Table 2.

Use of social media platforms and emerged themes.

RQs	Themes	Contextual definition	Exemplary quotes from the interviews
RQ1	Sustaining transnational family connection	Using platforms allows to stay connected and sustain emotional bonds with family.	“Social media helps me connect with my family and check on them, and make sure they are doing well. Through Imo video calls, I can talk to and see my mom, dad, sister, and friends daily”.
	Social media platforms as tools for cultural adjustment	Communicating with fellow workers online for encouragement or advice.	“The groups that I follow support us as Ethiopian domestic workers in the UAE. When someone needs money, or someone is sick, or does not have work yet, these groups cooperate to help them.”
	Digital collectivism for communal care	Search for sisterhood to help one another	“I have groups in the UAE. If, for example, my mother gets sick, I send a message to the group to make duʿāʾ.”
RQ2	Religious connection and gratification	Feeling part of an online religious community.	“I like to watch YouTube to listen to the Qur’an, and listen to the rules of the Qur’an while I am cooking.” “I want to be a strong Christian preacher, so I watch videos on TikTok and YouTube.”
	Learning for cultural norms and workplace expectations	Using social media to learn language, religion, norms, and news.	“Social media helps me with my work. I see people teaching us how to work in the UAE, and I feel it is useful because I can ask for help or advice. I use TikTok to watch several things and follow anything helpful; I also use WhatsApp to communicate with people here.”
	Information-seeking to prevent mistakes	Seeking information that helps with workplace tasks.	“Social media helps me avoid misunderstandings in my workplace. When I want to know something, I search for it on social media.”
	Mistrust and selective engagement with platforms	Exercising caution and selecting particular platforms	“I do not like Instagram too much, I do not talk, but I see people’s posts. I see on TikTok, but I do not enter. I only listen and see. Maybe they lie, maybe they do not lie. I only see, I do not talk.”