Empirical Analysis of the Impact of Social Media on Radicalisation Among University Students in North West Nigeria

Social media platforms have become significant vectors for extremist content exposure and radicalisation facilitation globally, and empirically characterising the relationship between social media use patterns and radicalisation indicators among university students in North West Nigeria addresses an important evidence gap in counter-terrorism scholarship. This study empirically examined the relationship between social media use patterns and radicalisation indicators among undergraduates in Kano and Kaduna States. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 320 students from four universities in the two states. Social media use was assessed for platform type, daily duration, engagement with extremist content, and content sharing behaviour. Radicalisation was measured using the Extremism Recidivism Risk Assessment-Youth version adapted for Nigerian university contexts. Multiple regression and mediation analysis were applied. Results showed that exposure to extremist content (beta = 0.47, p < 0.001), echo chamber social media usage patterns (beta = 0.38, p < 0.001), and online grievance community membership (beta = 0.42, p < 0.001) were significant positive predictors of radicalisation indicators. Critical thinking dispositions significantly mediated and reduced the social media-radicalisation relationship (indirect effect reduction 28 percent). Religious knowledge was not a significant protective factor independent of critical thinking. The study provides empirical evidence linking specific social media behaviours to radicalisation risk and recommends critical digital literacy programmes and counter-narrative content development targeting Nigerian university student populations. Keywords: social media radicalisation, university students, North West Nigeria, extremism, counter-terrorism