Understanding the determinants of users’ subjective well-being in social networking sites: an integration of social capital theory and social presence theory

In order to understand the factors affecting users’ well-being perception derived from social networking sites usage, this study integrates the perspectives of social presence theory and social capital theory to develop a research model. Data were collected from 305 users of Facebook in Taiwan to test the model. The findings reveal that structural capital, relational capital, and cognitive capital exert significant influences on subjective well-being. The results also reveal that structural capital and cognitive capital have positive influence on relational capital, while structural capital influences cognitive capital significantly. The results, on the other hand, show that awareness and affective social presence are the antecedents of structural capital, whereas cognitive social presence and affective social presence influence cognitive capital significantly. Finally, affective social presence is associated with relational capital positively. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Employees’ proactiveness on enterprise social media and social consequences: An integrated perspective of social network and social exchange theories

This study delves into how employee proactiveness on enterprise social media can influence social outcomes at work, both positively and negatively. Drawing on social network and social exchange theories, we develop a model to understand how virtual proactiveness is perceived by leaders and coworkers. Using a round-robin design, we collected data from 281 respondents in 56 teams across three waves. The results show that affiliative and challenging proactiveness positively relate to leader-member and team-member exchanges. However, challenging proactiveness negatively affects team-member exchange, potentially leading to coworker envy. These findings shed light on the intricate social dynamics in remote working environments.     

Understanding online consumers’ purchase intentions: a contribution from social network theory

There is a dynamic and interconnected international setting shaped by the power of the Internet and social media. To gain more consumers, understand their behaviours and needs, and maintain closest relationships with them, businesses should understand how consumers behave in social media and how they vary in their purchase intentions. In the scope of the study, we integrate the social network theory and the theory of planned behaviour to analyse online consumers’ purchase intentions and to investigate their structural positions by analysing their friendships in social networks. We target Twitter users to conduct analysis due to Twitter's popularity in use, market penetration, and opportunity to work with open-source data. This study contributes to a better theoretical understanding of online consumers’ purchase intentions by integrating multiple theoretical perspectives. It expands the literature by considering both online consumers’ friendship network in Twitter and their individual online purchasing intentions. The study also guides e-marketers to design proper strategies for potential and current consumers and target the right sets of people in the social networks.     

Understanding knowledge sharing between IT professionals – an integration of social cognitive and social exchange theory

The research includes various constructs based on social exchange theory and social cognitive theory. This study mainly explored the relationships among organisational justice, trust, commitment and knowledge-sharing cognition and verified their mediating effects through two variables of trust and commitment. A survey utilising a questionnaire was used with 252 IT professionals from IT companies and departments in Taiwan. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data and to evaluate the research model. The results showed that the research model fitted the data well, and the main determinant of knowledge-sharing intention was the building of organisational justice between knowledge intensive workers, confirming our hypotheses that trust and commitment foster organisational commitment. In turn, organisational commitment will help to build individual knowledge-sharing self-efficacy and both directly and indirectly affect intentions to share knowledge.     

Understanding Chinese users’ continuance intention toward online social networks: an integrative theoretical model

This study explores users’ continuance intention in online social networks by synthesizing Bhattacherjee’s IS continuance theory with flow theory, social capital theory, and the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) to consider the special hedonic, social and utilitarian factors in the online social network environment. The integrated model was empirically tested with 320 online social network users in China. The results indicated that continuance intention was explained substantially by all hypothesized antecedents including perceived enjoyment, perceived usefulness, usage satisfaction, effort expectancy, social influence, tie strength, shared norms and trust. Based on the research findings, we offer discussions of both theoretical and practical implications.     

The influence of multimedia training on users’ attitudes: lessons learned

The workforce within the US is increasingly culturally diverse and mobile. Rapid technological changes, coupled with cultural diversity and employee mobility, have created the milieu for critical issues in organizational training methods. Effective learning systems enable employees to adapt more easily to change, thereby increasing their effectiveness. Multimedia systems can be the solution to enhancing performance effectively and efficiently by accelerated learning. This paper examines such a system developed by Holiday Inn Worldwide for the implementation of a new information system. Individuals’ performance and attitudes were tracked for two primary groups: those receiving training on a new information system using traditional training methods and those using a multimedia CDROM to acquire mastery of the same system. 826 employees participated, 467 of them were trained by the multimedia system. Attitude measures included attitudes toward self: job, training, and technology. Individual performance was measured by standardized tests on employees’ knowledge of the new information system. Our findings demonstrated that users’ attitudes were consistently poorer when trained at sites which employed multimedia training when compared with users trained in using a more traditional approach.     

Understanding determinants of information systems users’ behaviour: a comparison of two models in the context of integrated accounting and budgeting software

This study examines determinants that affect the behaviour of information systems (IS) users, and influence of the users’ decisions to continue using IS by two models: the technology acceptance model (TAM) and the expectation-confirmation model of IS continuance (ECM-IS). The behaviour of professionals who utilise complex software solutions for performing their working tasks has been in the focus of this research. Based on data gathered from questionnaires filled-out by users of the integrated accounting and budgeting software (IABS), the confirmatory factor analysis has shown that both models demonstrate good factor, convergence and discriminatory validity, respectively. The comparison of the obtained results has been performed, and it shows that ECM-IS has a larger explanatory power (R²) over TAM, explaining 49% of the dependent variable (IS continuance intention) in relation to 29%. The IS continuance intention is determined by the users’ satisfaction and perceived usefulness. The user satisfaction is influenced by perceived usefulness and confirmation. The confirmation of the user's expectations has had a positive influence on perceived usefulness. The perceived ease of use has not exerted a significant influence on the user's intention of IS continuance.     

Exploring users’ switching intention and behavior on social networking sites: Linear and nonlinear perspectives

The increasing integration of computers and networks into society has profoundly affected our lives in recent years. In Taiwan, use of SNSs – especially Facebook – has become the main action for the Internet users; accordingly, a number of scholars have explored people's intention to use, or actual use of, SNSs. However, few studies have investigated how and why users stop using one SNS and begin using another from the linear perspective. The findings are incomplete for the human behaviors which are complex and nonlinear systems. The purpose of this study is therefore to explore the relationship between SNS users’ switching intention and switching behavior based on structural equation modeling (SEM) and cusp catastrophe model (CCM). The key factors for the switching intentions and behaviors of SNS users were examined through empirical research, and a structural model was established. The model, which involved habits as a mediating factor, was used to conduct a qualitative and quantitative analysis on the switching behaviors of SNS users from a nonlinear perspective. This model will provide a new method for future researchers to analyze nonlinear behaviors as well as a dynamic decision support model for service providers to improve their business operation.     

Examining the antecedents of user gratification and its effects on individuals’ social network services usage: the moderating role of habit

User loyalty or continued use is critical to the survival and development of any website. Focusing on the social network services (SNSs) context, this study proposes a research model for investigating individuals’ use motivations and the moderating role of habit with regard to gratification and continuance intention. This research integrates two influential media communication theories, media system dependency (MSD) and uses and gratifications, to examine SNSs-related behaviors. To comprehend online users’ motivations in depth, three motivations derived from MSD (understanding, orientation and play dependency relations) are operationalized as reflective, second-order constructs. The three motivations are theorized to affect parasocial interaction positively, and parasocial interaction is hypothesized to positively affect the gratification that individuals derive from SNSs usage. Furthermore, this study hypothesizes that gratification positively affects individuals’ continuance intention. Finally, we theorize that habit moderates the impact of gratification on continuance intention. Data collected from 657 Facebook users provide strong support for all six hypotheses. The results indicate that individuals’ motivations (i.e., the understanding, orientation and play dependency relations) positively affect parasocial interaction, which in turn has a positive effect on gratification, and subsequently continuance intention. In addition, the results show that habit has a small but negative moderating effect on the relationship between gratification and continuance intention. Implications for theory and practice are discussed, and suggestions are made for future research.     

Exploring factors related to users’ experience of public transport route choice: influence of context and users profiles

This exploratory study aims to achieve a better understanding of the users-related factors that affect the choice of routes in public transport (PT). We also look at what can motivate route and modes changes towards alternatives in a real situation. We investigated the experience of 19 users of PTs, using the critical incident technique (Flanagan in Psychol Bull 51(4):327, 1954). We asked participants to report incidents (i.e. situations) in cases they were very satisfied or dissatisfied with their choice. For both situations, the case of their usual route and case of an alternative were considered. A total of 91 incidents were collected and analysed using a multiple correspondences analysis. Additionally, users’ profiles were characterized and superposed to the analysis of incidents content. The main results are as follows. First, the user’s choice of PT route depends on the context (i.e. aim of the travel, time of day). Second, taking an alternative to the usual PT route or using a route combining different transport modes is determined by the context and by factors related to the pleasantness of the travel (e.g. to accompany a friend along the travel). Finally, depending on the user’s profile (i.e. combination of attitude towards PT and demographic variables), the factors taken into account to make the choice of a PT route are related to the efficiency or the pleasantness of the trip. These results show the importance of the contextual factors and the users’ profiles in route choice. They suggest that these factors should be further taken into account in new tools and services for mobility.     

Predicting the influence of users’ posted information for eWOM advertising in social networks

Many social network websites have been aggressively exploring innovative electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) advertising strategies using information shared by users, such as posts and product reviews. For example, Facebook offers a service allowing marketers to utilize users’ posts to automatically generate advertisements. The effectiveness of this practice depends on the ability to accurately predict a post’s influence on its readers. For an advertising strategy of this nature, the influence of a post is determined jointly by the features of the post, such as contents and time of creation, and the features of the author of the post. We propose two models for predicting the influence of a post using both sources of influence, post- and author-related features, as predictors. An empirical evaluation shows that the proposed predictive features improve prediction accuracy, and the models are effective in predicting the influence score.     

Changing information retrieval behaviours: an empirical investigation of users’ cognitive processes in the choice of location-based services

The introduction of smartphones and the accompanying profusion of mobile data services have had a profound effect on individuals’ lives. One of the most influential service categories is location-based services (LBS). Based on insights from behavioural decision-making, a conceptual framework is developed to analyse individuals’ decisions to use LBS, focusing on the cognitive processes involved in the decision-making. Our research is based on two studies. First, we investigate the use of LBS through semi-structured interviews of smartphone users. Second, we explore daily LBS use through a study based on diaries. The findings highlight that the decision to use LBS can be described by either a comparative mode based on the value of LBS in relation to other available options, or an intuitive mode in which past experiences trigger the use of heuristics. These modes in turn have positive influences on the continuance of LBS use and indicate changes in individuals’ information retrieval behaviours in everyday life. In particular, the distinct value dimension of LBS in specific contexts of use changes individuals’ behaviours towards accessing location-related information.     

The determinants of continuous use of social networking sites: An empirical study on Taiwanese journal-type bloggers’ continuous self-disclosure behavior

The popularity and growth of social networking sites (SNSs) have resulted in fierce competition among SNS providers. A critical concern of SNSs is to identify how to have users continuously use a specific SNS. This study examines the determinants of journal-type bloggers’ continuous self-disclosure. An analysis of 283 samples with continuous self-disclosure experiences in journal-type blogs shows that personal factors, specifically the habit of self-disclosure, are the major factors affecting bloggers’ continuous self-disclosure, followed by self-benefits. In contrast, social factors, such as positive audience feedback and social benefits, are not related to continuous self-disclosure. These results suggest that SNS providers must encourage users to develop the habit of using their web sites regularly. By providing differential benefits to users, SNS providers may attract users to continuously use their services.     

Understanding the intentions of users to ‘stick’ to social networking sites: a case study in Taiwan

Social networking sites (SNSs) are the most popular social platforms for developing personal networks. They provide multiple interactive functions for users to create and use large social networks. To determine why people exhibit ‘stickiness’ to SNSs, this study uses the uses and gratifications theory as an underlying structure and builds the research model with factors of motivational needs and interactivity. Our results showed that social needs, information needs, human–message interaction, and human–human interaction are crucial factors that affect the ‘stickiness’ of users to SNSs. The implications of these findings are presented in this paper.     

Analysis of remotely-sensed ecological indexes' influence on urban thermal environment dynamic using an integrated ecological index: a case study of Xi’an,China

The spatio-temporal pattern of surface ecological status affects urban thermal environment distribution significantly. Urban thermal pattern, however, is a complicated physical phenomenon involving a series of terrestrial environmental parameters. Thus, it is insufficient to employ only one ecological parameter for depicting the variation of land surface temperature (LST). This paper begins with the analysis of four ecological parameters' influence on LST using regression analysis, based on 24 Landsat images which cover Xi’an of China from 1992 to 2014. These four parameters include greenness degree (i.e. the soil adjusted vegetation index, SAVI), soil moisture degree (i.e. the normalized difference moisture index, NDMI), dryness degree (i.e. the normalized difference soil index, NDSI) and resident aggregation degree (i.e. the normalized difference build-up index, NDBI). Besides, contribution intensity index was introduced to investigate the contribution effect of four ecological parameters on LST, and a new ecological index, integrated ecological index (IEI), was founded using the principal component analysis technique to integratedly represent its spatial and mathematical correlations with LST. Results indicate that four ecological parameters all possessed pronounced performance in impacting LST pattern in all dates: SAVI and NDMI were found to be correlated negatively with LST, whereas NDBI and NDSI correlated positively with LST. Additionally, SAVI had a profound impact on LST distribution compared with the other three parameters, and there was the biggest heating contribution in the lowest SAVI category. Further finding suggests that IEI as a new ecological index can be used to integratedly estimate the spatio-temporal change of LST, manifesting a negative correlation with LST. Our study thinks that the comprehensive characterization of surface ecological status is conducive to benefit us to better understand the spatio-temporal mechanism of thermal environment and ecosystem and to help urban decision-makers to execute effective conservation policies for the ecosystem.     

Understanding Skout users’ mobility patterns on a global scale: a data-driven study

Location-based social apps, such as Skout, have been widely used by millions of users for sharing their location information. In this work, we collected all the location information published by over 1.2 million Skout users during December 2012 and June 2016. Based on the collected information, we model the inter-city mobility of Skout users with a global city network, and analyze the evolution of the network based on its structural characteristics. Moreover, we look into Skout users’ mobility patterns by discovering the most popular inter-city routes, destinations, and tightly connected city groups, and analyze the impact on the mobility patterns from geographical distances, languages and cultures. Finally, we leverage machine learning techniques to build a model for identifying the most influential cities in the world according to the Skout data. The results are able to assist individuals, governors and business leaders in making better decisions regarding traveling, immigrating, measuring city improvements and cooperation with cities.

     

Longitudinal test of ePortfolio continuous use: an empirical study on the change of students’ beliefs

The electronic portfolio (ePortfolio) is learner-centred, and its effectiveness depends on the learners’ long-term use. Thus, it is proper to conduct the study from the learners’ perspectives. Currently, most research on the use of the ePortfolio is in the form of cross-sectional studies, and it is difficult to find the reasons for the changes in students’ beliefs with regard to the long-term use of the ePortfolio. Based on the longitudinal test, this study explained the students’ continuous use of ePortfolio and the changes in their beliefs. With 122 samplers in the adoption–continuous stage (t ₁–t ₂) and 117 samplers in the continuous stage (t ₂–t ₃), this study demonstrates that in continuous use stage (t ₂–t ₃), perceived ease of use still influences the users’ perceived usefulness (PU) and attitude towards the ePortfolio. Attribution significantly moderates the users’ beliefs from the adoption stage (t ₁) to the continuous use stage (t ₂). However, the moderating effect of attribution in the continuous use stage (t ₂–t ₃) is insignificant; satisfaction and attribution are the key factors driving the users’ continuous intention towards the ePortfolio rather than PU and attitude. Meanwhile, satisfaction and attribution will change because of the users’ expectation disconfirmation, and it will influence the users to continue using ePortfolio.     

How demanding is social media: Understanding social media diets as a function of perceived costs and benefits – A rational actor perspective

Using the rational actor perspective as a guiding frame, this exploratory study examined individuals’ social media diet (i.e., amount, frequency, and duration of use) as a function of task load and expected goal attainment. Surveys were distributed (N = 337) focusing on Twitter and Facebook usage for informational and relational purposes, respectfully. Increased task load – conceptualized as a cognitive cost – directly negatively influenced Twitter use but only indirectly influenced Facebook use as a function of perceived benefits. Across conditions, perceived self-efficacy was negatively associated with perceived task load and positively associated with goal attainment, and goal attainment was a significant correlate of increased social media usage. Interpreted, we see that a transparent technology such as Facebook has no cognitive costs associated with its use, while an opaque technology such as Twitter seems to have a salient cognitive cost element. Further, we found that older users of Facebook were more likely to judge the channel as more cognitively demanding and themselves as having lower self-efficacy in using it. Finally, results indicated that for both Facebook and Twitter, males perceived both channels as more cognitively demanding than females. Theoretical and practical explanations and applications for these findings are presented.     

Understanding online customers’ ties to merchants: the moderating influence of trust on the relationship between switching costs and e-loyalty

Fostering customer loyalty is a key objective for online businesses. Initial transactions with new customers are less profitable than transactions with existing customers, making loyalty an important strategy. Drawing on research examining online customer loyalty (termed e-loyalty), switching costs, and trust, this study provides an empirical test of the relative influence of trust vs switching costs on e-loyalty for e-service providers. We further examine whether trust moderates the relationship between switching costs and e-loyalty. We propose that in the presence of high customer trust, e-service providers should have less need to rely on switching costs as a driver of e-loyalty. We test the hypothesized relationships using data collected from 299 repeat users of online travel services. Our results confirm that trust is a more important predictor of e-loyalty than switching costs. In addition, we find that the impact of switching costs on e-loyalty depends on the level of trust felt by customers. This study extends our understanding of customer loyalty, switching costs, and trust in e-commerce environments and provides practical, theory-driven guidelines to e-businesses seeking to develop customer loyalty programmes.     

Determinants of users’ intention to adopt m-commerce: an empirical analysis

The fast-growing penetration of mobile devices and recent advances in mobile technologies have led to the development of increasingly sophisticated services such as m-shopping for goods or services and m-payment. However, although the number of mobile subscribers is increasing, levels of actual m-commerce activities in many cases remain low. Determining what influences users’ intention to use m-commerce is therefore of growing importance. The purpose of this study was to investigate possible factors. To this aim, we developed a conceptual user adoption model based on technology acceptance model variables and on specific factors such as social influence, personal innovativeness, customization, and individual mobility. The empirical results show that social influence and customization significantly affect perceived usefulness; mobility, customization, and personal innovativeness significantly affect perceived ease of use; and perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use have a direct positive effect on behavioral intention.