Effects of Social Connection on Dual Attitudes and Continuance Intentions of Using Social Media

AbstractPrior studies that specifically investigate the effects of social connections on the continuous adoption of social media applications (SMAs) are scarce. Based on the social contagion theory (SCT) and dual-attitude perspective, this study develops and validates a research model that explains the staged influences of social connection factors (i.e., pre- and post-usage cohesion and structural equivalence) on users’ explicit attitude, intention to use, implicit attitudes and continuance intention regarding the use of the SMAs. Survey data collected from both pre-usage and post-usage stages of 302 SMA users were examined using the technique of partial least squares to validate the research model. The results indicate that pre-usage cohesion and structural equivalence are significant antecedents of SMA users’ explicit attitude and intention to use. Additionally, these factors, along with post-usage cohesion and structural equivalence, significantly influence SMA users’ implicit attitude and continuance intention. In summary, by adopting the SCT and dual-attitude perspective, this study is among the first group of studies that examine whether social connection factors have influences on people’s adoption of SMAs at both pre-usage and post-usage stages. Implications for theory and for practices are discussed subsequently.Keywords: Social mediadual attitudessocial contagion theorycohesionstructural equivalence Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Additional informationFundingThis work was supported by the National Science and Technology Council, Taiwan [grant number: NSTC 112-2410-H-006-052-MY3].Notes on contributorsShin-Horng ChenShin-Horng Chen is an Associate Professor at the Department of Information Management of the National Taipei University of Business. His research interests include digital marketing, information technology adoption, smart technology and intelligent commerce. He has published in Journal of Global Information Management, Journal of Biomedical Informatics, Education and Training, Electronic Markets, etc.Wei-Tsong WangWei-Tsong Wang received his Ph.D. in Information Science from the State University of New York at Albany, USA. His research interests include e-commerce and knowledge management. His works have appeared in journals such as Information and Management, Decision Sciences, Decision Support Systems, Information and Organization, among others.Yi-Jen WangYi-Jen Wang received her M.S. in Information Management at National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan. Her research interests include social networking services, online marketing, and mobile services. She is currently working for a semi-conductor manufacturing company in Taiwan as an information system engineer.