Continuous usage of social networking sites: The effect of innovation and gratification attributes

Purpose – Although increasing numbers of users have begun to use social networking sites (SNSs), the user growth of a few SNSs continues to decrease. Therefore identifying factors that influence users' intention to adopt and continuously use a particular SNS is a critical issue. To explore the factors, this study aims to apply the theories of reasoned action, uses and gratifications, and innovation diffusion to explain why people continue to join SNSs. Design/methodology/approach – The study participants were members of Facebook in Taiwan. An online questionnaire was used to conduct empirical research, and the data of 348 respondents were analysed using the partial least squares regression approach. Findings – It was found that the reasons why people continuously use SNSs vary with different innovation diffusion stages. In particular attitude toward SNSs had the strongest direct effect on continuous intention while the impact of social norms was not significant in the different innovation diffusion stages. Practical implications – From a practical perspective, insights provided by the study can help SNS developers understand user motivation and thus design more effective marketing strategies. Originality/value – The proposed model provides an improved understanding of the needs of different SNS users, and testing verified the effects of the factors related to gratification and innovation diffusion.