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1 – 10 of over 170000Wei Wang, Renee Rui Chen and Xuhui Yang
With the rising concerns of compulsive use of social media, it is important to understand why users develop such unplanned and irrational behaviors. Leveraging the uses and…
Abstract
Purpose
With the rising concerns of compulsive use of social media, it is important to understand why users develop such unplanned and irrational behaviors. Leveraging the uses and gratification theory, the authors aim to explore the determinants of compulsive use of social media from the dual perspectives of individual needs (need to belong (NTB) and need for uniqueness) and peer-related factors (referent network size and perceived peer activeness). Due to the importance of self-construal in cognitive deliberation on peer influences, the moderating effects of self-construal were taken into consideration.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors empirically test their model by conducting an online survey with 459 WeChat users.
Findings
The results show that compulsive use of social media is predicated by both individual needs and influence from peers. Moreover, peer influence could be attenuated when individuals develop a high degree of independent self-construal.
Research limitations/implications
The authors' study contributes to the research of compulsive behavior in the context of social media use by incorporating the dual effects of individual needs and social influence. The authors also offer managerial insights on eradicating the formation of compulsive behaviors.
Originality/value
The authors examine the dual effects of individual needs and peer influence in predicting compulsive use of social media and the moderating role of self-construal, which have been rarely investigated in this context.
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Social media users can now create, exchange, modify and consume socially generated experiences which can enhance social influence toward mobile banking (MB). This study aims to…
Abstract
Purpose
Social media users can now create, exchange, modify and consume socially generated experiences which can enhance social influence toward mobile banking (MB). This study aims to provide understanding of how social actor interactions through social networking platforms (SNPs) can create social influence for MB adoption and present a research framework that can help to understand which social actors have higher social influence toward MB adoption in conventional and Islamic banks.
Design/methodology/approach
SNP users have different levels of perceptions and experiences about the usability and credibility of MB. Therefore, their experiences are subjective realties which can generate socially constructed knowledge. To understand these subjective realties, a social constructivist approach is adopted. Data were collected from interviews with 60 individuals from diverse occupational backgrounds.
Findings
Identification element of social influence explained that the shared reviews and recommendations of opinion leaders, industry experts, celebrities and friends were highly positive for conventional banks; therefore, there is high word-of-mouth for MB of conventional banks. Internalization of social influence highlighted that people are more likely to accept the wisdom of the crowd and close friends, which can generate their engagement and connection with MB. Finally, the compliance factor of social influence explained that people can only adopt MB when they perceive high usability and credibility.
Research limitations/implications
This study has provided understanding to the marketers of how social actors on SNPs can play a role in the creation, exchange, modification and consumption of socially generated influence that can impact the MB adoption intention for conventional and Islamic banks.
Originality/value
Although many theories and models have been presented about the marketing strategies and antecedents of MB adoption, the extensive use of SNPs has changed marketing strategies. For example, this study has found that social media users are highly influenced by the social reviews and recommendations they receive from their close friends. Therefore, socially generated influence on SNPs can create an adoption intention toward MB.
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Khusboo Srivastava and Somesh Dhamija
This study intends to build up a thorough understanding of social factors that largely influence students’ decision-making to opt institution for higher studies in India.
Abstract
Purpose
This study intends to build up a thorough understanding of social factors that largely influence students’ decision-making to opt institution for higher studies in India.
Design/methodology/approach
This descriptive research follows two sequential phases consisting of the literature review to identify social factors and validate the factors through the questionnaire method. Factor analysis was applied to identify the various factors that influence the student’s institution choice.
Findings
The research work explores and identified four factors and their associated attributes that impact students’ decision-making to opt institution for higher studies. It was found that the career advisor influence variable has the highest level of variance, followed by societal norms, social platform and cohort influence.
Research limitations/implications
The present study is limited to social factors only. Therefore, many other determinants which may influence the student’s decision-making to opt the institute for higher studies remain unaddressed in this study.
Practical implications
The findings of the study can guide the institutions' admission management in underpinning the acceptance of social factors to observe their influence on student’s choice of an institution. An important implication is the identification of career advisor influence as the strongest social factor which may bridge the student's career fit in the institution and social platform influence which may help higher education institutions to redesign their marketing strategies to augment students’ enrolment.
Originality/value
This study provides insight into the important role of social factors that impact the student's decision-making regarding institution choice in India.
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Babajide Osatuyi and Ofir Turel
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the nature of the underlying social motivation, including collective norm and subjective norm, which shapes users’ decisions to revisit…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the nature of the underlying social motivation, including collective norm and subjective norm, which shapes users’ decisions to revisit a social commerce site.
Design/methodology/approach
Structural equation modeling was used to evaluate the research model using data from a survey of 531 social commerce users.
Findings
Results support the importance of subjective and collective norms as measures of social norm. Both norms were combined to: develop a parsimonious higher order measure of social motivation, and examine the consequent impact on social commerce continuance behavior. In addition, the authors demonstrate that the factors that influence the social impact theory variables, specifically time spent during each visit, affective experience and gender can moderate the impact of social norm on social commerce continuance use intention.
Practical implications
Social commerce website designers can provide visibility of the number of a user’s close contacts (or contacts that the user either interacts with or follows) as well as the total number of people using the same technology as a visual cue to encourage user retention on the site.
Social implications
The results indicate that customers’ social commerce revisit intentions are strongly influenced by a combination of how they perceive the behavior as endorsed both by their friends and by the majority view in their social network.
Originality/value
This study examines and validates sources of social influence that affect continuance use intention with social technologies such as social commerce sites.
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The purpose of this paper is to report a study investigating the impact of personal innovativeness in information technology (PIIT) and social influence on user continuance…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to report a study investigating the impact of personal innovativeness in information technology (PIIT) and social influence on user continuance intention toward mobile commerce (m-commerce) in the USA.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey was conducted among undergraduate and graduate mobile users in a regional university. Structural equation modeling procedures were deployed to analyse 323 valid data points.
Findings
The study found that among well-educated m-commerce users, user personal innovativeness as measured by PIIT and perceived usefulness, the determinants of initial adoption, remain as strong determinants of user continuance intention. PIIT also remains as the antecedent of perceived ease of use. Social influence has changed the pattern of influence on continuance intention.
Research limitations/implications
This study is unable to investigate m-commerce user expectations and satisfaction levels. The small and convenient sample does not offer guarantee of the findings.
Practical implications
M-commerce providers should pay adequate attention to personal innovativeness, since it affects mobile user willingness and capability to welcome and adapt to new services and features. They should always utilize social channels to gather feedback, to distribute new changes or features, and to exert positive influence.
Originality/value
This study is one of the few examining the effect of PIIT in a post-adoption context and confirms its long-term psychological influence on continuance intention toward m-commerce. This study is also one of the initial to use discursive power perspective to study social influence on continuance intention in the mobile context.
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Based on the importance of citizen participation and the collaborative potential of online social media tools, this study tests four proposed influences on administrators who are…
Abstract
Based on the importance of citizen participation and the collaborative potential of online social media tools, this study tests four proposed influences on administrators who are deciding whether or not to adopt these tools to engage citizens. A survey of 157 department managers from large U.S. cities shows that 82% report using some form of social media to engage citizens and that perceived organizational influences and administrator preconceptions have the strongest impact on the respondentsʼ decision to adopt social media. Possible explanations for the results are that the use of online social media in the public sector may be following a similar path of adoption as earlier forms of e-government or managers may be operating in a rational environment when deciding whether or not to adopt online social media tools.
Cheng-Jun Wang and Jonathan J.H. Zhu
Social influence plays a crucial role in determining the size of information diffusion. Drawing on threshold models, we reformulate the nonlinear threshold hypothesis of social…
Abstract
Purpose
Social influence plays a crucial role in determining the size of information diffusion. Drawing on threshold models, we reformulate the nonlinear threshold hypothesis of social influence.
Design/methodology/approach
We test the threshold hypothesis of social influence with a large dataset of information diffusion on social media.
Findings
There exists a bell-shaped relationship between social influence and diffusion size. However, the large network threshold, limited diffusion depth and intense bursts become the bottlenecks that constrain the diffusion size.
Practical implications
The practice of viral marketing needs innovative strategies to increase information novelty and reduce the excessive network threshold.
Originality/value
In all, this research extends threshold models of social influence and underlines the nonlinear nature of social influence in information diffusion.
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Muhammad Naeem and Wilson Ozuem
The study aims to look at the types of social media participants through user-generated content (UGC) and how this leads to brand engagement in a fashion retail context. In doing…
Abstract
Purpose
The study aims to look at the types of social media participants through user-generated content (UGC) and how this leads to brand engagement in a fashion retail context. In doing so, it explores the effects of social context of brand-related content on other social media users, which promotes socially influenced consumer brand engagement (SICBE) in social media settings.
Design/methodology/approach
The study postulates the existence of social realities as consistent with social constructivism, with multiple realities of social influence outlined on the basis of ontological relativism. To fulfil the proposed research objectives, research data were gathered from professional and social participants based on specific inclusion criteria, purposive sampling technique and a semi-structured interview method.
Findings
Findings highlighted various types of UGC participants with differing objectives in their use of UGC; these participant types are passive, creators, critics and collectors/consumers. The study uncovered many social context that can increase the effectiveness of UGC. The social context is explored through social trust, Fashion UGC expertise and relevance. These UGC participants and social context can foster SICBE in a fashion retail context.
Originality/value
This study proposes a holistic framework which highlighted the role of UGC participants and social context can foster SICBE in a fashion retail context.
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Honghong Zhang and Xiushuang Gong
The purpose of this present study is to investigate how opinion leaders' responsiveness to social influence varies with network positions (i.e. degree centrality and brokerage…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this present study is to investigate how opinion leaders' responsiveness to social influence varies with network positions (i.e. degree centrality and brokerage) and network density in new product diffusion networks.
Design/methodology/approach
This study collected data based on a sociometric network survey. Hierarchical moderated regression and hierarchical linear modeling analyses were used to test the moderating effects of degree centrality, brokerage and density on the relationship between opinion leadership and susceptibility to social influence.
Findings
This study documents the significant moderating roles of network positions and network density in the relationship between individual influence (i.e. opinion leadership) and susceptibility to social influence. Interestingly, this study shows that the significant moderating effects of degree centrality and brokerage hold for opinion leaders' responsiveness to informational social influence, whereas that of network density holds for opinion leaders' responsiveness to normative social influence.
Research limitations/implications
This research sheds light on the network structural characteristics under which opinion leaders would be differentially responsive to social influence (i.e. informational and normative influence) from others.
Practical implications
This research provides marketing managers with insights into leveraging social influence by activating opinion leaders through existing network ties in new product diffusion networks.
Originality/value
Although opinion leaders are generally less susceptible to social influence from others than nonleaders, this research finds that, under certain network conditions, opinion leaders would be equally responsive to social influence from their peers.
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Tingting (Christina) Zhang, Behzad Abound Omran and Cihan Cobanoglu
This paper aims to explore the factors that influence Generation Y’s positive or negative electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) behavior via social media and mobile technology in the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore the factors that influence Generation Y’s positive or negative electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) behavior via social media and mobile technology in the foodservice sector. Three types of dining experiences were examined: positive and negative customer experiences and negative customer service followed by a satisfactory recovery package.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey was adopted to test the factors posited to influence Generation Y consumers in these service contexts. Participants were recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk , and multi-group structural equation modeling was performed to analyze the data.
Findings
Active use of social media and peer influence had a sweeping influence on Generation Y’s intentions to engage in eWOM about their service experiences. Technological sophistication with mobile technology influenced Generation Y to spread positive or negative service experiences, rather than satisfactory recovery experiences. Family influence had a mixed influence on Generation Y subgroups (21-24 years old vs 25-35 years old) to engage in eWOM about their satisfactory or poor service experiences. In satisfactory recovery experiences, family influence showed no significant influence on Generation Y’s eWOM behaviors.
Research limitations/implications
This study enriches online reviews and eWOM marketing theories, adds to service failure and recovery literature and enhances understanding of consumer behavior expressed by Generation Y through the empirical investigation of Generation Y consumers’ behavioral motivations to engage in eWOM through social media and mobile technology.
Practical implications
Engaging Generation Y consumers with social media campaigns and mobile technology development is not merely sufficient in eWOM marketing strategies. Instead, it is essential to create integrative peer communities to motivate Generation Y consumers to engage in eWOM marketing. Marketers need to pay attention to the mixed effects of family influences on the eWOM behaviors of subgroups of Generation Y in positive or negative service experiences.
Originality/value
Given the scarcity of consumer behavior research into Generation Y as an emerging market segment, this paper makes an incremental contribution by developing and validating a model of factors that influence Generation Y consumers’ eWOM intentions through social networking and mobile technologies in three major service contexts: positive, negative and recovery following a service failure.
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