The effects of need for cognition on Internet use

One of the undisputed roles of the Internet is information spreading. However, to this day there is little understanding of the interaction between the way in which information is provided on the Internet and the behavior of different human personality types. This article focuses on the impact of the need for cognition on the desired level of interactivity of a given Website and on web surfing in general. For this experiment, four commercialized Websites were used: (1) flat with no hyperlinks and no time pressure; (2) flat with time pressure; (3) interactive¹ with no time pressure; and (4) interactive with time pressure. All of the Websites contained identical information presented in different ways. The relations between need for cognition as a personality variable, time pressure as a situational stressor, the interactivity of the Web site, and several demographic variables were examined on Internet users’ behavior while surfing and on their preferences. One hundred and eighty-two experienced Web surfers took part in the experiment and were randomly assigned to one of the Websites. The number of hyperlinks used while surfing were counted by specially designed software. After surfing, the participants completed questionnaires regarding their satisfaction from the site, their willingness to return to the site, how persuasive the site was, and demographic data. It was predicted that people with high need for cognition would be more experienced in the Internet, use more hyperlinks, and stay longer in the site. People with a low need for cognition were predicted to prefer interactive over linear sites. Results support the preferences of people low in need for cognition of an interactive site. Other predictions were supported only partially. Implementations for Website design and further research are discussed.