Using Facebook for cross-cultural collaboration: the experience of students from Taiwan

The purpose of this study is to investigate the use of Facebook among college students in a cross-cultural collaboration project between Taiwan and the United States, and focuses specifically on Taiwanese students’ perceptions. Questions explored are: (1) Is Facebook a feasible platform for cross-cultural collaboration? (2) How does this experience in return affect students’ social life on Facebook? (3) What promotes a successful cross-cultural collaboration on Facebook? The study examined students’ reflection essays, and conducted a survey two months after this collaboration to evaluate the impact. The results indicate that Facebook is a feasible platform for educational purposes, and can be improved by integrating other Web 2.0 applications. However, it requires individual efforts to maintain the friendship after the project ended. In conclusion, Facebook is a feasible platform, but to create a successful cross-cultural collaboration, instructors also need to take individual learning motivation and instructional design into consideration.