate and the best way to relay a message is key so as to achieve the desired
outcome, especially because communication is need-based and targets to meet particular
needs within the organization. These needs include the need to create content by organization
members, need to connect with others, need to collaborate with others, need to react to each
other, need to organize content as well as need to accelerate consumption. Majority of the
communication needs that exist are met through digital communication platforms and
knowing how to use them for the good of the organization becomes paramount (Bernoff &
Li, 2008).
The challenge of how to communicate with stakeholders is magnified by the
evolution of digital communication technology which supports social media (Bernoff & Li,
14
2008; Drago, 2015). The fast-paced evolution is such that organizations are charged with the
challenge of keeping in touch with digital communication technology and they therefore aim
at leveraging on it (Bernoff & Li, 2008).
One of such evolving technologies is for smartphones which has been embraced as a
social medium through the use of instant messaging. Globally, mobile smartphones have
been seen to accelerate people’s conversations within the environment that they operate from
since they are appealing to many users, mostly due to the fact that they are portable, easy to
use and come with applications that enable people to connect virtually regardless of their
location (Deepthi, Patil, & Tadasad, 2015; Montag, et al., 2015).
In this 21st century, smartphones have become a widely accepted part of our daily
lives, such that they can be included in a family budget just like any other basic commodity.
According to Telenav (2011), mobile phones have encroached our lives and lifestyles. In a
survey conducted in the USA, it was found out that people were more willing to give up sex
than their mobile phones (Telenav, 2011). In the same study, nearly half of the respondents
reported that they sleep with the phones next to them, while interestingly, one in five
respondents said they would rather go shoeless than phoneless for a week. Therefore, given
the broad penetration of mobile smartphones, it is paramount for organizations to find out
how they can use them effectively as a tool for both formal and informal communication in
the workplace.
Mobile smartphones technology comes with the capability of application installation,
which the owners install for different purposes. Some of these applications are
communication media such as Telegram and WhatsApp whose designs are specifically for
15
mobile smartphones. Between Telegram and WhatsApp, which offer mobile instant
messaging, WhatsApp has more users than Telegram (Freier, 2016).
WhatsApp is an instant mobile communication application that was introduced in
2009. It offers real-time communication in terms of mobile texting, sharing of graphical
content and sharing of contacts. It also facilitates voice and video calls via an Internet
connection. The application was began by Brian Acton and Jan Koum and currently has more
than 1 billion users in over 180 countries worldwide, which is a significant growth from the
200 million users that were recorded in 2013 (Statista, 2016; WhatsApp, 2016). The name of
the application, WhatsApp, is a pun from the phrase ‘what’s up’, which means ‘what is
happening’.
In Kenya, 49% of mobile subscribers use WhatsApp (Adika, 2014). Its widespread
use is attributed to the view that the application is appealing as it offers cheap and affordable
means of sending information worldwide (Church & de Oliveira, 2013). Its international
communication capability has also made it favorable to many users in the world. This is more
so in this era of globalization where people’s thirst for connecting with one another has
enormously grown. With proper understanding of how organizations use mobile technology
to communicate with stakeholders, then an organization can be informed on which
communication needs can be met through the technological platforms that are available.
The mobile network in Kenya. Kenya’s mobile network has seen exponential
growth over the years, more so from the beginning of the 21st century. The mobile services in
Kenya began in 1993 and were seen as commodities eliciting envy to the majority who could
not afford the services yet admired the services. By 1999, there were only about 20,000
subscribers in Kenya (Kagiira, Kagwathi, Kamau, & Njau, 2013). Currently, there are five
16
mobile network service providers that exist in the country, namely, Airtel, Orange, Equitel,
Sema Mobile Services and Safaricom Limited. Safaricom has a market share of 65.2 per
cent, Orange 13.2 percent, Equitel 5.1 percent, and Airtel 16.6 percent. Sema Mobile
Services is yet to penetrate the market as it has 0 percent market share (Communications
Authority of Kenya, 2016).
The service providers offer a wide range of services which include voice, data, short
messaging service and mobile money transfer. The companies give offers to the subscribers
as a way of acquiring and retaining them. In the recent past, the service providers have
concentrated on data service with an aim of making the service available and affordable to
the Kenyan population. For instance, Orange, Airtel and Safaricom have data plans that
target different market segments such as the youth and entrepreneurs. For the youth, most
companies make it possible for the customers to access the internet for the whole day at a
subscription fee of Kshs 10 which is quite affordable to many (Communications Authority of
Kenya, 2016).
Kenya’s smartphone penetration is estimated to be 70%, which is higher than that of
Africa which stands at around 30% (Groupe Spéciale Mobile Association, 2016). Mobile
data usage in Kenya continues to be on the rise with a recording of 26.8 million mobile data
subscriptions by June 2016 (Communications Authority of Kenya, 2016). This is an 8.2
percent growth as compared to the 24.8 million mobile data subscriptions reported in March
2016 and 35.0 percent growth from previous year.
The use of mobile technology in communication has become a force to reckon with
and its current usage trend which has been on the rise cannot be ignored especially now that
it is so widely used even within organizations and institutions (Bouhnik & Deshen, 2014;
17
Montag, et al., 2015). Based on this background, where data cost is affordable and
technology has advanced significantly, it is important to understand how organizations use
the smartphones devices and their applications to communicate with stakeholders,
specifically WhatsApp, which has become a key communication platform.
Safaricom. Safaricom is Kenya’s leading telecommunication service provider in
Kenya and has the highest number of mobile phone subscriptions (Communications
Authority of Kenya, 2016). The mobile service provider, Safaricom, had anticipated to have
a subscriber base of 3 million subscribers by year 2020 (Waburi, 2009). According to
Safaricom (2016), this figure has greatly been surpassed over the years and stood at slightly
over 25 million as at 2016. A major factor that has contributed to the growth in the subscriber
base is the lowering of transaction costs and the introduction of lower denomination credit
cards that are loaded to one’s phone as airtime. In the early 1990s, the mobile phone service
was available to only a few people who could afford it as the cost of making a call would
cost Kshs. 500. Furthermore, cost was seen as a hindrance to mobile phone access among the
Kenyan population. In 2010, Safaricom Limited introduced the 5 and 10 shillings scratch
cards, hence making the low income earners be able to have airtime almost all the time.
In addition to its subscriber base growth, the mobile network coverage has seen
tremendous growth in network coverage with the number of Base Transmitting Stations
(BTS) in Safaricom Limited increasing from 2,905 in 2013 to 3,800 in 2016 (Safaricom,
2016). Similarly, 3G sites, which allow for faster internet browsing, increased from 1,604 to
2,517 in the said period (Safaricom, 2016). This forms part of the reason why the mobile
smartphone digital communication is appealing to a large population in Kenya.
18
Safaricom has 12 divisions which include customer operations, regional sales and
operations, technology, consumer business unit, corporate affairs, enterprise business unit,
finance, financial services, internal audit, resources, risk management and strategy and
innovation. The technology division is responsible for network availability as well as
handling all network related operations which include planning and design, products
delivery, network maintenance amongst others. The division which is headed by the
technology director has 9 departments which are headed by heads of departments.
Communication policy in Safaricom. Safaricom believes in a well-documented
communication policy that is accessible to its entire staff (Safaricom, 2006). The
communication policy gives guidelines on the mode and levels of communication that
supports its mission. The communication policy has five main elements which include formal
meetings, informal meetings, suggestion boxes and notice boards, internal newsletters and
company intranet and internal email address. It is Safaricom’s policy that formal and
informal meetings are held regularly. The primary purpose of these meetings is to
communicate issues about the company, discuss progress of the business, and communicate
new and emerging issues. The main purpose of the meetings is to enhance communication
across the entire business.
The suggestion boxes which are managed by Resources division are placed
strategically in each department. The Resources division manage the information put in the
suggestion box and provide feedback to staff on a monthly basis. The suggestion email
address supplements the traditional suggestion boxes and the information coming through
this email address is managed by Human Resources who highlight key issues in the monthly
management meetings and provide feedback to staff on a monthly basis on the issues arising.
19
The notice boards are available in all Safaricom premises to inform staff of upcoming events
both within the business and external to the business that Safaricom is involved in. To
enhance the effectiveness of communication, information is also available to staff through
the company newsletter and the intranet.
Though the communication policy exists and is documented within the organization,
it does not address the use of mobile communication platforms, particularly WhatsApp. It is
plausible to note that mobile instant-messaging communication platforms are not identified
as part of the communication elements in Safaricom communication policy. This could be
due to the fact that WhatsApp was started after the policy was formulated.
Statement of the Problem
The use of WhatsApp as a communication platform has proliferated globally and in
Kenya in the last 3 years. Forty nine percent of mobile users in Kenya were using the
application by 2014 (Adika, 2014). With the significant growth of smartphones, more so in
African countries, there has been an influx in the usage of the mobile messaging platform,
WhatsApp. Though the medium has numerous beneficial uses, WhatsApp has been cited to
have privacy issues. For example, Church and de Oliveira (2013) observe that contacts are
able to see if messages are delivered and read as well as time of last access. Although users
have the option of privacy settings, the voluminous incoming messages and the extent of
interruption they cause often force them to put the phone on silent mode (Church & de
Oliveira, 2013), which may hinder effective communication within the network. In addition,
the platform requires one to have internet so as to use it and one can only chat with friends
who have smartphones and WhatsApp installed (Dekhne, 2016). Despite the limitations of
20
WhatsApp, it continues to appeal to the users and its adoption levels continues to grow with
time (WhatsApp, 2016), even within the Safaricom technology division.
An organization should have policies that govern both internal and external
communication as it dictates how members should communicate and the channels that they
should use. “With no formal policy, the lack of explicit rules creates risk” (Efimova &
Grudin, 2007, p. 5). From this, the question arises as to why WhatsApp, as a social media
platform, is used within Safaricom’s technology division yet it is not part of the official
communication channels that the company has laid down and also in an environment where
no policy governs its usage (Safaricom, 2006). In addition, the usage of WhatsApp continues
to grow even with the limitation that the medium has such as privacy and lack of control as to
who has visibility of the messages that are shared using the platform. Therefore, this research
is aimed at investigating how WhatsApp is used within the technology division of Safaricom
and the gratification that users get from it that would make them use it in the absence of
policy governing such use. It aims at informing the policy-makers within Safaricom of the
current situation thus contributing in informed decision when it comes to WhatsApp usage
and possibly other mobile technologies within the organization.
It is plausible to note that in as much as WhatsApp is widely used in the present age
as a digital communication medium, most studies (e.g Breuer, 2012; Deckers & Lacy, 2013;
Dunu & Uzochukwu, 2015; Golden, 2011) that are undertaken cover digital or social media
in general, without narrowing down on WhatsApp in particular. Into the bargain, where
studies on WhatsApp have been done, its influence on organizational communication is yet
to be done, more so locally in Kenya and Africa in general. For instance, a descriptive study
by Chiridza, Yorodani, Sigauke, and Katsaruware (2016) investigated what Zimbabweans
21
youth do with WhatsApp. In addition, Yeboah and Ewur, (2014) conducted a study on the
impact of instant messenger WhatsApp on students’ performance in tertiary institutions in
Ghana. In a study dubbed “WhatsApp goes to school”, Bouhnik, and Deshen (2014) carried
out an exploratory research to find out how WhatsApp is used between teachers and students.
With the growing penetration of smartphones in Kenya and the accompanying
applications it is important to know how they are used in formal or informal communication
within organizations. This study will focus on WhatsApp and will examine its usage within
Safaricom technology division and the needs that it gratifies.
The study is based on the Katz (1959) uses and gratifications theory which explains
why users are motivated to use certain media. Through this theory, the audience are seen as
active and not passive as they interact with the information content that they come across and
they are also seen as co-creators of information (Lievrouw & Livingstone, 2006). Straubhaar
and LaRose (2013) argue that interactivity should be seen as situations where real-time
feedback is collected from the receivers of the information in a communication channel and
is used by the information source to continually modify the message as it is being delivered
to the receiver. WhatsApp is seen as one source of information that allows interactivity and
two way communication where the audience send and receive information (Quan-Hasse &
Young, 2010). The current study sheds light on what motivates individuals to use WhatsApp
as a form of new media and what kinds of gratifications they receive from it, by investigating
WhatsApp usage within Safaricom technology division.
The uses and gratification theory recognizes five needs that people have and
categorizes them as cognitive needs, affective needs, personal integrative needs, social
integrative needs and tension free needs (Bae, Jun, & Hough, 2016). Through application of
22
the uses and gratifications theory this study also examines usage of WhatsApp in gratifying
those needs from an organizational perspective, where a different category of media audience
exists.
Purpose of the Study
This study aimed at investigating how WhatsApp as a digital communication tool is
used within Safaricom’s technology division and the gratifications gained in meeting the
individual and organizational needs from an organizational perspective. Founded on the uses
and gratification theory (Katz, 1959), it investigated factors associated with the use of
WhatsApp, as a communication platform and the extent to which it meets the formal and
informal communication needs of Safaricom’s technology division staff as stipulated in the
uses and gratification theory.
Based on the assumptions of the uses and gratifications theory which include
motivation, media use and satisfaction, the study focused on the following specific
objectives:
Research Objectives
The objectives of the study were:
1. To determine the motivations that Safaricom technology division staff have towards
the use of WhatsApp within their organization and the kind of needs that the platform
meets for them in both formal and informal communication.
2. To investigate the level of satisfaction amongst WhatsApp users in Safaricom
technology division within their organization.
3. To explore whether social demographics have a significance on Safaricom technology
division staff WhatsApp motivation and gratification.
23
Research Questions
The current study pursued to answer the following questions:
RQ 1. How do Safaricom’s technology division staff use WhatsApp as a
communication application within their organization?
RQ 2. What motivates Safaricom technology division staff to adopt WhatsApp as a
communication tool within their organization?
RQ 3. What are the gratifications that Safaricom technology division staff obtain
from using WhatsApp within their organization?
RQ 4. To what extent are Safaricom technology division staff satisfied with using
WhatsApp as a communication tool within their organization?
RQ 5. Does motivation and level of gratification among Safaricom technology
division staff vary by demographics?
Significance of the Study
With the continuous growth in WhatsApp usage globally and locally, there has been
scarce research on the influence that its use has on Kenya’s societal and organizational lives.
A study conducted by Montag et al. (2015), broadly investigated the use of smartphones in
the 21st century with a view of providing numbers on smartphone usage in general. The said
study narrowed down on WhatsApp and came to the conclusion that smartphones dominate
our daily life. The study recommended further research aimed at understanding smartphone
usage given the length of daily smartphone and WhatsApp usage that was revealed in the
study.
Since the use of WhatsApp as a digital communication platform has proliferated over
the years, it is important to know how it fulfills organizational needs and understand the
24
motivation behind its adoption by the over 1 billion users worldwide. Not only are the studies
that have been done based on uses and gratification model on WhatsApp usage scarce, but
they have been conducted in the context of Europe and America (Anderson & Anderson,
2016; Church & de Oliveira, 2013; Montag, et al., 2015). Therefore, this study sought to
address this gap by using uses and gratifications model as a theoretical foundation in Kenyan
context. In pursuit to creating this understanding at a local level, the current study focused on
WhatsApp usage amongst Safaricom technology division staff. This sheds more light on its
use in Kenya, based on the fact that Safaricom is a company that is based and operates within
the country.
An investigation on WhatsApp usage in organizational communication yielded no
results to the researcher more so using the uses and gratification theory. Therefore, it is
against this backdrop, where little research on WhatsApp usage has been done that the
current research was borne, with a target to further knowledge in the use of digital
communication to gratify organization communication needs.
The knowledge gap that exists in addressing how WhatsApp is used at an
organizational level, leaves the question of why Safaricom technology staff are using
WhatsApp as a medium in an unofficial way unanswered. Furthermore, understanding how
people use their mobile smartphones and specifically WhatsApp could inform how the
company communicates with its employees internally and with other key stakeholders. This
understanding is also important in predicting issues that may arise in the communication
process, particularly in the dissemination and distribution of official messages. Therefore,
this study aims at filling in the knowledge gap that exists by investigating WhatsApp usage
within Safaricom’s technology division.
25
The research is important because it contributes to an understanding of the role of
WhatsApp in gratifying users’ needs in Kenyan context. The study used WhatsApp as a basis
to investigate the use of digital communication especially mobile applications in
organizations, which has grown over the years. This is specifically important in creating
understanding in the adoption of WhatsApp amongst Safaricom technology division staff.
The study results are beneficial to the users of WhatsApp as well as non-users of the
tool. It is envisioned that the study shares valuable insights that will be handy in formulation
of strategies around the use of WhatsApp as a communication tool within an organization.
This is because the gratifications that are identified in the study assist in creating
understanding on why users are attracted to WhatsApp and what they do with it. This is not
only beneficial for the study organization, but for all users in general.
In addition, the research findings will be useful in coming up with further research
around the digital communication area. It is envisioned that the current study will lead to
further inquiries related to WhatsApp usage as future researchers can base their studies on the
gaps that the current study did not adequately cover. Besides, future researchers will benefit
from literature review and may use the results of study to form comparisons with their
studies.
Scope of the Study
Since not much research has been done around the use of WhatsApp as a
communication tool, most of the concepts are tied to social media field, which is a bit
general. In this regard, the study’s method factored in methods that are applicable to social
media research. In addition, the study is focused on one institution, Safaricom Limited,
therefore the results cannot be generalized to the entire Kenyan population or to other
26
corporate organizations in Kenya. However, the results can be used by the entire Safaricom
organization as the divisions tend to be homogenous.
Definition of terms
Social media and social networking sites. Social media is seen as “web-based
services that allow individuals to (1) construct a public or semi-public profile within a
bounded system, (2) articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and
(3) view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the system”
(Ellison, 2007, p. 211). Social media may also be seen as a tool that allows for
communication of information and as a tool for engaging the audience. According to
Mayfield (2008), social networks are seen as sites that allow people to build webpages and
then facilitate connectivity with others through communication.
WhatsApp. WhatsApp is a mobile phone messaging service that operates through the
use of smartphones. The service which was began in 2009 by Brian Acton and Jan Koum
enables users to send text messages, photos, videos and documents (WhatsApp, 2016).
Safaricom. Safaricom is a telecommunication company based in Kenya and has the
widest network and mobile phone subscriptions. The company offers a wide range of services
which include voice, data, short messaging service and mobile money transfer (Safaricom,
2016). In this study, Safaricom Limited forms part of the scope since the target population is
drawn from it. This is because it is seen as an organization whose staff use WhatsApp and
therefore would form a good basis for investigation.
27
Plan of the Study
Chapter 1 introduces the study. It gives the background of the study problem, the
purpose of the study, the research questions and objectives. It also gives the significance of
the study and the scope that the study covers. In addition, chapter 1 also defines the concepts
pertaining to the study. Furthermore, the chapter also discusses the mobile network in Kenya,
looking at its history and current scenario, with an aim of creating understanding of the
present mobile usage in Kenya. In chapter 2, the literature review and theory that the study is
based on are looked at. Here, other scholarly work related to the study topic are discussed
with a view of creating a relationship with the current research questions. This is followed by
chapter 3 which discusses the methodology defining how the study is carried out. Data
collection and analysis methods which define how the data was obtained and how it was
analyzed to bring about meaningful conclusions is covered in chapter 4. Lastly, chapter 5
gives a summary of the findings and conclusions from the study. It also covers
recommendations that the researcher gives based on the study.
28
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
This chapter discusses the literature that is related to the current study. It looks at prior
studies that have been done relating to the research problem and also literature that is
relevant to the research questions. The aim here is to bring understanding in how
communication takes place between employees in an organization and also see how social
media in general and WhatsApp specifically are used in the organization based on prior
studies and literature. Additionally, the chapter discusses the uses and gratification
theoretical model, which the study is based on.
Theoretical Framework
This study is founded on Katz’s uses and gratification theory that stipulates that the
audience will turn to the media with needs that they can gratify. A significant number of
studies (e.g. Chou & Liu, 2016; Wang, 2015; Williams, 2013) have adopted the uses and
gratification theory to explain why people consume information in the media and the
motivation behind their media consumption. There is a growing interest in the use of the
model to explain the motives of users in social media such as social networking service
(Alhabash, Chiang, & Huang, 2014), Twitter (Han, Heeseok, &, Jinyoung 2015), instant
messaging (Leung &, Lo 2009) and Facebook (Leung, Tang, & Zhang, 2011; Alhabash, et.
al, 2014).
Scholars over time have pursued to understand how the audiences use the media to
satisfy their psychological and social needs. In this pursuit, the uses and gratification theory,
which tries to explain the motive behind the use of media to gratify the needs that are within
the society was formulated by Katz, Blumler, and Gurevitch (1974). Through this theory, the
29
users of different media are seen to have certain goals that they seek to accomplish, hence
these goals lead them to the media with an aim of having the goals gratified (Ruggiero,
2000).
Individuals choose to use a particular medium over others as a way of having their
needs satisfied through that particular medium. Before an individual chooses one medium
over the other, several considerations are made based on how that medium will assist the
individual to gain understanding of his or her social and psychological needs. Palmgreen,
Wenner and Rayburn (1980), explain the relationship between gratification sought and
gratification obtained. They define gratification sought as the expectations that individuals
have before they use a medium, while gratification obtained is the gratification an individual
attains out of the use of a medium. The gratification sought mostly explains the motive
behind a person’s use of the medium since the more a person perceives a medium capable of
satisfying his or her need, the more the person will use that medium (Palmgreen, Wenner, &
Rayburn, 1980).
According to Al-Jabri, Sohail, and Ndubisi (2015), “the uses and gratification
framework assumes that mass media users are goal-directed in their behavior, and are aware
of their needs” (p.665). It also assumes that the media users have the awareness of media
choices, interests and motives. Additionally, this theory assumes that the media competes
with other sources of need satisfaction. According to the uses and gratification theory, the
media audience are active and have the capability of determining whether to use a particular
medium to meet their needs. They have motives that drive them towards media use. The
model provides a user-level perspective in understanding media consumption and is best-
30
suited to use in digital communication studies where media consumption is voluntarily from
the users.
Need satisfaction in uses and gratification theory. The role that communication
plays in need gratification cannot be underrated, particularly in this era where people interact
with the information that they get and use it in their daily lives. In the present age, the media
and people have a relationship which can be explained using the uses and gratification model
of the media. Palmgreen (1984), came up with a multivariate approach in the use of the
theory for various studies. This could be one of the reasons that the theory has become
appealing to many researchers. He came up with six main areas of research that relate to the
scope of uses and gratification theory. These include, social and psychological origins of
gratifications, gratification and media consumption, gratification sought and gratification
obtained, expectancy-value approaches to uses and gratifications, gratification and media
effects and audience activity (Ruggiero, 2000).
Through the uses and gratifications model, it is seen that people turn to the mass
media to assist them in fulfilling certain needs. These needs have been broadly categorized
by Katz, Gurevitch and Haas (1973) as cognitive, affective, personal integrative, social
integrative, as well as tension-free needs. All of these needs are related to an individual’s
value system.
Cognitive needs pertain to knowledge gathering and the need to understand the world
around us. These needs lead individuals to seek information in pursuit of creating
understanding and are expressed by the desire to learn, discover and explore the world
around them (Kamarulzaman & Zolkepli, 2011). In this regard, people turn to the media
31
seeking for updated information on current issues and to educate themselves on particular
topics (Katz, et al, 1974).
Affective needs, which are needs that are related to emotions, lead people to the
media in order to get an emotional response. These needs could be the desire to get
entertained and get one uplifted through achieving feelings and aesthetic experience (Katz, et
al, 1974; Sangwan, 2005). In a study conducted in India (Jebakumar & Jisha, 2014), the
researchers cited that many studies in India have proven that the youth use social media to
keep in touch with their friends which in turn caters for their emotional needs. The study also
found out that the youth in Chennai region consider WhatsApp as a perfect tool for intimate
social relationships.
Personal integrative needs are related to the desires that humans have of gaining
credibility, maintaining a particular status in society and having a high self-esteem. In this
regard, people turn to the media to reassure them of their status in society. For instance,
through watching adverts that depict a certain societal class, then individuals are able to seek
for and maintain credibility of that class, by ensuring that they have the products. Social
media becomes an avenue where people can get this reassurance out of the information that
is shared (Sangwan, 2005).
Social integrative needs pertain to needs that individuals have towards relating with
one another in the society. They entail the need to socialize with friends and family. Unlike
in past decades where people would meet face-to-face, modern day socialization is done
online and individuals can chat and deliberate on many social issues through the online
platforms such as WhatsApp. A study conducted by Chen (2011) on how Twitter gratifies the
32
users’ needs found a correlation between user engagement and the success of the platform in
gratifying users’ needs.
As a way of gratifying tension-free needs, people tend to turn to the media as a way
of escapism and in order to relieve tension. How people use the media to gratify this need
tends to be individualistic. For instance, in a study conducted by Katz, et al (1973), it was
found out that watching movies serves the need of releasing tension amongst the audience.
The media, more so social media, have a way of creating that diversion that people seek from
an otherwise tension-filled world. Jebakumar and Jisha (2014) found out in their study that
their repsondents consider WhatsApp usage as a means of relaxation and stress relief.
Satisfaction of the needs discussed above determines how people use the media. Over
the years, people in almost all parts of the world have come to appreciate technology in
satisfying their various needs. In the same vein, users of digital communication and more so
social media, seek to satisfy such needs as information and knowledge addition, friendship,
reassurance, enjoyment, personal identity amongst others. In a study conducted by Whiting
and Williams (2015), identified ten uses and gratifications of social media namely “social
interaction (88%), information seeking (80%), pass time (76%), entertainment (64%),
relaxation (60%), communicatory utility (56%), expression of opinions (56%), convenience
utility (52%), information sharing (40%), and surveillance and watching of others (20%)” (p.
368). This current study sought to identify which particular needs as classified by Katz,
Blumler and Gurevitch (1974) are the most gratified by WhatsApp among Safaricom users.
33
Literature Review
Formal Communication in Organizations
Most organizations adopt to formal communication, which is seen as communication
that entails flow of information through the official prescribed organization’s chain of
command. In formal communication, messages flow downward, upward or horizontally.
Downward communication includes such information as job instructions, job rationale,
employee performance, policy and procedures and motivational appeals (Hamilton, 2008).
Tenhiälä and Salvador (2014) in their study investigating the effect of intraorganizational
communication on glitch mitigation concluded that formal communication channels are more
superior in mitigating operational glitches than informal ones.
Upward communication is vital for an organization’s survival as through it, top
management get to have information that is used for strategic decisions such as reports,
suggestions, work problems employees’ attitudes towards their work and team achievements.
Upward communication channels carry valuable information to superiors which subordinates
are aware of and the top levels of the organization could not be privy to (Zaremba , 2010).
Additionally, it allows employees to feel like they are valuable resources which in turn
improves their morale. Hamilton (2008) cites that upward communication needs not only to
be accurate but fast as well in high-tech environments. This therefore calls for
communication technology that facilitates fast delivery of information.
Horizontal communication is important for coordinating tasks, solving problems,
resolution of conflicts as well as sharing of information between people of the same rank. A
system’s orientation requires horizontal networks linking departments as a way of ensuring
that relevant messages get from one unit of an organization to another. In his investigation on
34
the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, Richard Feynman concluded that the NASA’s 1999
Mars Polar Lander failure was a function of poor interdepartmental communication. In the
same investigation, it was seen that people were trying to do much with little information and
there was a lack of adequately conveying concerns to others. However, nowadays,
organizations are paying much attention to horizontal communication than they did in the
past as the Internet and company intranets have made it easier and cheaper for employees to
communicate horizontally (Hamilton, 2008).
Informal Communication in Organizations
As people work together in organizations, they are required to actively communicate
with each other so as to yield to cooperation. Without communication, team members
working in an organization would never achieve their goals. In this regard, organization
adopt both formal and informal communication. The same need of conveying information
also applies to groups. Fish, Root, Chalfonte, Root, and Chalfonte (1990) argue that informal
communication is vital for coordination to occur as it helps organizational members to learn
about each other and their work, supports social relations and work production as well as
provide a facility that collaborators rely on to start work, maintain it and drive it to
conclusion. In addition, Gray and Laidlaw (2002), argue that when employees do not get
satisfied with information provided through formal channels of communication, then they
rely on informal ones.
In most organizations, the informal communication tends to thrive more than the
formal. This could be attributed to the nature of human beings who are social in nature. Most
employees find it easier to consult with one another on a work-related process other than
consult a process document. Organizations know the key role that informal communication
35
plays and therefore use both especially where the task is uncertain as a means to achieve the
roles’ goals. Informal communication is seen as that which is done without hierarchies and
rules. It is spontaneous, interactive and rich and therefore ideal in brainstorming of an issue,
problem or need. Coordination in informal communication is done through an organismic
communication network (Fish et al., 1990), and in this case WhatsApp is seen as one of these
networks. It is important to note that informal communication networks lack pre-
specifications and therefore causes of action are not pre-computed. Figure 2.1 below shows
the formality dimension of communication between formal and informal communication.
Figure 2.1 The Formality Dimension of Communication (Fish et al., 1990).
In the organization setup, it is important to note that not all messages flow along the
official paths prescribed by the organization’s chain of command. Numerous messages flow
through along an informal network which is commonly referred to as grapevine. Conrad and
Poole (2005) state that:
Formal communication networks allow people to handle predictable, routine situations,
but they are inefficient means of meeting unanticipated communication needs, for
managing crises, for dealing with complex or detailed problems, for sharing personal
information, or for exchanging information rapidly. (p. 123)
36
Research indicates that informal communication comes with benefits to the organization.
First, information carried on grapevine is 75 to 95 percent accurate and travels fast.
Secondly, the type of information that grapevine carries indicates the health of the
organization. Thirdly, people who use grapevine are more satisfied with their jobs and more
committed to the organization (Hamilton, 2008). A study conducted Kageto, Kirkpatrick, and
Sato (2013), analyzing the informal use of social media in formal project-based learning
concluded that when students involved in the project posted informal content on the social
media platforms availed to them, the content was well-considered and sometimes induced
active discussion, which was seen as an important opportunity for them to learn more from
their experience and think about the task they are supposed to perform.
Socialization in Organizations
People’s need to relate socially knows no border neither the environment that they are
in. It is no wonder that even in places where language is a barrier, the strong desire to interact
with each other will see people develop a way to communicate with each other, be it through
gestures or sign language. This is particularly truer in large urban centers which are
characterized by super-diversity created by employees who come from different ethno-
linguistic groups (Roberts, 2010). This interaction with one another in society enables people
to be socially organized.
Bradley and McDonald (2011), raise the social dimension of an organisation. They
argue that the social dimension is brought about by the connections that are formed when
people work together. As a result, people end up doing more than what they are told top-
down and what is in their job definition. Every organisation has a social dimension, which
brings a challenge to it, as it is not reflected in its hierarchy or process flow. Bradley and
37
McDonald (2011) further argue that the organisation can tap into the social dimension
through social media, to benefit from its people’s knowledge, creativity and experience. The
social media platforms are seen as creators of mass collaboration which has an effect of
creating value from different stakeholders. After all, organizations are comprised of people
and their successes are dependent on how well the people interact and work together.
Team work, in most organizations, is acknowledged as an essential ingredient for
organization’s success. However, for a team to work effectively and efficiently, there is need
for members of that organization to communicate (Kishore & Zhao , 2015) with each other at
various levels for the existence and performance of a team. Communication also facilitates
collaborations making it a vital element that contributes to the success of the teams.
Social Media as a Means of Communication in Organizations
Social media according to Kaplan and Haenlein (2010) is the means of interaction
amongst people that enables them to create, share and exchange information and ideas in
virtual communities and networks. It enables individuals to network with others who have
similar interests, goals and dreams. Social media and social networking sites play a number
of roles. Richter and Koch (2008) proposed six basic functionalities of social networking
sites. These include identity management, exchange, expert finding, context awareness,
contact management and network awareness. For this reason, social media has been adopted
by society as a great environment for discussing mutual topics of interests, as well as meeting
and maintaining acquaintances with others in a virtual world.
Since inception, social media have changed people’s lives such as enabling content
generation, online identification for users, which at times may be different from real world,
and relational networking. One of the major features of social media is the ability to present
38
content communally, meaning that it can be easily accessed by other employees in the same
network. Efimova and Grudin (2007) in their study on corporate blogging concluded that a
weblog provides an employee with a space to share passion for work, document and organize
ideas and work practices, as well as engage others within and without the organization. In
addition, they found out that the employer also benefits from accelerated information flow,
reputation and increased productivity, improved customer engagement, a high dependence on
personalities and a reduction in challenges brought about by hierarchy.
Many organizations have sought to understand the usage of social media and develop
ways in which they can embrace it as part of the organizations’ strategic communication
channels. This is more so because social media brings about change in the way people
communicate in the organization and through its use some benefits that traditional
communication channels could not achieve are realized (Ashley & Kathleen, 2016).
Beitzinger and Zowislo-Grünewald (2013) assert that it pays off for organizations to
communicate within the Web 2.0 since firstly, they can attain reputation benefits and brand
awareness for specific stakeholders by way of target group-oriented content. Secondly, Web
2.0 offers dialogic communication which is seen to create reciprocity since the users feel
indebted to the organization and therefore payback through positive public relations. Thirdly,
the dialogic communication creates an environment where the organization gets added value
as the information given through dialogic communication creates content.
Leonardi and Treem (2012) argue that social media are important to organizational
communication processes because they enable the organization to achieve the behaviors that
were difficult or impossible to achieve before these new technologies entered the workplace.
The important role that social media plays in many people’s lives is something that
39
organizations should acknowledge and pay attention to (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010). This is
mostly because social media shape people’s conversations within the environment that they
operate from. These conversations eventually influence people’s attitudes and behaviors
(Bernoff & Li, 2008).
WhatsApp as a Communication Platform
Mobile applications provide a platform for dialogic communication (Campbell &
Park, 2008). Amongst them is the WhatsApp platform, which offers a wide array of
opportunities for the users. Just like many social media platforms, it provides a platform for
entertainment, education, collaboration, instantaneous sharing of information as well as
maintenance of a community (Jebakumar & Jisha, 2014). Unlike the network operator’s short
message service (SMS) where the message sent is delivered to the recipient with or without
their consent, WhatsApp gives the message recipient the leeway to accept or reject messages
from different recipients. In addition, WhatsApp has the capability of group-formation where
a message can reach different recipients. The maximum number of group members that
WhatsApp can accommodate currently stands at 256 (WhatsApp, 2016).
WhatsApp appeal amongst its users is attributed to its capability and features. Sultan
(2014), in an investigation related to mobile text messaging, suggested that users of
WhatsApp turn to it as a medium that enables them to keep contact with family members and
friends, as well as for entertainment and acquiring information. As part of its uses, WhatsApp
has the capability of sending location information to the recipients (Church & de Oliveira,
2013). In the same study, it was found out that one of the benefits of using WhatsApp include
its affordability. Cost is seen as a factor that influences people’s behaviour when choosing
which medium to use in sending messages. Secondly, WhatsApp was seen to give them a
40
sense of connection. It was seen that WhatsApp was used more between partners than with
other communities.
Just as Ledbetter, Mazer, Degroot, Meyer, Mao, and Swafford (2011) concluded that
social networking sites remain an important medium for maintaining social connections,
WhatsApp remains a key platform for creating and maintaing social connections amongst
staff in an organisation, so long as its use is permitted.
The rapid growth in communication technologies for social media has led to many
researchers seeking to understand how various technologies appeal to the audiences and how
the audiences tend to use them and for what purpose (Karapanos, Teixeira, & Gouveia, 2016;
Ibrahim, Ros, Sulaiman, Nordin, & Yuan, 2014). Church and de Oliveira (2013) and Quan-
Haase and Young (2010) studied the factors that influence the acceptance, usage and the
increasing popularity of WhatsApp. They found social influence to be one of the major
reasons for adoption of WhatsApp and concluded that the nature and the intent of WhatsApp
supports social, informal and conversational communication that lead to high frequency in its
use.
Yeboah and Ewur (2014) cite that “with whatsapp messenger, communication
through mobile phones has become easier, faster and cheaper. It is less expensive compared
to the normal phone messaging. An individual can chat with friends and family overseas
through whatsapp without having to incur global SMS charges” (p. 158). Past studies have
concluded that WhatsApp satisfies a wide range of needs including intimacy, growing
relationships among friends, heightening a sense of presence in communication and
providing a private channel where members can interact freely with each other (Karapanos,
et al, 2016). Several studies have been conducted to investigate the usage attributed to the
41
WhatsApp platform (Chiridza, et. al, 2016; Deepthi et. al, 2015; Ibrahim, et. al, 2014).
Jebakumar and Jisha (2014) in their investigation on WhatsApp usage amongst the Chennai
Youth concluded that “WhatsApp has created a sense of belongingness, nearness and
intimacy with friends and relatives. It has created a psychological experience of being close
and caring” (p. 5).
Despite the positive aspects attributed to WhatsApp, other studies have revealed some
negative impacts of the medium. In Ghana, a study conducted by Yeboah and Ewur (2014)
concluded that WhatsApp impacted the performance of tertiary institutions students
negatively. The study concluded that WhatsApp usage leads to lack of concentration in
lectures, time wastage, causes the students not to complete their assignments and spoils their
spellings and grammatical sentence construction. However, the said study did not focus on
WhatsApp as a communication medium but it was instead focused on students’ learning
outcomes. Conversely to the Yeboah and Ewur (2014) study, Salem and Soliman (2014)
conducted a research on WhatsApp use amongst college student with the objective of finding
out the factors that influence intention to use mobile instant messenger such as WhatsApp.
They used a sample of 450 students in their research and concluded that, “in addition to
perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use of mobile instant messenger, sociability,
perceived self-expressiveness, and enjoyment established by using mobile instant messenger
can be considered as predictors of use of mobile instant messenger (p. 292). Additionally, a
study conducted in similar context by Ahad and Lim (2014) revealed that WhatsApp
benefited the undergraduate students in Malaysia by enabling them to discuss and share
information pertaining to their studies, as well as facilitate their everyday communication
with friends and family.
42
From the above reviewed studies, it is seen that the focus on WhatsApp studies has
been on how different users utilize it and also the effects that come from the usage. From the
studies that the researcher came across on WhatsApp usage, there was none that was
addressing its usage in the corporate organisations. For instance, the studies that mention
WhatsApp and are communication-based which have been done locally in Kenya cover
social media in general without specifically narrowing down to WhatsApp platform (Barasa,
2012; Mwongela, 2015). Therefore, this leaves a gap in this field of research. By studying
how WhatsApp is used to gratify social needs in organizations would be crucial in bridging
the identified literature gap that exists and also examine the application of the uses and
gratification theory in the organization context.
Organizations as Social Systems
Niklas Luhmann theory on social system is one that looks at communication within a
social system, of which an organization is considered to be one. In Luhmann’s view, “social
systems are not comprised of persons and actions but of communications” (Luhmann, 1989,
p. 145). He further cites that society cannot be conceived of without communication and
neither can communication be conceived of without society. Luhmann (1986) further argues
that all systems that are formed in society depend on communication.
According to Luhmann, organizations are seen as a kind of social system which is
self-generating through communication that takes place within it. In the organization as a
social system, Luhmann views communication as an element that takes the shape of
decisions. Decisions are communications where the information is communicated in the light
of possible alternative information, that is, decisions are communications that expose
themselves to comparison. Therefore, everything that is done in organizations is exposed a
43
reinforced obligation to provide justification (Becker & Haunschild, 2010). In Safaricom,
staff members’ communication commonly takes place between team members and with other
stakeholders such as business partners such that both internal and external communication
exist. Most communication justifies specific positions through the information that is shared.
From such communication, decisions are taken from many alternatives that are laid forward
from the different stakeholders. These decisions create strategic changes within the
organization.
According to Luhmann (1986) evolution has produced three kinds of systems namely,
psychic, social and organic which are able to reproduce themselves within their own
operations. Since reproductive operations within the organic systems are obvious, Luhmann
focuses on psychic and social systems. Psychic system are seen to operate on consciousness
while social systems operate on communications. Luhmann (1986) cites that social system
can only be understood in terms of communication system since communications determine
what further communications take place. This means that the communication system is self-
reproducing. Schoeneborn (2005) states that, in his theory, Luhmann sees organizations as
being composed not by their members but by their ability to stabilize the reproduction of a
specific type of communication.
The social systems theory relies on an evolution model to explain social change.
Luhmann sees systems as communications. From this perspective, organizations are seen as
being constituted by the joint actions of organizational members. These actions are assumed
to arise from the thoughts and intentions of individual actors who together constitute an
organization through their joint action which occurs through communication (Papa, Daniels,
& Spiker, 2007).
44
Luhmann sees communication as episodes which he interprets as not being just an
event but a sequence of communications with a beginning and an end. An episode is
recognized by the structure of its communications, where structure is seen as conditions that
both constrains and enable communication. Luhmann is interested in decisions that are made
in a social context rather than an individual one. According to Schoeneborn (2005), in the
social context, we cannot really communicate decisions as such without also communicating
the rejected alternatives. Hendry and Seidl (2003) after conducting a study on strategic
practice and its relationship to the operating routines of an organization, concluded that
Luhmann’s theory offers a better way of studying organizational problems because it shifts
the focus from the individual phenomena of cognitive processes to the social phenomena of
communication processes.
Luhmann’s theory enables us to, “focus research attention on a range of taken-for-
granted 'episodic' practices, ranging from the informal and unofficial (e.g. pub or coffee
machine conversations) to the formally scheduled (e.g. strategy reviews, workshops and
awaydays), many of which are widely acknowledged to be important but which have not
previously been subjected to any detailed or systematic analysis” (Hendry & Seidl, 2003, p.
176). The social systems theory aids in addressing questions of how the operating and
strategy routines of an organization are related to each other and how both are used for
strategic change. Luhmann’s theory enables us to understand how communication takes place
within the organization and creates a backbone in understanding how communication evolves
within an organization and how communication changes an organization. However, the
theory could not be applied in this study because it does not focus on new media usage,
which makes the uses and gratification theory more appropriate.
45
Conceptual Framework
This study employed the uses and gratification theory in explaining WhatsApp usage
within Safaricom’s technology division. This theory provides the framework to study the
uses and the gratification that users get from using a particular communication medium.
The study’s dependent variable is WhatsApp need satisfaction. The independent
variables are derived from the uses and gratification theory constructs which include motives,
media choice, media use and purpose of use. Demographics are seen as influencers of how
the staff use WhatsApp and the gratification that they get from it. The demographic
characteristics that were chosen and examined in this study include age, marital status, work
experience, gender and level of education. These variables have an influence on media use
and personal media choices. Secondly, the uses and gratification theory assumes that people
have social and psychological needs that they seek media content to gratify. This study
sought to investigate the needs that the staff have that make them choose to use WhatsApp.
Thirdly, it is conceptualized that frequency of use has an influence on the users’ satisfaction
or dissatisfaction, in that the more the usage the more or less satisfied the users get with the
medium. Fourthly, how one uses a medium leads to gratification of a need by that medium.
Therefore, the purpose of use is seen as an independent variable of gratification of a need. In
addition, it is conceptualized that availability of other users whom the user can communicate
with and get feedback brings about satisfaction to the user. Figure 2.2 below illustrates the
conceptual framework.
46
Motive
Media choice
Media use
Nature of need
Demographics: age, level of
education, work experience,
gender, marital status
Time of use
Purpose of use
Frequency of use
WhatsApp Need
Satisfaction or
Dissatisfaction
Independent variables Dependent variable
Figure 2.2 Conceptual Framework
47
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
This section explains the methods that were used for collecting data, the research design,
target population, sampling procedure, and data collection instruments. It also looks at data
analysis methods as well as ethical considerations in the research. The chapter discusses the
operationalization of the research variables and discusses how reliability of the research
instruments was carried out. In addition, it discusses how the analysis of the results was done.
Research Design
A research design enables a researcher to ensure that the evidence obtained
effectively addresses the research problem as clearly as possible. According to Kumar
(2011), a research design is a plan, structure and strategy of investigation so conceived as to
obtain answers to research questions or problems. A good research design has a clearly
defined purpose, and has consistency between the research questions and the proposed
research method (O. Mugenda & Mugenda, 2003). The present study is a descriptive survey
research as it attempted to investigate the current status of WhatsApp usage within the
technology division of Safaricom Limited, one of the major corporate organizations in
Kenya. The design yields to rich data that lead to vital recommendations in practice, since
survey method collects large amount of data for analysis.
Research Approach
The study adopted a quantitative research approach as it tested the uses and
gratification theory by examining variables. The variables were measured through a survey
so that numbered data could be analyzed using statistical procedures. The approach was
48
chosen as the findings could be generalized to the entire population and in order to reduce
subjectivity of researcher.
Target Population
The target population for the study was Safaricom’s technology division staff. They are
workers aged over 18 years. The division has 810 staff, who are employed on both permanent
and temporary basis. It is heterogeneous in that different departments within the division deal
with different scope of work. The researcher chose to use the technology division as it has a
large population as compared to other divisions hence a large sample size was available that
would yield to rich data for the study. In addition, obtaining data from Safaricom’s technology
division was seen to be cost effective for the researcher as the staff were accessible to the
researcher.
Sampling Design
A sample design refers to the method used to choose the sample from the population.
This study used probability sampling to select the subjects, since all the subjects had an equal
chance of inclusion in the sample. This kind of sampling allows for generalization to the
larger population, which the researcher wanted to achieve. Specifically, the study employed
proportionate stratified sampling to select the sample from the 810 workers in the technology
division of Safaricom. Using stratified sampling ensured representation of each sub-group in
the targeted population. Each stratum or sub-group comprised of one of the departments
within the division. To sample, a sampling frame was developed first. The frame included
lists of staff who work in each department of the division.
Sampling Size. Since the current research aimed at capturing salient characteristics of
the accessible population, it incorporated a large sample. With a large sample size, the
49
researcher is assured that “if another sample of the same size were to be selected, then the
findings from the two studies would be similar to a high degree” (O. Mugenda & Mugenda,
2003, p. 42). In this study, the large sample size is ideal since it requires the sample to be
broken into sub-groups comprised of the various departments within technology division.
The study had a sample size of 461 staff. This figure was arrived at using a confidence level
of 95% and a confidence interval of +/-3 (Creative Research Systems, 2016). The researcher
engaged an online survey system, Creative Research Systems, to calculate the confidence
level and the confidence interval.
The sample size for each stratum was proportionate to the population size of the
stratum in view of the entire population. The researcher divided the population into
homogenous groups comprised of the various technology departments. In order to ensure that
the number of units selected for the sample from each stratum is proportionate to the number
of staff in each department, the researcher divided the population per department with the
total population for the division, and then multiplied the quotient with the desired study
sample size resulting in sample size per department. The percentage sample size per
department was arrived at by dividing the sample size per department by the total study
sample and then multiplying by 100. Table 3.1 below table shows sample size per category.
50
Table 3.1 Sample size table for various departments
Category Population Sample Percentage
IT Planning and Delivery Department 79 45 10
Technical Enterprise Services Department 62 35 8
Technology Strategy, Assurance and Governance
Department 38 22 5
Technology Security Department 21 12 3
Network & Service Operations Department 232 132 29
Special Projects Department 3 2 0
Regional Operations Department 130 74 16
Network Engineering Department 139 79 17
Information Systems Operations Department 103 59 13
Staff non-aligned to Departments 3 2 0
Total 810 461 100
Data Collection
Data were gathered using online self-administered questionnaires. Online survey
method was preferred because it enables researchers to gather a lot of information within a
short time and at a low cost (Dominick & Wimmer, 2011). The online questionnaire was
administered through Google Survey platform since it was affordable, easy to administer and
enables the researcher to track responses (Google, 2016). However, the technique may be
51
challenged by poor response rate since respondents may end up not completing the
questionnaire. To deal with this, the researcher sent reminders to the respondents as a way of
boosting response. In addition, the study involved key departmental representatives who
were used to remind their teammates to respond to the questionnaire. A pilot study for testing
the questionnaire was conducted with 20 respondents from the study sample, to ensure that
the questionnaire tool was appropriately designed and yielded no errors (Dominick &
Wimmer, 2011). The respondents involved in the pilot study gave their feedback on how
clear the questions were to them after which the questions that were not clear were redrafted.
The data collection was carried out in the month of May 2017.
A questionnaire was selected for data collection because it is affordable and easy to
administer (O. Mugenda & Mugenda, 2003). In addition, it was appealing to this study due to
the fact that respondents’ anonymity is guaranteed, therefore encouraging them to participate
in the research.
Response Rate
The survey questionnaire was administered to the respondents online. From the
study’s target sample of 461, it yielded a response rate of 66% with 302 questionnaires
having been fully completed while 3 had missing data since the respondents declined to
complete the questionnaire and were therefore deleted. O. Mugenda and Mugenda (2003)
cite that a response rate of over 50% as adequate for data analysis and reporting, while a
response rate of 60% is considered good enough while over 70% is taken as an excellent
response rate. In this study, the excellent response rate is attributed to the online
administration of the survey as all of the responders work with individual machines hence the
questionnaire was easily accessible to them. In addition, the researcher made follow up
52
through sending reminders through email, instant messaging and phone calls to responders.
Table 3.2 shows participation per department.
Table 3.2 Participation per department
Department No. of
respondents Sample Size
Response rate
per department
(%)
IT Planning and Delivery 26 45 57.8
Technical Enterprise Services 20 35 56.7
Technology Strategy, Assurance and
Governance
14 22 64.7
Technology Security Department 6 12 50.2
Network & Service Operations 69 132 52.3
Special Projects 2 2 100.0
Regional Operations 68 74 91.9
Network Engineering 78 79 98.6
Information Systems Operations 18 59 30.7
Staff non-aligned to Departments 1 2 58.6
Total 302 461 66
The special projects department had the highest response rate with 100% of the
sample size responding to the questionnaire. The regional operations department had a
response rate of 91.9%, networking engineering response rate was 98.6%, IT planning and
delivery had 57.8% response rate, Technical Enterprise Services had 56.7%, Technology
Strategy, Assurance and Governance had 64.7%, Technology Security Department had
50.2%, Network and Service Operations had 52.3%, staff that are non-aligned to departments
53
had a response rate of 58.6% while the Information Systems Operations had the lowest
response rate at 30.7%.
Validity of Research Instruments
Yin (2011), describes a valid study as one that has properly collected and interpreted
its data, so that the conclusions accurately reflect and represent the real world that was studied.
According to Kothari (2004), validity is the most critical criterion and indicates the degree to
which an instrument measures what it is supposed to examine. Kothari (2004), discusses three
types of validity, which include content validity, criterion-related validity and construct
validity.
In this study, content validity, which refers to the extent to which a measuring
instrument provides adequate coverage of the topic under study, was ensured by use of a panel
of persons who judged how well the measuring instrument meets the standards. The researcher
engaged expert opinion to examine whether the instrument ensures proper coverage of the
research objectives.
Reliability of Research Instruments
A measuring instrument is considered to be reliable if it provides consistent results
(O. Mugenda & Mugenda, 2003; Kothari, 2004). A measure is considered reliable if it would
give the same result once replicated in similar circumstances. In this study, reliability was
checked by ensuring that external sources of variation are minimized as much as possible. To
perform this, all participants were given similar instructions on filling out the questionnaire
as this improves the equivalence aspect. In addition, the researcher engaged the test-retest
method, where the questionnaire was first administered to 20 respondents and the responses
54
recorded. The researcher then re-issued the same tool two weeks after to the same group. The
scores from both tests were correlated and the coefficient of reliability was determined.
Measurements
Measurement is the process of mapping aspects of a domain onto other aspects of a
range according to some rule of correspondence (Kothari, 2004). The current study
incorporated ordinal scales in the measurement of phenomena as the objects of measurement
were ranked along some dimensions. Ordinal scales are appealing as they represent the
property of order among the categories (Dominick & Wimmer, 2011).
Summated or 4-point Likert-type scales construction technique was employed in this
study. In a Likert scale, the respondent is asked to respond to each of the statements in terms
of several degrees of agreement or disagreement (Kothari, 2004) from 1 (strongly disagree)
to 4 (strongly agree). Each point on the scale carries a score. The reason for choosing this
technique is that it is relatively easy to construct in comparison to Thurstone-type scale
because Likert-type scale can be performed without a panel of judges. Additionally, it is
considered to be more reliable because respondents answer each statement included in the
instrument, therefore generating more data than the Thurstone-type scale.
Operationalization of Variables
An operational definition of a concept includes the procedures used for classifying
and measuring it (Ahmad, Makingu, & Peter, 2007). Table 3.3 shows the operational
definition of variables in the study.
55
Table 3.3 Operational definition of variables
Variable Operation Definition Measure Tools of
Analysis
Motive Intention behind the use of
the medium (Chen, 2011)
Likert scale of 1 - 4 with 1 being
the least desired while 4 being the
most desirable
Descriptive
analysis
Nature of
need
A need that the user has that
will lead him/her to use a
medium (Ahmad, Makingu,
& Peter, 2007)
Categories of various needs and
the level of agreement as to how a
medium meets them. Measured on
Likert scale with 1 being strongly
disagree while 4 is strongly agree.
Descriptive
analysis
Frequency of
use
The amount of time that a
user spends on the medium
(Chen, 2011)
Measured by how often a user
does certain activities with the
medium.
Descriptive
analysis
Demographics Different characteristics that
distinguish the medium
users
Measured by their age, marital
status, work experience and
gender.
Descriptive
analysis
Purpose of
use
The reason behind the use of
a medium (Seboru, 2015)
Measured using a Likert scale
showing the level of agreement to
specific statements.
Descriptive
analysis
Satisfaction Gratification obtained from
use of medium (Chen, 2011)
Measured on a scale of 1 - 10 with
10 being the most satisfied and 1
the least satisfied.
Descriptive
analysis
Methods of Data Analysis
Data analysis is the process of coding, categorizing, editing and tabulation of
accumulated data to a manageable size, developing summaries, along with searching for
patterns of relationship that exist among data-groups (Kothari, 2004). In the current study,
data were analyzed by use of quantitative analysis and descriptive methods. Measures of
56
central tendency, which include mean, mode and median, were used to give a summary of the
variables under investigation. The study also incorporated measures of relationship including
Chi-square test and ANOVA.
Ethical Issues
As part of ethical considerations, the respondents had a free choice to complete the
questionnaire as the study was based on voluntary participation and informed consent. The
respondents’ privacy and confidentiality was guaranteed and adhered through the use of
anonymity in survey response. The researcher also ensured the respondents are fully
informed about the aim of the survey and the respondent’s consent to participate in the
research was sought for in advance before administering the questionnaire.
In addition, the researcher sought for approval from the Institutional Review Board
(IRB) of United States International University – Africa and The National Commission for
Science Technology and Innovation (NACOSTI) which ensure protection and welfare of
human subjects that are used in a study.
57
CHAPTER FOUR
RESULTS
This chapter presents the findings of this study and explains them based on each
research question. The chapter starts with demographic characteristics of the technology
division staff based on characteristics such as age, gender, marital status, work experience
and level of education. This is followed by analysis, which is based on the research
questions. The aim of this section is to explore how the staff make use of WhatsApp as a
communication tool.
Demographic Characteristics
The survey sort to find out the responders’ age bracket, gender, work experience,
education level and marital status. Table 4.1 shows the demographics of the respondents
which are discussed below.
58
Table 4.1 Respondents’ demographic characteristics
Gender
Gender N Percent
Male 241 79.8
Female 61 20.2
Total 302 100.0
Age bracket
Age bracket N Percent
18-24 years 6 2.0
25-30 years 38 12.6
31-35 years 120 39.7
36-40 years 92 30.5
41-45 years 31 10.3
46-50 years 9 3.0
51-55 years 6 2.0
Total 302 100.0
Level of education
Highest level of education N Percent
College 16 5.3
University 286 94.7
Total 302 100.0
Experience in Technology
Experience in Technology N Percent
Less than one year 18 6.0
1-5 years 89 29.5
Over 5 years 195 64.6
Total 302 100.0
Marital status
Marital status N Percent
Single 68 22.5
Married 228 75.5
Separated/ Divorced 6 2.0
Total 302 100.0
As the table above shows, majority of respondents were male (79.8%) while females
made up 20.2%. This depicts that the division is mostly composed of male staff. In terms of
their education level, respondents were highly educated where 94.7% had attained university
59
education while 5.3% had gone up to college level. All respondents had gone to a level
higher than primary and high school education.
The respondents were asked about their work experience within the organization,
which was measured by number of years. About 64.6% of the respondents had a work
experience of over 5 years, 29.5% had worked between 1-5 years while 6% had a work
experience of less than one year. In terms of age distribution, majority of the staff were aged
between 31-35 years at 39.7%. Staff aged between 18-24 years were 2%, 25-30 years were
12.6%, 36-40 years were 30.5%, 41-45 years were 10.3%, 46-50 years were 3% while 51-55
years accounted for 2% of the total number of respondents. There was no respondent who
was over 55 years. The findings revealed that 228 (75.5%) of the respondents reported that
they were married, 68 (22.5%) were single while 6 (2.0%) were either separated or divorced.
How Technology Division Staff use WhatsApp
In the first research question (RQ1), the study examined how employees use
WhatsApp. Results show those registered with WhatsApp use the platform in a number of
ways and at different times. Table 4.2 shows the number of hours per week that the
respondents spent on WhatsApp.
Table 4.2 Hours per week spent on WhatsApp
Hours per week spent on WhatsApp Frequency Percent
2-4 hours 105 34.8
5-7 hours 63 20.9
8-10 hours 30 9.9
Less than 2 hours 49 16.2
More than 10 hours 55 18.2
Total 302 100
60
From the findings, 100% of the respondents reported to be registered users of the
medium. Amongst the respondents, 105 (34.8%) reported that they spent 2-4 hours per week
using WhatsApp. Among the respondents, 63 (20.9%) reported that they spend between 5-7
hours per week, 30 (9.9%) use the medium for 8-10 hours per week, 49 (16.2%) use
WhatsApp for less than 2 hours while 55 (18.2%) use it for more than 10 hours per week.
Additionally, when asked which hours of the day they anticipate to find their
colleagues online, 166 (55%) reported that they anticipate to find them online all day, 14
(4.6%) said morning hours, 13 (4.3%) said afternoon, 96 (31.8%) said evening, 1 (0.3%) said
all night while 12 (4.0%) reported that the time their colleagues were online was intermittent.
This is illustrated in Table 4.3.
Table 4.3 Hours that colleagues are anticipated to be online
The respondents were asked which category of WhatsApp information they shared
with their colleagues in a span of 24 hours, with the options being team-related information,
joke or entertaining message, give feedback on a previous post from a colleague, work-
related information and also indicate if they did not send any message to a colleague. The
results are shown in figure 4.1.
Hours colleagues anticipated to be online Frequency Percent
All day 166 55.0
Morning hours 14 4.6
Afternoon 13 4.3
Evening 96 31.8
All night 1 .3
Intermittently 12 4.0
Total 302 100.0
61
Figure 4.1 Category of information sent to a colleague in 24 hours
The level of engagement with WhatsApp was also high among employees. As results
show, majority of the respondents, 170 (56%), reported that in a span of 24 hours, they had
commented or given feedback on information previously shared on the platform by a
colleague. About 167 respondents (55%) reported to have sent team-related information, 166
(55%) had shared work-related information, while 160 had shared a joke or entertaining
message. Only 37 (12%) respondents had not sent any message to a colleague.
In pursuit to understand whether WhatsApp is used in decision making, the researcher
asked the respondents on the influence that the communication done on the medium has on
decision making. Figure 4.2 shows the findings on how influential WhatsApp is in decision
making within technology division in Safaricom.
020406080
100120140160180
Comment orfeedback oninformationpreviouslyshared on
the platform
Team-related
information
Work-related
information
Joke orentertaining
message
I did notsend any
message toa colleague
Sum of Cases 170 167 166 160 37
No
. o
f re
spo
nd
en
ts
Type of information sent
Category of information sent on WhatsApp in a day
62
Figure 4.2 WhatsApp influence in decision making
The study revealed that WhatsApp is used in decision making within the division
with majority of the respondents, 166 (55%) agreeing that WhatsApp is influential in
decision making in the organization setup. Amongst the respondents, 26 (8.6 %) reported
that it is extremely influential, 97 (32.1%) found it to be little influential while 13 (4.3%)
reported that it was not influential at all.
Motivation for Adopting WhatsApp in Safaricom Technology Division
The second research question focused on the motivations for adopting WhatsApp
amongst the technology division staff. According to the uses and gratification theory, the
audience turns to the media with certain motives that the media can gratify. Therefore, the
users’ motives feature in many uses and gratifications studies. To determine what motivates
the staff to use WhatsApp, respondents were asked to give feedback on how they agreed or
disagreed with what the application can enable them to achieve. To measure this, the
respondents were given a Likert scale ranging from 1 to 4, with 1 being strongly disagree
while 4 was strongly agree. Table 4.4 displays how the respondents agreed or disagreed with
what motivates them to use WhatsApp.
4%
32%
55%
9%
WhatsApp influence in decision making
Not influential at all
Little influential
Influential
Extremely influential
63
Table 4.4 Respondents motivation to use WhatsApp
Motivation Mean Std.
Deviation
Share information with my colleagues 3.35 .689
Have fun 3.09 .715
Learn new things 2.98 .724
Know about my colleagues better 2.57 .798
Be entertained 3.05 .725
Participate in discussions 3.28 .654
Communicate with many people at the same time 3.52 .586
Obtain social support 2.76 .795
Pass time and unwind 2.69 .863
See other people’s profile photo and status 2.15 .855
Share my photos videos and other interests 2.39 .907
Obtain gossip and rumors 2.04 .929
Add information about myself 1.87 .751
Check out friends updates and add a comment 2.12 .845
Get entertained in the office setup 2.20 .888
Based on the items provided, participants mostly agreed that they are motivated to use
WhatsApp since it enables them to communicate with many people at the same time (M =
3.52, SD = 0.586). In addition, it was also indicated that their motivation to use WhatsApp
was because it enabled them to share information with their colleagues (M = 3.35, SD =
0.689) and participate in discussions (M = 3.28, SD = 0.654). Respondents also agreed that
they were motivated to have fun (M = 3.09, SD = 0.715), and be entertained (M = 3.05, SD =
0.725). The results revealed that the ability to add information about themselves on
WhatsApp was the least motivator amongst the staff (M=1.87, SD=.751).
64
Motivation level by demographics. The researcher investigated the motivation
levels as per the respondents’ age brackets. This was done through the use of a 4-point Likert
scale with 1 (least motivated) to 4 (most motivated).
Motivation level and age brackets. The researcher examined the motivation levels for
different age groups. The findings revealed that those aged between 31-35 years had a
slightly higher motivation level with a mean of 2.95 as compared to others. Those aged
between 36-40 years reported a mean of 2.94, the 41-45 years and 51-55 years had a similar
mean of 2.92, the 25-30 years reported a mean of 2.87, the 46-50 years had a mean of 2.86
while those aged between 18-24 years reported the least satisfaction level with a mean of
2.63. To find out if there were significant differences in their motivation based on age group,
a one-way ANOVA was performed. Results show no significant difference in participants
motivation levels among various age groups (F (6, 295) = 0.401 p=.878).
Motivation level per gender. The researcher analyzed the motivation level according
to respondents’ gender. The findings show that the male staff were slightly more motivated
to use WhatsApp (M=2.97) than the female who recorded a lower mean score (M=2.91).
However, an independent-samples t-test was conducted to compare gender and motivation
level. Statistically, there was no significant difference in the scores for male (M=2.91,
SD=0.58) and female (M=2.97, SD=0.52); t (300) = -0.76, p = 0.45. This means that gender
does not have a significant influence on motivation to use WhatsApp.
Motivation level per level of education. The level of education was analyzed as per
education level of different respondents. The findings show that those who had gone up to
university level recorded a higher mean, (M = 2.93) in motivation to use WhatsApp than
65
those who had gone up to college level (M = 2.81). An independent-samples t-test was
performed to compare the 2 levels of education that were reported and motivation level.
Statistically, there was no significant difference in the scores for college (M=2.1, SD=0.65)
and university (M=2.9, SD=0.56); t (300) = -0.80, p = 0.43. From the findings, it is seen that
education level does not have an effect on motivation to use WhatsApp.
Motivation level as per work experience. The motivation as per work experience was
analyzed to see the differences between the different categories. The findings depict that
those who had over 5 years of work experience recorded a higher mean of 2.95 as compared
to others. Those with an experience of 1-5 years recorded a mean of 2.89 while those with
less than one year in work experience had a mean of 2.75. To find out if there were
significant differences in their motivation based on level of experience, a one-way ANOVA
was performed. Results show no significant difference in participants motivation levels
among various groups, (F (2, 299) = 1.32 p=0.27).
Gratifications Obtained from WhatsApp Usage
In order to answer third research question (RQ3), the respondents were asked the kind
of needs that are gratified by using WhatsApp as a communication tool in the organization
setup. The needs incorporated both formal and informal communication needs. They were
asked to agree or disagree with statements that highlighted the various needs on a Likert
scale with 1 being strongly disagree and 4 being strongly agree. Table 4.5 shows the results
of the needs that are gratified from WhatsApp usage.
66
Table 4.5 Needs that are gratified by WhatsApp in Safaricom technology division
Description of need Mean Std. Deviation
Stay in touch with colleagues 3.18 .661
Talk about my office problems 2.25 .806
Feel involved with what happens with others 2.93 .693
Stay informed of events in the organization 3.07 .702
Relax from pressure 2.48 .818
Collaborate with my colleagues 3.18 .631
Obtain information related to the organization 2.72 .771
Inform my superiors about work-related issues 2.59 .857
Share my achievements with others 2.43 .790
Acquire top-down information relating to the organization 2.40 .844
Most of the respondents strongly agreed that staying in touch with colleagues
(M=3.18, SD= 0.661) is the need that WhatsApp highly gratifies, together with the need to
collaborate with others (M=3.18, SD = 0.631). Additionally, the need for staying informed of
events in the organization was highly rated (M = 3.07, SD = 0.702). The results also revealed
that the need to talk about office problems was the least gratified with a mean of 2.25. In
addition, the need to acquire top-down information that relates to the organization was also
not adequately gratified by WhatsApp (M=2.40, SD = 0.844).
WhatsApp Users Level of Satisfaction
The researcher sought to understand the satisfaction level of WhatsApp amongst the
respondents through research question 4 (RQ4). To measure users level of satisfaction with
WhatsApp, the respondents were asked to rate the medium on how satisfied they were with it
meeting the different needs which include social integrative needs, tension-free needs,
affective needs, cognitive needs and personal integrative needs. The respondents were also
asked to respond on their satisfaction level from WhatsApp consumption in the work place
67
and their satisfaction level with having WhatsApp as a medium of communication in the
organization. The results are as shown in Table 4.6.
Table 4.6 Needs satisfaction frequency
Social integrative needs
Rating N Percent
Mean (SD)
Extremely dissatisfied 8 2.6
Dissatisfied 31 10.3 2.95 (0.59)
Satisfied 223 73.8
Extremely satisfied 40 13.2
Total 302 100.0
Tension-free needs
Rating N Percent Mean (SD)
Extremely dissatisfied 11 3.6
Dissatisfied 74 24.5 2.75 (0.64)
Satisfied 195 64.6
Extremely satisfied 22 7.3
Total 302 100.0
Affective needs
Rating N Percent Mean (SD)
Extremely dissatisfied 12 4.0
Dissatisfied 88 29.1 2.70 (0.65)
Satisfied 182 60.3
Extremely satisfied 20 6.6
Total 302 100.0
Cognitive needs
Rating N Percent Mean (SD)
Extremely dissatisfied 12 4.0
Dissatisfied 49 16.2 2.89 (0.66)
Satisfied 202 66.9
Extremely satisfied 39 12.9
Total 302 100.0
Personal integrative needs
Rating N Percent Mean (SD)
Extremely dissatisfied 24 7.9
Dissatisfied 104 34.4 2.55 (0.72)
Satisfied 157 52.0
Extremely satisfied 17 5.6
Total 302 100.0
68
Social integrative needs satisfaction. Majority of the respondents reported that they
are satisfied with WhatsApp meeting their social integrative needs where 223 (73.8%)
reported that they were satisfied, 40 (13.2%) reported that they were extremely satisfied, 31
(10.3%) were dissatisfied while 8 (2.6%) were extremely dissatisfied. Overall, respondents
had high social integrative needs satisfaction (Mean = 2.95, SD=.59).
Tension-free needs satisfaction. Respondents were asked on how satisfied they were
with WhatsApp meeting their tension-free needs. In the results it was ascertained that 65% of
the users were satisfied with WhatsApp meeting their tension-free needs while 24% were
dissatisfied. Four percent said they were extremely satisfied while 7% were extremely
dissatisfied. Respondents reported a moderately high satisfaction level in tension-free needs
(Mean = 2.75, SD = 0.64).
Affective needs satisfaction. The study sought to find out how satisfied the
respondents were with WhatsApp meeting their affective needs. Out of the respondents, 12
(4%) reported to be extremely dissatisfied, 88 (29.1%) were dissatisfied, 182 (60.3%) were
satisfied while 20 (6.6%) were extremely satisfied. Just like tension-free needs, respondents
reported a moderately high satisfaction level in the satisfaction of affective needs (Mean =
2.70, SD = 0.65).
Cognitive needs satisfaction level. In response to the question on how WhatsApp
satisfies their cognitive needs, 39 (13%) responded that they were extremely satisfied, 202
(67%) were satisfied, 49 (16%) were dissatisfied, while 12 (4%) were extremely dissatisfied.
Generally, respondents had a high cognitive needs satisfaction (Mean = 2.89, SD=.66).
69
Personal integrative needs. Study findings show that 17 (6%) of the respondents
were extremely satisfied with WhatsApp meeting their personal integrative needs, 157 (52%)
were satisfied, 104 (34%) were dissatisfied while 24 (8%) were extremely dissatisfied.
However, this need was the least satisfied by WhatsApp compared to other needs (Mean =
2.55, SD = .72)
WhatsApp Usage Satisfaction by Demographics
Overall, the respondents showed a high satisfaction with WhatsApp as a medium of
communication. On a rating scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being extremely satisfied while 1 being
extremely dissatisfied, the users gave a mean rating of 6.24.
In the current study, respondents’ demographics characteristics were measured by
looking at five variables which include age, level of education, work experience, marital
status and gender. The findings for each demographic category are discussed below.
Age. The age of WhatsApp users is seen as a variable that influences usage of the
medium and the activity that one does with it. Past research has revealed that WhatsApp
usage varies by age (Deshmukh, 2015). The satisfaction level was measured using a Likert
scale with 1 being the most dissatisfied while 4 being the most satisfied. Figure 4.3
demonstrates the different satisfaction level per category.
70
Figure 4.3 WhatsApp satisfaction level per age bracket
A cross tabulation of the different age groups yielded different satisfaction levels per
group. Amongst the 18-24 years, all respondents reported that they were satisfied with
WhatsApp. Amongst the 25-30 years category, 13.2% were dissatisfied, 76.3% were
satisfied, while 10.5% were extremely satisfied. None in this age category was extremely
dissatisfied. Amongst those aged between 31-35 years, 7.5% were extremely dissatisfied with
WhatsApp usage in the workplace, 6.7% were dissatisfied, 81.7% were satisfied while 4.2%
were extremely satisfied. The findings also revealed that amongst those aged between 36-40
years, 2.2% were extremely dissatisfied, 8.7% were dissatisfied, 76.1% were satisfied while
13% were extremely satisfied with WhatsApp usage in the workplace. While none reported
to be extremely dissatisfied amongst those aged between 41-45 years, 9.7% reported that
they were dissatisfied, 80.6% were satisfied while 9.7% were extremely dissatisfied. All
respondents that are aged between 46-50 years reported to be satisfied. Those aged between
51-55 years were neither extremely dissatisfied nor dissatisfied. However, 66.7% of them
reported to be satisfied while 33.3% were extremely satisfied with WhatsApp usage in the
0.0%
20.0%
40.0%
60.0%
80.0%
100.0%
120.0%
18-24years
25-30years
31-35years
36-40years
41-45years
46-50years
51-55years
% le
vel o
f sa
tisf
acti
on
Age Category
Satisfaction level by age category
Extremely satisfied
Satisfied
Dissatisfied
Extremely dissatisfied
71
workplace. A Chi-Square test however revealed that statistically, there was no relationship
between age and satisfaction level, χ2 = 23.90, df =18, p = 0.16. All respondents were
generally satisfied regardless of their age.
Level of education. Level of education was included in the study since it is expected
that understanding the features of WhatsApp and how they work is influenced by the level of
education that the users have attained. The findings only reports on respondents who had
gone up to college and university level, since all respondents were in these 2 categories of
education level. Figure 4.4 shows the results.
Figure 4.4 Satisfaction level per education level
Amongst the college level respondents, none reported to be either extremely
dissatisfied or dissatisfied with WhatsApp usage in the workplace. Those that were satisfied
were 87.5% while 12.5% were extremely satisfied. Amongst those who had gone up to
university level, 3.8% were extremely dissatisfied, 8.4% were dissatisfied, 79.4% were
satisfied while 8.4% were extremely satisfied. In examining the differences between level of
satisfaction and education level, a Chi-Square test revealed no statistical significance χ2 =
0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
70.0%
80.0%
90.0%
100.0%
College University
% le
vel o
f sa
tisf
acti
on
Level of education
Satisfaction level by education level
Extremely satisfied
Satisfied
Dissatisfied
Extremely dissatisfied
72
2.381, df=3, p = 0.50. This means that the level of education was not associated with the
satisfaction level. This is possibly due to the lack of variance in the level of education where
majority were college educated.
Work experience. A person’s work experience was deemed to be an influencer of the
choice of communication medium that one can select from. It is also considered to be an
influencer in knowing the available media within the organization. Figure 4.5 demonstrates
the results.
Figure 4.5 Satisfaction per level of work experience
Those who had an experience of less than one year, had no one who was extremely
dissatisfied with WhatsApp usage in the workplace. Among 18 that were in this category,
16.7% were dissatisfied, 72.2% were satisfied while 11.1% were extremely satisfied.
Amongst those that had an experience of between 1-5 years, 3.4% were extremely
dissatisfied, 5.6% were dissatisfied, 86.5% were satisfied while 4.5% were extremely
satisfied. For those that had an experience of over 5 years, 4.1% said that they were
0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
70.0%
80.0%
90.0%
100.0%
Less than oneyear
1-5 years over 5 years
% le
vel o
f sa
tisf
acti
on
Work Experience
Satisfaction per level of work experience
Extremely satisfied
Satisfied
Dissatisfied
Extremely dissatisfied
73
extremely dissatisfied with WhatsApp usage in the workplace, 8.2% were dissatisfied, 77.4%
were satisfied while 10.3% were extremely satisfied. A Chi-Square test revealed that
statistically, there was no association between work experience and satisfaction level, χ2 =
6.40, df =6, p = 0.38.
Gender. Gender was considered as an influencer of how respondents use WhatsApp
and in the long run their satisfaction. Figure 4.6 illustrates the results.
Figure 4.6 Satisfaction level by gender
Amongst the 241 male respondents, 2.9% were extremely dissatisfied with WhatsApp
usage in the workplace, 7.1% were dissatisfied, 81.7% were satisfied while 8.3% were
extremely satisfied. Amongst the female, 6.6% were extremely dissatisfied, 11.5% were
dissatisfied, 72.1% were satisfied while 9.8% were extremely satisfied. However, a Chi-
Square test revealed that, statistically, there was no significant association between gender
and satisfaction level, χ2 = 3.68, df = 3, p = 0.30.
Marital status. The study sought to find out the marital status of the respondents
with a view to measure whether it has an influence on the level of satisfaction from
0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
70.0%
80.0%
90.0%
Male Female
% le
vel o
f sa
tisf
acti
on
Gender
Satisfaction level by gender
Extremely satisfied
Satisfied
Dissatisfied
Extremely dissatisfied
74
WhatsApp usage. The level of satisfaction per marital status category was then measured.
Figure 4.7 shows the results.
Figure 4.7 Satisfaction level per marital status category
Amongst those who are single, 4.4% of them reported to be extremely dissatisfied
while 5.9% said that they were dissatisfied with WhatsApp usage in the workplace. Those
that were satisfied were 80.9% while 8.8% were extremely satisfied. Amongst those who
were married, 3.5% were extremely dissatisfied, 8.8% were dissatisfied, 78.9% were satisfied
while 8.8% were extremely satisfied. All the respondents that were in the separated or
divorced marital status category, reported to be satisfied with WhatsApp usage in the
workplace. A Chi-Square test revealed that statistically, there was no association between
marital status and satisfaction level, χ2 = 2.24, df = 6, p >0.05.
0.0%
20.0%
40.0%
60.0%
80.0%
100.0%
120.0%
Single Married Separated/Divorced
% le
vel o
f sa
tisf
acti
on
Marital Status
Satisfaction level by marital status
Extremely satisfied
Satisfied
Dissatisfied
Extremely dissatisfied
75
CHAPTER FIVE
DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The goal of the study was to find out how Safaricom technology division staff use WhatsApp
within the organization, with a view of understanding why the platform is used yet it is not an
official communication channel within the organization. This chapter gives a summary of the
study and gives a conclusion and recommendations of the study. It discusses the key findings
from the study, limitations and contribution that it makes to current literature. The chapter
also provides some theoretical and practical implications and recommendations for future
research. The overarching goal of current research was to investigate the use of WhatsApp as
a communication tool within Safaricom technology division and investigate how it satisfies
the Safaricom technology division staff needs. It aimed at answering five research questions
which are discussed below from research question 1 (RQ1) to research question 5 (RQ5).
The implications for each research question are also discussed below, particularly
highlighting how they apply to Safaricom technology division.
Discussion of Key Findings
In the first research question (RQ1), the study examined how WhatsApp is used
among members of staff at Safaricom. Key findings indicate that technology division staff
use WhatsApp as a communication tool to engage in a number of ways, which include
sharing work-related information, giving feedback on information that is shared by others,
sharing team-related information and sharing entertaining messages. The findings revealed
that majority of the staff highly engage the medium in communicating in the organization,
with more than half of them falling in the categories of heavy users (over 4 hours average
usage) and moderate users (between 2 – 4 hours on WhatsApp) . In addition, the staff
76
reported that WhatsApp is influential in decision-making within the division. The high usage
is attributed to the convenience offered by the medium that other communication media
cannot meet. WhatsApp is instantaneous and users can respond to information that is shared
in any geographical area that is covered by a mobile network. This is consistent with a study
conducted by Salem and Soliman (2014) which concluded that perceived usefulness and
perceived ease of use of mobile instant messenger, sociability, perceived self-expressiveness,
and enjoyment established by using mobile instant messenger can be considered as predictors
of use of mobile instant messenger.
In the second research question (RQ2), the study examined motivation for adopting
WhatsApp among employees. Results show a moderately high motivation (M=3.52) which
means that participants were highly motivated to use WhatsApp. The high motivation is
attributed to the capability of WhatsApp that enables the users to communicate with many
people at the same time. In addition, the findings revealed that they are motivated to use the
medium as it enables them to share information with their colleagues (M=3.35) and
participate in discussions. Again this is attributed to the convenience offered by the medium.
The tool allows for formation of groups where members can communicate with each other
simultaneously. The users get instant information on an issue that is shared by a member of
the group and a conversation can be built up using the tool, where the members converse on
an issue up to conclusion. This is similar to the findings by Gazit (2016) which found out
that the higher the social support students have, the higher they perceive the importance of
WhatsApp family group. This results indicate the importance of social support, as it enables
individuals to feel that they are loved, esteemed, and valued.
77
According to the third research question (RQ3), which sought to find out the
gratifications that the users obtain from WhatsApp usage within the division, the study
revealed that the users’ needs that are gratified include both informal and formal. Results
show that staying in touch with colleagues is the need that WhatsApp highly gratifies
(M=3.18), together with the need to collaborate with others (M=3.18). However, the need to
acquire top-down communication was the least gratified with a mean of 2.40. Social needs
were highly satisfied which is in tandem with studies that Church and de Oliveira (2013) and
Quan-Haase and Young (2010) did and found that social influence was one of the major
reasons for adoption of WhatsApp.
The fourth research question (RQ4) which was examined by finding out users’ level
of satisfaction revealed that the respondents were satisfied with WhatsApp meeting their
social integrative needs, tension-free needs, affective needs, cognitive needs and personal
integrative needs. Social integrative was the most satisfied need using WhatsApp. This is
attributed to how the staff use WhatsApp and due to the fact that the tool is perceived to be a
social tool and therefore the users share information that gratifies social needs more than the
other needs. Furthermore, the tool creates a virtual society hence you find users are more
satisfied using it with their main objective being socialization.
Past studies have shown that most social media platform gratify social needs more
than other needs. For instance, Chen (2011) found out in his study on uses that Twitter
gratifies, there is a correlation between user engagement and the success of a platform in
gratifying users’ needs. Also, Yeboah and Ewur (2014) in their study on WhatsApp usage
amongst students in tertiary institutions found out that the students mostly use the medium
for socialization purposes than for academic ones. This study confirmed that social needs
78
were the most gratified by WhatsApp. Jebakumar and Jisha (2014) in their study also found
out that the youth in Chennai region consider WhatsApp as a perfect tool for intimate social
relationships.
The fifth research question (RQ5) examined satisfaction by different demographics.
The Chi-Square test and ANOVA tests that were performed for different demographics
which include gender, age, work experience, marital status and level of education, did not
reveal significant relationship between the various demographic characteristics and
satisfaction level. This means that the employees were generally satisfied with the use of
WhatsApp regardless of demographics.
Limitations
In as much as the study contributes to the body of literature on digital
communication, it had several limitations which future research could address. First, the
sample was taken from one division of Safaricom Limited, which does not adequately
address WhatsApp usage pattern across the company. Secondly, the survey instrument was
written and administered online hence did not take consider the blind who were part of the
sample size that was selected. Future researchers could look into addressing this by designing
a special data collection instrument for this category of the sample so as to keep from bias.
Third, the study focused on the uses and gratification theory more than any other
organizational communication theory as it was best-suited in achieving the research
objective. Future researchers could focus on other communication theories in investigating
the use of digital platforms.
79
Implications
In spite of the limitations, there were several theoretical and practical implications
that came from the study findings. The uses and gratification theory (Katz et al, 1973)
becomes the best suited theory to understand a new medium that enters the media industry
(Bae, Jun, & Hough, 2016). Although developed to explain traditional media, the theory was
deemed the most appropriate for the current study that focuses on new media technology.
The major implication of the study is that through this theory, the study managed to find out
the motivations behind WhatsApp usage in an organization setup. The study ascertained that
the audience will always seek for media and channels of communication that enable them to
meet their needs. From the study, it was established that the staff are motivated to use
WhatsApp as it enables them meet their formal and informal communication within the
organization. The uses and gratification theory stipulates that the audience will turn to the
media that the media can gratify.
The study had anticipated that satisfaction level comes with frequency of use. This
was ascertained to be the case as the study found out that the technology division staff
frequently used WhatsApp and this relates to the high satisfaction level. It was also
anticipated that demographics had a relationship with the users’ motivation and satisfaction
level. However, the study found no statistical relationship between the users demographic
characteristics and their motivation and satisfaction levels.
Conclusions
The current study aimed at finding out how Safaricom technology division staff use
WhatsApp, with a view of understanding why the platform is used despite it not being an
official communication channel within the organization. The current study achieved all its
80
objectives as revealed in the study findings. The first objective was to determine how
technology division staff use WhatsApp as a communication application within their
organizational setup. Based on the findings of the study, it can be concluded that WhatsApp
is vastly used within Safaricom’s technology division. As a tool for mobile devices,
WhatsApp has several capabilities such as portability, ability to share several message
formats such as graphics and geographical location, ability to send voice notes and ability to
broadcast one message to many recipients. This makes it attractive to users. Yeboah and
Ewur (2014) note that, “this application is highly addictive and can create a great impact on
regular users, and apart from that it can leave a trace that becomes difficult to control and
cure”. The expectation that one must respond to WhatsApp messages immediately, is also an
influencer of the usage, hence most users tend to ensure that they are available and online for
others to reach them. WhatsApp capabilities attract the technology staff division staff to its
use, in that they are able to access information regardless of their geographical location,
especially with the numerous travel and site visits by the engineers.
The second objective sought to find out the motivations that Safaricom technology
division staff have towards the use of WhatsApp within their organization. Findings from the
study revealed that the staff are highly motivated to use WhatsApp to communicate with each
other within the organization. The high motivation to use the medium is attributed to the
capability that the medium has over other communication media, such instantaneity and
convenience in message delivery offered by the application. The information shared on
WhatsApp is more instantaneous and therefore the staff can act on it immediately. From the
nature of their work, the staff are required to act with speed especially in resolving incidents
81
and therefore the platform becomes attractive as they are made aware of the incidents
through the platform and are also able to share feedback with others through the platform.
The third objective sought to determine whether WhatsApp gratifies the
communication needs of Safaricom technology division staff. The researcher concludes that
the communication medium gratifies the needs of the staff. The informal communication
needs are gratified more than the formal, with such needs as staying in touch with others and
feeling involved with what happens to others being more gratified than the need to acquire
top-down information relating to the organization and to inform superiors about work-related
issues. The high gratification of informal needs could be attributed to the fact that WhatsApp
is seen to be a social medium. Here, like many social media platforms, WhatsApp offers a
sense of belonging for the members such that one may be alone physically but feel that he or
she has company around him through the community formed by use of WhatsApp groups,
hence engage in using it for informal communication. This goes in tandem with Gray and
Laidlaw (2002) study which found out that when employees do not get satisfied with
information provided through formal channels of communication, then they rely on informal
ones.
From the study’s finding, the researcher concludes that WhatsApp usage brings
gratification to the users therefore making it attractive for use for the employees. This
gratification is attributed to the features that WhatsApp offers as a medium of
communication, which include communicating to several users through WhatsApp groups,
direct delivery and receiving of messages, capability of sending messages in both graphics
and texts and its boundary-less communication capability.
82
The study revealed that the need to stay in touch with colleagues and collaborate with
others were the pressing needs that the technology division staff had and are gratified with
WhatsApp usage. Most of the needs that the users saw fit for WhatsApp to gratify incline
mostly to informal type of communication in the organization such as being informed of
events and feeling involved with what happens to others. WhatsApp was rated lowly in
meeting needs that are of formal kind, such as obtaining information about the organization,
acquisition of top-down communication and sharing of work-related achievements.
Consequently, you find that social integrative needs tend to be satisfied more than other
needs such as tension-free needs and cognitive needs.
Recommendations
Based on the findings from this study the researcher would like to recommend that
strategies be formulated on how WhatsApp can be integrated into the formal channels of
communication within the Safaricom organization so as to meet the formal communication
needs that are currently not fully satisfied by the medium. Since there is no significant
relationships between the demographics and the satisfaction levels, the strategies and policy
that the company formulates to govern WhatsApp use can cover all demographic categories.
Additionally, it is important that the policy-makers in Safaricom look at the
motivations behind WhatsApp usage with a view to ensuring that such motivations are met in
the platform’s communication. In addition, it is also recommend that adoption of WhatsApp
as an organization communication tool should come with training as this ensures that the
staff are informed on responsible usage of the platform. In addition, training also ensures that
the risk of information getting to the wrong recipients is kept at bay.
83
Furthermore, the researcher would like to recommend that before any organization
adopts the use of WhatsApp as an official communication tool, it needs to ensure that all its
employees can access the platform and the information shared therein. This will ensure that
no staff misses out on important information hence creating an information gap amongst
some of its staff.
Areas for further research. Since this study is only limited to Safaricom’s
technology division, the researcher would like to recommend that a similar research be
undertaken in other business units and in other organizations for comparison purposes.
Likewise, future research could consider looking into the use of Telegram tool, which is
gaining popularity with organizational users. Additionally, future researchers can focus their
studies on comparing WhatsApp use with other organizational communication tools such as
email, intranet and bulletins.
84
REFERENCES
Adika, O. (2014, March 5). news. Retrieved September 6, 2016, from techweez:
http://www.techweez.com/2014/03/05/49-of-kenyans-mobile-users-on-whatsapp/
Ahad, A. D., & Lim, S. M. A. (2014). Convenience or Nuisance?: The “WhatsApp”
Dilemma. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 155(October), 189–196.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.10.278
Ahmad, R., Makingu, M., & Peter, W. (2007). Students’ ‘uses and gratification expectancy’
conceptual framework in relation to E-learning resources. Asia Pacific Education
Review, 8(3), 435-449.
Anderson, K. E., & Anderson, K. (2016). Getting acquainted with social networks and apps:
WhatsApp-ening with mobile instant messaging? Library Hi Tech News, 33(6), 11-
15.
Ashley, H., & Kathleen, C. (2016). The application of social media in social work
community practice. Social Work Education, 35(3), 271-283.
Aula, P., Poutanen, P., & Siira, K. (2016). Complexity and Organizational Communication:
A Quest for Common Ground. Human Resource Development Review, 15(2), 182-
207.
Bae, Y., Jun, J., & Hough, M. (2016). Uses and gratifications of digital signage and
relationships with user interface. Journal of International Consumer Marketing,
28(5), 323-331.
Becker, K., & Haunschild, A. (2010). The impact of boundaryless careers on organizational
decision making: an analysis from the perspective of Luhmann's theory of social
systems. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 14(5), 713-727.
Bernoff, J., & Li, C. (2008).
Beitzinger, F., & Zowislo-Grünewald, N. (2013). Organizational communication and social
media–Challenges for strategizing in business and political communication. In G.
Gonçalves, I. Somerville, & A. Melo (Eds.), Organisational and Strategic
Communication Research. Livros Labcom Books.
Bouhnik, D., & Deshen, M. (2014). WhatsApp goes to school: Mobile instant messaging
between teachers and students. Journal of Information Technology Education:
Research, 13, 217-231.
Breuer, A. (2012). The Role of Social Media in Mobilizing. Deutsches Institut für
Entwicklungspolitik. Bonn: Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik.
Campbell, S., & Park, Y. (2008). Social implications of mobile telephony: The rise of
personal communication society. Sociology Compass, 2(2), 371-387.
85
Chen, G. (2011). Tweet this: A uses and gratifications perspective on how active Twitter use
gratifies a need to connect with others. Computers in Human Behavior, 27(2), 755-
762.
Chiridza, P., Yorodani, J., Sigauke, E., & Katsaruware, R. D. (2016). Social media and the
society: A case study of WhatsApp in Zimbabwe. New Media and Mass
Communication, 45, 46–50. https://doi.org/10.7176/NMMC.vol4546-50
Church , K., & de Oliveira, R. (2013). What's up with whatsapp?: comparing mobile instant
messaging behaviors with traditional SMS. Proceedings of the 15th international
conference on Human-computer interaction with mobile devices and services. (pp.
352-361). ACM.
Communications Authority of Kenya.(2016). Quarterly sector statistics report: Fourth
quarter for the financial year 2015-2016. Nairobi: CAK. Retrieved October 1, 2016,
from
http://www.ca.go.ke/images/downloads/statistics/sector%20statistics%20report%20Q
4%202015-2016.pdf
Conrad, C., & Poole , M. S. (2005). Strategic orgarnizational communication (6th ed.).
Belmont: Wadsworth.
Creative Research Systems. (2016, January 13). Sample size calculator. Retrieved from
Suveysystem: http://www.surveysystem.com/sscalc.htm
Deckers, E., & Lacy, K. (2013). Branding yourself: How to use social media to invent or
reinvent yourself. 2nd. U.S.A.: Que Publishing.
Dekhne, P. (2016). Advantages and disadvantages of WhatsApp. International Research
Journal of India, 1(8), 1-3.
Deepthi, Patil, S., & Tadasad, P. (2015). Usage of whatsapp messenger amongst post-
graduate students in a university environment: A study of Karnataka state women’s
university, Vijayapura. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and
Development, 2(11), 591-594.
Deshmukh, S. (2015). Analysis of WhatsApp Users and Its Usage worldwide. International
Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, 5(8), 1-3.
Dominick , J. R., & Wimmer, R. (2011). Mass media research: An introduction (9th ed.).
Boston: Wadsworth.
Drago, E. (2015). The effect of technology on face-to-face communication. Elon Journal of
Undergraduate Research in Communications, 6(1), 1-7.
Dunu, I., & Uzochukwu, C. (2015). Social Media: An Effective Tool for Social Mobilization
in Nigeria. IOSR Journal Of Humanities And Social Science (IOSR-JHSS), 10-21.
86
Efimova, L., & Grudin, J. (2007). Crossing Boundaries : A Case Study of Employee
Blogging. Proceedings of the Fortieth Hawaii International Conference on System
Sciences (HICSS-40). Los Alamitos: IEEE Press., (pp. 1-11). Los Alamitos.
Ellison, N. (2007). Social Network Sites: Definition, history, and scholarship. Journal of
Computer‐Mediated Communication, 13(1), 210-230.
Fish, R. S., Root, R. W., Chalfonte, B. L., Root, R. W., & Chalfonte, B. L. (1990). Informal
communication in organizations: Form, function, and technology. Human Reactions
to Technology: Claremont Symposium on Applied Social Psychology, 145–199.
Freier , A. (2016, January 11). Telegram statistics and revenue. Retrieved from Busines of
Apps: http://www.businessofapps.com/telegram-statistics-and-revenue/
Gazit, N. (2016). The importance of the Whatsapp family group: an exploratory analysis.
Journal of Information Management, 68(2), 174-192.
Gray, J., & Laidlaw, H. (2002). Part-time employment and communication satisfaction in an
Australian retail organization. Employee Relations, 24(2), 211-228.
Golden, M. (2011). Social media strategies for professionals and their firms: The guide to
establishing credibility and accelerating relationships. Hoboken, New Jersey: John
Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Google. (2016, January 28). Google forms. Retrieved from Google:
https://www.google.com/forms/about/
Groupe Spéciale Mobile Association (2016). The mobile economy: Africa 2016. GSMA
Association. Retrieved Sep 12, 2016, from
https://www.gsmaintelligence.com/research/?file=3bc21ea879a5b217b64d62fa24c55
bdf&download
Hamilton, C. (2008). Communicating for results: A guide for business and the professions
(8th ed.). Belmont: Thomson Wadsworth.
Hendry, J., & Seidl, D. (2003). The structure and significance of strategic episodes: Social
systems theory and the routine practices of strategic change. Journal of management
Studies, 40(1), 175-196.
Ibrahim, J., Ros, R., Sulaiman, N., Nordin, R., & Yuan, L. (2014). Positive impact of
smartphone application: Whatsapp & Facebook for online business. International
Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, 4(12), 1-4.
Jebakumar, & Jisha, K. (2014). Whatsapp: A trend setter in mobile communication among
Chennai youth. IOSR Journal in Humanities and Social Science (IOSR-JHSS), 19(9),
1-6.
Kageto, M., Kirkpatrick, G., & Sato, S. (2013). Analysis of informal use of social media in
formal project-based learning. International Journal for Educational Media and
Technology, 7(1), 26-37.
87
Kagiira, E., Kagwathi, G., Kamau, J., & Njau, M. (2013). Factor influencing mobile number
portability (MNP) in Kenya: the case of Africa Nazarene University. 1st Annual
International Interdisciplinary Conference (pp. 263-275). Azores: AIIC.
Kaplan, A. M., & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and
opportunities of social media. Business Horizons, 53(1), 59–68.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2009.09.003
Katz, E. (1959). Mass communication research and the study of popular culture. Studies in
Public Communication, 2, 1-6. Retrieved October 1, 2016, from
http://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1168&context=asc_papers
Katz, E., Blumler, J.G. and Gurevitch, M. (1974), “Utilization of mass communication by the
individual”, in Blumler, J.G. and Katz, E. (Eds), The uses of mass communications:
current perspectives on gratifications research, Sage, Beverly Hills, pp. 19-32.
Katz, E., Gurevitch, M., & Haas, H. (1973). On the use of the mass media for important
things. American Sociological Review, 38(2), 164–181.
https://doi.org/10.2307/2094393
Kishore , S., & Zhao , J. (2015). Improving the communicational effectiveness of virtual
organizations through workflow automation. International Journal of Electronic
Commerce, 3(1), 49-69.
Kossinets, G., Kleinberg, J., & Watts, D. (2008). The structure of information pathways in a
social communication network. Proceedings of the 14th ACM SIGKDD international
conference on Knowledge discovery and data mining., (pp. 1-9).Kothari, C. (2004).
Research methodology: Methods and techniques (2nd ed.). New Delhi: New Age
International.
Kumar, R. (2011). Research Methodology: a step-by-step guide for beginners. London:
SAGE Publications Inc.
Ledbetter, A. M., Mazer, J. P., Degroot, J. M., Meyer, K. R., Mao, Y., & Swafford, B.
(2011). Attitudes toward online social connection and self- disclosure as predictors of
Facebook communication and relational closeness. Communication Research, 38(1),
27–53. https://doi.org/10.1177/0093650210365537
Leung, L., & Lo, O.-Y. (2009). Effects of gratification-opportunities and gratifications-
obtained on preferences of instant messaging and e-mail among college students.
elematics and Informatics, 26(2), 156-166.
Leung, L., Tang, L.-T., & Zhang, Y. (2011). Gratifications, collective self-esteem, online
emotional openness, and Traitlike communication apprehension as predictors of
Facebook uses. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 14(12), 733-739.
Lievrouw, L., & Livingstone, S. (2006). The handbook of new media. Social shaping and
social consequences of ICTs. London: Sage Publications.
88
Makingu , M., Peter , W., & Ahmad , R. (2007). Students’ ‘uses and gratification
expectancy’ conceptual framework in relation to E-learning resources. Asia Pacific
Education Review, 8(3), 435-449.
Mayfield, A. (2008). What is social media? iCrossing. Acesso em, 3(11). Retrieved from
http://www.icrossing.com/uk/sites/default/files_uk/insight_pdf_files/What%20is%20
Social%20Media_iCrossing_ebook.pdf
Montag, C., Błaszkiewicz, K., Sariyska, R., Lachmann, B., Andone, I., Trendafilov, B.,
Markowetz, A. (2015). Smartphone usage in the 21st century: who is active on
WhatsApp? BMC research notes, 8(1), 331.
Mugenda, O. M., & Mugenda, A. G. (2003). Research methods: Quantitative and qualitative
approaches. Nairobi: African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS).
Noor, N., & Salim, J. (2011). Factors influencing employee knowledge sharing capabilities in
electronic government agencies in Malaysia. International Journal of Computer
Science Issues, 8(4), 106-114. Retrieved from http://www.ijcsi.org/papers/IJCSI-8-4-
2-106-114.pdf
Perez, S. (2016, June 24). Techcrunch news. Retrieved November 22, 2016, from
Techcrunch: https://techcrunch.com/2016/06/24/whatsapp-hits-100-million-calls-per-
day/
Quan-Haase, A., & Young, A. (2010). Uses and gratifications of social media: A comparison
of Facebook and instant messaging. Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, 30(5),
350-361.
Richter, A., & Koch, M. (2008). Functions of social networking services. Proc. Intl. Conf. on
the Design of Cooperative Systems, (pp. 87-98).
Roberts, C. (2010). Language socialization in the workplace. Annual Review of Applied
Linguistics, 30(2010), 211–227. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0267190510000127
Safaricom (2006, May 1). Safaricom communication policy. Communication policy.
Safaricom Limited.
Safaricom. (2016). Safaricom Limited 2016 annual report. Retrieved from
http://www.safaricom.co.ke/images/Downloads/Resources_Downloads/Safaricom_Li
mited_2016_Annual_Report.pdf
Salem, M., & Soliman, D. (2014). Investigating intention to use mobile instant messenger:
The influence of socialibility, selfexpressiveness, and enjoyment. The Journal of
American Academy of Business, Cambridge, 19(2), 286-293.
Statista. (2016, October 1). WhatsApp. Retrieved 10 1, 2016, from Statista:
https://www.statista.com/topics/2018/whatsapp/
Straubhaar, J., & LaRose, R. (2013). Media now: Understanding media, culture, and
technology. Cengage Learning.
89
Sultan, A. (2014). “Addiction to mobile text messaging applications is nothing to ‘lol’
about”. The Social Science Journal, 51(1), 57-69.
Telenav. (2011, Aug 3). Pressroom. Retrieved from Telenav:
http://www.telenav.com/about/pr-summer-travel/report-20110803.html
Tenhiälä , A., & Salvador, F. (2014). Looking inside glitch mitigation capability: The effect
of intraorganizational communication channels. Decision Sciences, 45(3), 437-466.
Leonardi, P. M., & Treem, J. W. (2012). Social media use in organizations: Exploring the
affordances of visibility, editability, persistence, and association. Communication
Yearbook, 36, 143–189. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2129853
WhatsApp. (n.d.). WhatsApp. Retrieved Oct 01, 2016, from WhatsApp:
http://blog.whatsapp.com/
Whiting, A., Williams, D., Whiting, A., & Williams, D. (2015). Why people use social
media : a uses and gratifications approach. Retrieved Oct 01, 2016, from
https://doi.org/10.1108/QMR-06-2013-0041
Yeboah, J., & Ewur, G. D. (2014). The impact of Whatsapp messenger usage on students
performance in tertiary institutions in Ghana. Journal of Education and Practice,
5(6), 157–164. Retrieved from
http://www.iiste.org/Journals/index.php/JEP/article/view/11241/11555
Yin, R. (2011). Qualitative Research from start to finish. New York: Guilford Publications.
90
APPENDICES
Appendix 1: Implementation budget
The following is the project’s implementation budget.
Writing and preparation of research proposal
Photocopying services 1,000
Transport and subsistence 1000
Subtotal 2,000
Piloting
Stationary 1000
Telephone expenses 1000
Subtotal 2000
Data collection
Preparation of questionnaires 500
Traveling 1500
Stationary 700
Subtotal 2700
TOTAL EXPENDITURE 6,700
91
Appendix 2: Research Questionnaire Letter
Dear Participant
My name is Naomi Wariara, a graduate student at United States International University. As
part of my thesis research project, I am examining the use of WhatsApp as a social
organization tool within Safaricom Technology Division. Because you are one of the staff in
the division, I am inviting you to participate in this research study by completing the attached
survey.
The following questionnaire will require approximately 10 minutes to complete. There is no
compensation for responding nor is there any known risk. In order to ensure that all
information will remain confidential, please do not include your name. Copies of the thesis
will be provided to United States International University-Africa. If you choose to participate
in this project, please answer all questions as honestly as possible. Participation is strictly
voluntary and you may refuse to participate at any time.
Thank you for taking the time to assist me in my educational endeavors. If you would like a
summary copy of this study, please request the researcher to send you through the email
address [email protected]. Completion and return of the questionnaire will indicate your
willingness to participate in this study.
Regards
Naomi Wariara
92
Appendix 3: Questionnaire
Instructions
Please check on the appropriate. For example
Please give brief written responses to the questions that require more explanation.
Section A: WhatsApp usage Frequency
1) I am a registered user of WhatsApp
a) Yes
b) No
2) On average, how many hours per week do you spend on WhatsApp?
More than 10 hours
8-10 hours
5-7 hours
2-4 hours
Less than 2 hours
3) On average, which hours of the day do you anticipate to find friends online on
WhatsApp?
All day
Morning hours
Afternoon
Evening
All night
√
93
Section B: WhatsApp Usage
The following section relates to the usage of WhatsApp in the office setup.
4) For each of the statements stated below, tick the box that best represents your own
motivation in the use of WhatsApp. Your response should be based on the following
scale:
1-Strongly disagree, 2- Disagree, 3 – Agree, 4- Strongly Agree
I am motivated to use WhatsApp because it enables me
to:
Scale
1 2 3 4
1. Share information with my colleagues
2. Have fun
3. Learn new things
4. Know about my colleagues better
5. Be entertained
6. Participate in discussions
7. Communicate with many people at the same time
8. Obtain social support
9. Pass time and unwind
10. See other people’s profile (photo and status)
11. Share my photos, videos and other interests
12. Obtain gossip and rumors
13. Add information about myself
14. Check out friends’ updates and add a comment
15. Get entertained in the office setup
16. Other (Please specify below)
94
Other reason(s) of using WhatsApp
…………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………
5) Using WhatsApp in the organization enables me to meet the following needs.
Indicate your response based on the following scale: 1-Strongly disagree; 2-
Disagree: 3 -Agree; 4- Strongly agree
No. Need Response
1 2 3 4
1 Stay in touch with colleagues
2 Talk about my office problems
3 Feel involved with what happens with others
4 Stay informed of events in the organization
5 Relax from pressure
6 Collaborate with my colleagues
7 Obtain information related to the
organization
9 Inform my superiors about work-related
issues
10 Share my achievements with others
11 Acquire top-down information relating to the
organization
12 Acquire work-related knowledge
95
6) I consider WhatsApp to be a fast way of passing information amongst colleagues
than other channels such as email.
Strongly agree
Agree
Somewhat disagree
Strongly disagree
WhatsApp usage frequency
7) In the past week, how often did you do the following on a WhatsApp sent by a
colleague?
Never 1-2 days
a week
3-5
days a
week
About
once a
day
Several
times a
day
Comment on other’s post
Send a private message
Applaud someone
Report on a task
Share a joke or funny item
8) In the past 24 hours, I sent the following category of WhatsApp information to a
work colleague. (Tick all that apply.)
Category of information √
Team-related information
Joke or entertaining message
Comment or feedback on information previously shared on the platform
Work-related information
96
9) How significant is the use of WhatsApp in your socialization at work?
Extremely Significant
Significant
Not Significant
Extremely insignificant
10) What is your satisfaction level from WhatsApp usage? (Please tick in the box below
option)
Extremely dissatisfied
Dissatisfied
Satisfied
Extremely satisfied
11) The more I use WhatsApp, the more I become socialized in the workplace.
(Please tick below what applies to you)
Strongly agree
Agree
Somewhat disagree
Strongly disagree
97
Section C: Demographic Information
You are requested to fill out your personal information in this section. Please tick only one
response where applicable.
12) Indicate your gender
a) Male
b) Female
13) What is your age bracket
a) 18-24 years
b) 25-30 years
c) 31-35 years
d) 36-40 years
e) 41-45 years
f) 46-50 years
g) 51-55 years
h) 56-60 years
14) Level of education
a) Primary
b) High school
c) College
d) University
e) Other
98
15) Which department are you in?
a) IT Planning and Delivery Department
b) Technical Enterprise Services Department
c) Technology Strategy, Assurance and Governance Department
d) Technology Security Department
e) Network & Service Operations Department
f) Special Projects Department
g) Regional Operations Department
h) Network Engineering Department
i) Information Systems Operations Department
j) Staff non-aligned to Departments
16) How long have you been working for the Technology Division
a) Less than one year
b) 1-5 years
c) Over 5 years
17) What is your marital status?
Single
Married
Separated/ Divorced
Thank you for your assistance
99
Appendix 4: USIU-A Research Approval Letter
100
Appendix 5: NACOSTI Research Approval Letter
