The Use of English Abbreviations on WhatsApp and Instagram amongst University Students in Pakistan

Abstract

This study investigates the use of WhatsApp and Instagram abbreviations among university students in Pakistan. Students want to fit in with the trending styles of writing. However, they use abbreviations or short form of words to save their time and follow the trend. This study explores the unconventional spelling of some words used by university students on WhatsApp and Instagram. Data were collected by using a mixed-method approach, including observation of WhatsApp chats and comments on Instagram posts of 35 students of University of Sargodha and online questionnaire to find gender-based differences in the frequency of abbreviation use between males and females. The findings reveal that abbreviations provide efficient communication, they also simplify language and reduce vocabulary development. It also affected grammatical accuracy. The limitations of the study include using a relatively small sample of 35 students and focusing only on WhatsApp and Instagram abbreviations, excluding other social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. The study recommends that future studies should aim to focus on a larger sample and explore a broad range of social media platforms. It also recommends that future studies should aim to focus on the broad range of universities, not at a specific university.