Serendipity enhances user engagement and sociality perception: the combinatory effect of serendipitous movie suggestions and user motivations

This study investigates how serendipitous suggestions enhance user engagement with and sociality perceptions of movie recommendation system (RS). We constructed a mock-up recommendation system that provided either serendipitous or personalised movie suggestions to users. Based on the uses and gratifications theory, entertainment and information-seeking motives were hypothesized to moderate the impact of serendipitous suggestions on users’ sociality perceptions of the system. Results from an experiment (N = 161) showed that even though available genres and the perceived recency and accuracy of suggested motives were kept constant across the conditions, the serendipitous suggestions scored higher on the reward dimension of user engagement than the personalized suggestions. Greater user engagement enhanced participants’ sociality perceptions of the system such as being helpful, friendly, and competent. User motives significantly moderated the effects of serendipitous suggestions; entertainment motives boosted the positive impact of serendipity on user engagement and sociality perception, whereas information-seeking motives mitigated its impact.