The impact of the linguistic style of doctor live streaming titles on patient engagement behavior in online health communities

Purpose This paper aims to explore how the linguistic style of doctor live streaming titles influences patient engagement behavior in online health communities. Specifically, we developed a framework to investigate the impact of three linguistic styles (categorized into analytical, social interactive and psychological intimacy types based on media naturalness theory (MNT)) on patient engagement, moderated by title, disease privacy and title professionalism. Design/methodology/approach To empirically assess the proposed model, this study draws on data collected from online health platforms to examine how linguistic styles of live streaming titles influence patient engagement. Data are analyzed using negative binomial regression. Findings All three linguistic styles positively influence patient engagement behavior. Additionally, disease privacy and title professionalism significantly moderate these effects, revealing how language features interact with contextual factors to shape engagement. Research limitations/implications This research extends MNT to online health communication and highlights the strategic role of language in doctor-patient interactions. However, the study is limited to one platform type. Future research could explore other cross-platform comparisons. Practical implications Findings provide practical guidance for doctors and administrators to optimize live-stream titles by strategically using linguistic styles, particularly under high-privacy or high-professionalism scenarios, thereby boosting patient engagement. It also recommends integrating linguistic inquiry and word count-like tools into digital healthcare platforms for automated title optimization and enhanced patient interaction. Originality/value This study is among the first to examine linguistic styles in healthcare live streaming. It contributes to the literature by identifying specific language types that promote engagement and by applying MNT to a novel digital health setting.