Gratifications and social network service usage: The mediating role of online experience

This paper incorporates dual theories from communication research (uses and gratifications) and psychology research (online flow) to examine consumer behavior in the use of social network services. In particular, the study proposes that consumers’ online experience of interaction and arousal serves as the mediator of the relationship between social motivations and use behaviors. The empirical results indicate that arousal fully mediates the relationship between social gratifications and problematic social network service use. Furthermore, both interaction and arousal are partial mediators of the relationship between social gratifications and the intention to revisit social networking websites.     

Facebook as a toolkit: A uses and gratification approach to unbundling feature use

Research on social network sites (SNSs) typically employ measures that treat SNS use as homogenous although the user-base, user practices, and feature sets of these tools are increasingly diverse. Using a uses and gratifications approach, we address this problem by reconceptualizing SNSs as collections of features. Survey data collected from undergraduate students at a large Midwestern university (n = 267) revealed that users’ motivations for using Facebook predict their use of different features, such as status updates and Wall posts, but features that share similar capabilities do not necessarily share underlying motivations for use. When these results are contrasted against models employing a more unidimensional measure of Facebook use, we find differences between motivations for both general Facebook use and use of specific features of the site. This suggests that unidimensional measures of SNS use obfuscate motivations for using specific features. Theoretical and methodological implications of these findings and this approach are discussed.     

Branding with social media: User gratifications,usage patterns,and brand message content strategies

The emergence of social media provides a new platform for developing brand–consumer relationships. The aim of the current study is to examine the differences in Chinese users’ gratifications of different social media and the impact of brand content strategies on the quality of brand–consumer communication via social media. In the first study, 209 SNS and 161 microblog users were surveyed. Five dimensions of social media gratifications emerged from the factor analysis. Significant differences in the strengths of gratifications were found between SNS and microblog users. Usage patterns of SNS and microblog are analyzed and compared. In the second study, we examined the impact of users’ gratification and the type of social media on the effectiveness of different brand content strategies through a two-week experiment involving 60 SNS users and 61 microblog users. Implications for developing branding strategies on different social media platforms are discussed.     

User adoption of social networking sites: Eliciting uses and gratifications through a means–end approach

This research examines users’ motives for adopting and using social networking sites (SNSs), with the aim of providing a better understanding of the fundamental reasons behind SNS adoption behavior. To uncover the relationship between the attributes of SNSs and users’ perceptions of their consequences and values, this study integrates a means–end approach with uses and gratifications theory and thereby extends the technique to a communication media selection context. Laddering interviews identify users’ perceptions of five attributes, 10 consequences, and four values associated with SNS adoption (i.e., Facebook). The results show that belonging, hedonism, self-esteem, and reciprocity are the four main values users attain through SNS adoption. Furthermore, the chains associated with SNS adoption can be represented in a hierarchical value map. This study should help practitioners design online communication platforms that more closely fit their users’ needs and provide users with safer, more friendly, and thus more attractive environments.     

Online maintenance of life domains: Uses of social network sites during graduate education among the US and international students

Students who pursue graduate degrees often do so under the burden of great geographic displacement. This study takes a uses and gratifications approach to examining the usage of Social Networking Sites (SNS) by both American and international graduate students studying at an American university. Specifically, it examines how SNS are used in relationship maintenance with friends and family, news consumption from one’s home state or country, political expression, and social and political transition to one’s new home. Our findings suggest that geographic and physical displacements do not always influence students in maintaining relationships via social media.     

It is not for fun: An examination of social network site usage

Social networking sites (SNS) have become a significant component of people's daily lives and have revolutionized the ways that business is conducted, from product development and marketing to operation and human resource management. However, there have been few systematic studies that ask why people use such systems. To try to determine why, we proposed a model based on uses and gratifications theory. Hypotheses were tested using PLS on data collected from 148 SNS users. We found that user utilitarian (rational and goal-oriented) gratifications of immediate access and coordination, hedonic (pleasure-oriented) gratifications of affection and leisure, and website social presence were positive predictors of SNS usage. While prior research focused on the hedonic use of SNS, we explored the predictive value of utilitarian factors in SNS. Based on these findings, we suggest a need to focus on the SNS functionalities to provide users with both utilitarian and hedonic gratifications, and suggest incorporating appropriate website features to help users evoke a sense of human contact in the SNS context.     

A dynamic longitudinal examination of social media use,needs, and gratifications among college students

This study extends the U&G theoretical perspective to account for the situated, adaptive, and dynamic nature of mediated cognition and behavior. It specifies dynamic uses and gratifications of social media (compared to other media) in the everyday lives of college students using experience sampling data across 4 weeks. The study tests and quantifies reciprocal causal relationships between needs, social media use, and gratifications, as well as their self-sustaining endogenous (i.e., feedback) effects. Social media use is significantly driven by all four categories of needs examined (emotional, cognitive, social, and habitual), but only gratifies some of them. Ungratified needs accumulate over time and drive subsequent social media use. Interpersonal social environments also affect social media use. In particular, solitude and interpersonal support increase social media use, and moderate the effects of needs on social media use.     

Internal and external influences on social networking site usage in Thailand

The purpose of the study is to investigate internal and external factors influencing the use of social networking sites (SNSs) in Thailand. Overall (N = 451) participated in this study. Survey research was employed to examine the interrelationships and differences among a set of variables. The results showed that both internal and external factors affecting the use of SNSs and SNS motivation. External factors, particularly media and significant others were more influential than internal factors to predicting time spent on SNSs. People who were influenced by media and significant others would be more likely to spend more time using SNSs and Facebook. SNS motivation led to different SNS use. In particular, those who were motivated to use SNS for relaxation would spend more time using Facebook. In addition, the findings indicated that females would spend more time using YouTube, Twitter, and Hi5 than males. Moreover, females tended more to use SNSs to maintain their friendship than did males.     

The links that bind: Uncovering novel motivations for linking on Facebook

Given the increasing uptake of the social network site Facebook, mass communication researchers have begun focusing on what drives people to use the site and what kinds of information they interact with. Perhaps because of the relative novelty of Facebook, little research has scratched beneath the surface to explore why people engage in certain functions the site offers. Attention to these engagements and the motivations behind them could help improve current mass communication approaches, especially in critical industries such as news media, where traditional models are struggling to evolve. This study explored user motivations for engaging in link-sharing through Facebook, uncovering motives that extend beyond those of previous research. The findings also consider the influence of those motivations on linking frequency, and link content, introducing motivations that add to current viewpoints of social network sites as information hubs. It also provides new media researchers and practitioners with novel insight into an increasingly important Facebook behavior.     

Tweet this: A uses and gratifications perspective on how active Twitter use gratifies a need to connect with others

Twitter is an Internet social-network and micro-blogging platform with both mass and interpersonal communication features for sharing 140-character messages, called tweets, with other people, called followers. Hierarchical OLS regression of survey results from 317 Twitter users found that the more months a person is active on Twitter and the more hours per week the person spends on Twitter, the more the person gratifies a need for an informal sense of camaraderie, called connection, with other users. Controlling for demographic variables does not diminish this positive relationship. Additionally, frequency of tweeting and number of @replies, public messages between Twitter users, mediate the relationship between active Twitter use and gratifying a need for connection. Results are discussed in light of uses and gratifications theory.     

Blogging privacy rule orientations,privacy management,and content deletion practices: The variability of online privacy management activity at different stages of social media use

The purpose of this study was to examine social media users’ blogging privacy rule orientations, privacy management regulation, and content deletion practices as distinct types of activity occurring at different stages of the blogging process (before, during, and after blogging) that may aid in understanding the functioning of blogging disclosure activity overall. The study was guided by a complementary application of both the uses and gratifications perspective and communication privacy management (CPM) theory. A central tenet of both theories suggests that people are variably active in their communication behavior. We identified five discrete blogger privacy rule orientations explaining different online choice-making practices: the self-centric, the utilitarian, the planner, the protector, and the unworried orientations toward blogging. We also identified six different motives for deleting previously-posted information: conflict management, protection of personal identity/safety, fear of retribution, employment security, impression management, emotional regulation, and relational cleansing. Path analysis revealed several direct and indirect paths among bloggers’ motives for deleting previously posted material and their level of disinhibition, blogging privacy rule orientations, amount of time blogging, and privacy management practices. As use of social media increases, exploring variations in privacy management regulation practices is critical.     

Web-based information service adoption: A comparison of the motivational model and the uses and gratifications theory

This study compares two user acceptance theories: the motivational model (MM), and the uses and gratifications (U&G) theory. While MM arises from the field of information systems and the U&G theory was developed in the field of communication, both are focused on explaining user acceptance of information technologies using intrinsic and extrinsic motivations. We discuss the theoretical roots of the two theories, and use partial least squares (PLS) analysis to test each in an empirical setting. A comprehensive comparison of the results is also presented, including a discussion about the relative strengths and weaknesses of each model under both theoretical/research and practical contexts.     

Academic engagement: Differences between intention to adopt Social Networking Sites and other online technologies

This article studies firstly academic willingness to use online technologies in order to engage with their peers and secondly, whether there are any differences between academics using Social Networking Sites (SNS) and other online technologies. We synthesised the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behaviour and the Uses and Gratifications Theory, proposing a conceptual model that is evaluated twice using Structural Equation Modelling. Differences were observed between the model of SNS and the model of online technologies. Academics consider SNS more suitable for networking and presenting a professional image and the rest of online technologies for making new acquaintances in their research area and seeking academic information. Our findings have important implications as we were able to demonstrate the ecological validity of the joint model in two different cases and provide information about how academics approach online engagement. The need for providing training in utilising online technologies is evident, especially in the case of SNS, as self-efficacy is the main factor that affects perceived behavioural control, which in turn affects behavioural intention. In addition, the non-significant effect that social norms have on intention in the case of SNS indicates that universities may have to use different promotional techniques internally.     

Adopt,adapt, abandon: Understanding why some young adults start,and then stop,using instant messaging

Instant messaging (IM) has become a popular and important mode of staying in touch for teens and young adults. It allows for easy, frequent and lightweight interaction that contributes to building and sustaining friendships, as well as coordinating social activities. Despite the initial appeal of IM, however, some have found it too distracting and have changed their usage or abandoned it. I interviewed 21 former users of IM about their adoption, usage and eventual abandonment of the technology. Results show that participants were initially attracted to features of IM that enabled them to maximize their use of leisure time via easy and frequent interaction with their friends, but that, in a different usage context, these same features became distracting and annoying. Participants adapted their behavior to avoid these drawbacks, but IM did not support these adaptations effectively. In particular, IM did not allow for control over interruptions, which became more important as their contact lists grew and social time became scarce; and they ultimately abandoned the technology. These results point to a need for understanding use beyond adoption, and a theoretical and practical focus on understanding the adaptation and changing utility that accompany long-term usage of technologies.     

Why men and women continue to use social networking sites: The role of gender differences

Organizations increasingly use social media and especially social networking sites (SNS) to support their marketing agenda, enhance collaboration, and develop new capabilities. However, the success of SNS initiatives is largely dependent on sustainable user participation. In this study, we argue that the continuance intentions of users may be gender-sensitive. To theorize and investigate gender differences in the determinants of continuance intentions, this study draws on the expectation-confirmation model, the uses and gratification theory, as well as the self-construal theory and its extensions. Our survey of 488 users shows that while both men and women are motivated by the ability to self-enhance, there are some gender differences. Specifically, while women are mainly driven by relational uses, such as maintaining close ties and getting access to social information on close and distant networks, men base their continuance intentions on their ability to gain information of a general nature. Our research makes several contributions to the discourse in strategic information systems literature concerning the use of social media by individuals and organizations. Theoretically, it expands the understanding of the phenomenon of continuance intentions and specifically the role of the gender differences in its determinants. On a practical level, it delivers insights for SNS providers and marketers into how satisfaction and continuance intentions of male and female SNS users can be differentially promoted. Furthermore, as organizations increasingly rely on corporate social networks to foster collaboration and innovation, our insights deliver initial recommendations on how organizational social media initiatives can be supported with regard to gender-based differences.     

Why girls go pink: Game character identification and game-players’ motivations

Based on social role theory and uses and gratifications, this study provides insights into the popularity of so-called pink games. This study is the first to examine the roles of identification, playing time, and age in the experience of motivations while playing an online role-playing game. Drawing upon a survey among 2261 girls between10 and 17 of age, our results show that identification with characters in the game is an important process in explaining girls’ gaming motivations. In addition, identification and motivations are intensified with playing time. Although age affects identification negatively, age is not related to the most important motive in playing pink games: social interaction. This study has important theoretical and practical implications for the popularity of pink games among girls.     

Understanding social networking sites adoption in China: A comparison of pre-adoption and post-adoption

Prior experience is an important determinant factor of individual behavior. This paper developed a theoretical model to predict the adoption intention of pre-adopters and post-adopters on social networking sites based on the theory of planned behavior. Using data from online surveys of netizens in China, the proposed model was tested in the context of pre-adoption and post-adoption by using the Partial Least Squares (PLS) technique. Then, multi-groups analysis was explored to compare the difference between the two groups. The results show that attitude, subjective norm and perceived behavior control have significant effect on the adoption intention of pre-adopters and post-adopters, and there is no significant difference between the two groups. In addition, information, meeting new people, and conformity motivations have the same significant effect on both groups. However, entertainment motivation has a significant effect on pre-adopters but connecting with old friends has none; in contrast, connecting with old friends has significant effect on post-adopters while entertainment motivation has no significant effect.     

Computer mediated communication for social and academic purposes: Profiles of use and University students’ gratifications

The present study approaches the Internet as a social space, where university students make use of computer mediated communication (CMC) applications, i.e. e-mail, instant messaging and social network sites, in order to satisfy social and academic needs. We focus on university students, because they represent one of the most avid groups of CMC users and additionally, because they are expected to carry their perceptions of media with them into the work place and their social life. In order to investigate this issue, we conducted an empirical research using, as a target group, a sample of students from a specific Greek University. Grounded in the “uses and gratifications” perspective, we investigated the various profiles of CMC use by students along with (a) the students’ perceptions about social and academic usefulness of CMC applications, (b) the extent up to which these perceptions are correlated with students’ prior experience with the use of CMC applications, and (c) how both of these factors can predict the frequency of present use of CMC for social or academic purposes respectively. The results reveal that although these three CMC applications constitute “functional alternatives” (media that satisfy similar needs) they are different to the degree of their “functionality” for the gratification of social and academic needs. Furthermore, the degree of CMC use by students is not correlated with the years of CMC experience, but with the profile of use that students dynamically adopt according to their daily needs and preferences. The results provide evidence for the current CMC use by university students and can be useful for the implementation of further academic policies regarding CMC use in Higher Education settings.     

Cyberbullying on social networking sites: A literature review and future research directions

Cyberbullying on social networking sites is an emerging societal issue that has drawn significant scholarly attention. The purpose of this study is to consolidate the existing knowledge through a literature review and analysis. We first discuss the nature, research patterns, and theoretical foundations. We then develop an integrative framework based on social cognitive theory to synthesize what is known and identify what remains to be learned, with a focus on the triadic reciprocal relationships between perpetrators, victims, and bystanders. We discuss the key findings and highlight opportunities for future research. We conclude this paper by noting research contributions and limitations.     

The contribution of social network sites to exposure to political difference: The relationships among SNSs, online political messaging, and exposure to cross-cutting perspectives

The increasing popularity of social network sites (SNSs) has raised questions about the role of social network media in the democratic process. This study explores how use of SNSs influences individuals’ exposure to political difference. The findings show a positive and significant relationship between SNSs and exposure to challenging viewpoints, supporting the idea that SNSs contribute to individuals’ exposure to cross-cutting political points of view. Partisanship was not found to interact with SNS use, suggesting that SNSs contribute to expanding exposure to dissimilar political views across individuals’ partisanship. Online political messaging also has a direct effect on exposure to dissimilar viewpoints, and it mediates the association between SNSs and exposure to cross-cutting political views.