Pemanfaatan Media Sosial TikTok dalam Mempertahankan Identitas Budaya Lokal Mahasiswa Indonesia di Malaysia

Abstract

This study is titled The Utilization of TikTok as a Social Media in Maintaining Local Cultural Identity of Indonesian Students in Malaysia. It aims to examine how TikTok is used to maintain the local cultural identity of Indonesian students in Malaysia. The research employs a qualitative descriptive method, adopting a constructivist paradigm, with data collected through interviews and observations involving three individuals: one key informant and two main informants, with data validity tested by one source triangulation. The research subjects were selected using a predetermined purposive sampling technique. The analysis technique applied follows the Miles and Huberman method. The findings of this study indicate that Indonesian students in Malaysia utilize various TikTok features such as Direct Messages, likes, comments, and reposts to preserve their local cultural identity. These features help Indonesian students in Malaysia stay engaged with local cultural content and leverage TikTok’s algorithm to recommend more similar content.