Exploring Individuals’ Loyalty To Online Support Groups From the Perspective Of Social Support

Prior research indicates that social support allows individuals to have additional skills to handle stresses, enhance self-esteem, and increase psychological well-being. Online social networks have become an emerging and important source of social support. However, little research has been done to explore how IT usage may improve the well-being and life quality of individuals, especially patients. Little research has been done to empirically examine individuals’ loyalty toward online social groups from the perspective of social support. This study aims to develop an integrated research model to the impact of online social support on psychological well-being and group identification, and individuals’ subsequent loyalty toward online social groups. Online social support group was operationalized as a second-order construct with four components: informational, emotional, esteem, and network supports. Data collected from 537 users of online support groups for mothers in Taiwan provide strong support for the research model. The results indicate that online social support is positively associated with psychological well-being and group identification, which in turn have a positive effect on moms’ loyalty toward online social groups. Implications for theory and practice and suggestions for future research are provided

Exploring online community participation

Firm-hosted online brand communities, in which consumers interact regarding brand-centric topics, represent a fascinating context to study the motives of participation within the community. Theories of social capital and collective action are extended to begin understanding why individuals contribute, as they receive no immediate benefit, and “lurkers” have the same access to that contributed knowledge as everyone else. Building on the concept of means-end chain, that is we seek out certain attributes as a means to achieve a desired end state, the linkage between online brand community attributes, individual need, and personal values is ethnographically examined. By way of in-depth laddering interviews, why individuals participate will be answered through understanding how that participation fulfils individual need and enhances personal value. The main study comprises two approaches – participant observation in the community, and individual in-depth interviews with 32 community members. Over 2222 data points and 750 ladders were discovered and analysed using the laddering technique. Seven themes emerged as to why individuals actively participate in an online brand community – belonging, recognition, helping others, knowledge, professional advancement, personal development, and entertainment

What Drives Students' Loyalty-Formation in Social Media Learning Within a Personal Learning Environment Approach? The Moderating Role of Need for Cognition

Our study analyzes an educational experience based on the integrated use of social media within a higher education course under a personal learning environment approach and investigates the factors that determine students' loyalty to social media learning. We examined the moderating role of need for cognition (NFC) in students' formation of attitudes, satisfaction, and loyalty toward this learning experience. The results indicate that NFC has an influence on these variables, significantly moderating how loyalty toward social media learning is formed. For high-NFC students, satisfaction with the learning experience is the most important variable to explain loyalty; whereas for low-NFC students, attitudes have a stronger effect. Different strategies are suggested, according to the learners' NFC levels, for increasing the use of social media in personal learning environments. Practical implications for improving the integration of such informal resources into formal education are discussed.Junta de Andalucía – Programa Andaluz de I + D P12 SEJ 259

Racial Prioritization in Black-White Relationships

The utilization of race as a proxy for evaluating different characteristics of others contains risk because it results in stereotyping and potential alienation of individuals from negatively judged groups. This concept motivated me to uncover the extent to which race affects intimate relationships amongst the historically opposed groups of blacks and whites in the United States. I am studying the historic racially-driven marginalization of blacks and the resulting relationship to recent dating and marriage patterns between black-white interracial pairs. I want to find out why the socioeconomic advantage held by whites is transmutated into dating culture, in order to understand the continued prioritization of race as a factor in forming romantic relationships. I engaged scholarly articles with analyses on the foundations of interracial relationships between black and white people and studies exploring online dating site behavior and the racial preferences of members. Main contributors to interracial marriages include higher educational achievement and cultural similarity. Factors that decrease black-stereotypical congruence tend to increase the chances of black individuals having relationships with white individuals. Race prioritization in relationships acts as a preliminary screening of resources deemed important to the longevity of a marriage and can therefore result in the discrimination of stereotypically disadvantaged blacks. I aim to emphasize the importance of accepting diversity and embracing individual characteristics, instead of the prejudices and stigmas against individuals simply due to appearance. I suggest that future research utilize the evidence provided here to speculate methods to improve implicit biases and attitudes toward interracial interactions

A typology categorization of millennials in their technology behavior

Hay un interés creciente por los millennials; y sin embargo, hasta la fecha hay escasas segmentaciones de los millennials en cuanto a su comportamiento en relación a la tecnología. En este contexto, este estudio trata las siguientes cuestiones:”¿Son los millennials monolíticos o hay diferentes segmentos en esta generación en cuanto a su comportamiento tecnológico?”. Y si este fuera el caso: “¿Existen diferencias importantes en cuanto a la forma en que los millennials usan la tecnología?”. Nuestro objetivo consiste en examinar los potenciales perfiles de los millennials en relación a su comportamiento y uso de la tecnología. Los datos obtenidos de una muestra de 707 millennials se analizaron mediante un análisis de componentes principales y análisis clúster. A continuación, los segmentos se caracterizaron mediante un análisis MANOVA. Nuestros resultados revelan la existencia de cinco segmentos o tipologías de millennials en cuanto a su comportamiento tecnológico: los “devotos de la tecnología”, los “espectadores”, los “prudentes”, los “adversos” y los “productivos”. Este estudio contribuye de forma detallada al conocimiento sobre cómo las diferentes categorías de millennials usan la tecnología.There is an increasing interest for millennials; however, to date millennials’ segmentations regarding their technology behavior are scarce. In this context, this study addresses the following questions: “Are millennials monolithic, or are there segments within this generation group regarding the technology behavior?”. And if so: “Are there important variances in the way that millennial segments use technology?”. Our purpose is to examine the potential profiles of millennials regarding their technology use and behavior. Data from a sample of 707 millennials was gathered and analyzed through principal component analysis and cluster analysis. Then, millennials’ segments were profiled using a MANOVA analysis. Our findings revealed five different segments or typologies of millennials regarding their technology behavior: technology devotees, technology spectators, circumspects, technology adverse users and productivity enhancers. This study contributes with a detailed perspective of how different millennial segments use technology

Impact of CSR perceptions on workers’ innovative behaviour: exploring the social exchange process and the role of perceived external prestige

The study aims to show how organisational corporate social responsibility (CSR) can influence workers’ attitudes, especially in terms of innovative behaviour (IB). A second aim is to explore the social exchange process that may underlie this relationship, by examining the mediating role of organisational trust (OT), affective commitment (AC) and happiness (HAP), and the moderating role of perceived external prestige (PEP). The authors employ structural equation modelling based on survey data obtained from 315 Portuguese individuals. The findings show that perceptions of CSR predict IB through a social exchange process which involves the mediating role of OT, AC and HAP and the moderating process of PEP. They suggest that managers should implement CSR practices because these can contribute towards fostering IB, but that they should also invest in communication and in the process of upgrading corporate image. This study enriches the existing knowledge about social exchange relationships in organisational contexts, and responds to the need to understand underlying mechanisms linking CSR with workers’ organisational outcomes, by analysing CSR practices from a holistic stakeholder perspective.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Exploring the commercial value of social networks: enhancing consumers’ brand experience through Facebook pages

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to understand the factors which impact upon the consumers’ willingness to utilise company Facebook pages and e-word-of mouth by proposing and testing a conceptual framework which is inspired by theories in marketing and information systems fields. The authors believe that only by applying both theories will provide a more complete understanding of the relationship between brand experience and Facebook. The research model attempts to illustrate the factors according to customers’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivations and their impact on brand experience, brand Facebook page loyalty and e-word-of-mouth (E-WOM). Design/methodology/approach – The authors adopted an online survey method for data collection. The subjects the authors used were Facebook users. The data were collected in Taiwan over spring 2011. The authors then used the structural equation model to analyse the data collected. Findings – The findings suggest that users are influenced by the technical characterises of a brand Facebook page, such as ease of use and usefulness, which might be combated by attempting to reduce customer effort when accessing Facebook pages. The authors conclude that customer effort influenced brand experience and consequently loyalty to brand Facebook pages and E-WOM. Research limitations/implications – The limitations of this study relate to the investigation of consumer perspectives in a specific geographical context and time frame. Originality/value – The study’s contributions are both theoretical and practical, as it offers new insights into brand experience attitudes in an online environment and useful insights to companies willing to market themselves on Facebook. Keywords Marketing, Facebook, Virtual community, Extrinsic motivations, Intrinsic motivations Paper type Research pape