Digital social responsibility towards digital education of international higher education students' institutions: Digital culture as mediator

• Published in: Heliyon Vol. 10; no. 17; p. e36442
• Main Authors: Mothafar, Nora A., Zhang, Jingxiao, Alsoffary, Amani, Masoomi, Behzad, AL-Barakani, Abdo, Alhady, Osama S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 15-09-2024; Elsevier
• Subjects: Digital culture; Digital education; Digital social responsibility; New crown epidemic; Structural equation modelling; New crown epidemic; Digital culture; Structural equation modelling; Digital education; Digital social responsibility
• ISSN: 2405-8440; 2405-8440
• DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e36442

Digital social responsibility (DSR) has emerged as a wise strategic decision for all higher education institutions during the new crown pandemic. This study explores whether the DSR dimensions (social, economic, legal, and environmental) enhance digital education (DE) in universities. Specifically, this paper intends to investigate the impact of digital culture (DC) on these relationships as a mediator variable. By adopting a cross-sectional approach, data are gathered through an online survey among a sample of 181 students from different nationalities in higher education institutions in Chang'an-China. The partial least squares-structural equation modelling has been used to perform the statistical analyses. Results revealed that all DSR dimensions directly and indirectly affect DE. DC also significantly influences students' DE during the new crown pandemic. Furthermore, our findings show that DC mediates the link between the social, economic, and environmental DSR aspects and students' DE. The study suggests Chinese universities review their DSR policies and student DC perspectives, and design social digital responsibility education programs. These measures can predict the success of student DE and provide a competitive edge as social media technology advances.