POST-ADOPTION OF SOCIAL NETWORK SITES: A LITERATURE REVIEW AND A PROCESS FRAMEWORK

This article provides a comprehensive literature review about the post-adoption stage of social network sites (SNS) usage with the special focus on habitual use and terminating stages. The extant research has examined this topic mainly from two perspectives: namely, intentional and habitual. Findings from each of these two perspectives are synthesized and used to build a process model to better understand how different intentions and behaviors of users manifest in different stages of SNS post-adoption phase. The process model suggests that disturbances such as technical glitches and privacy leaks trigger users’ awareness of the ‘dark sides’ of habitual SNS use. In addition, the awareness of negative impacts of addictive use, which are perceived as threats, motivates people to switch from or quit SNS. This paper contributes to SNS research by synthesizing fragmented theoretical explanations and providing a visual tool that helps researchers to develop a deeper understanding of the dynamics in the SNS post-adoption phase. Practitioners will gain insights into how to retain existing users and better manage processes related to users who wish to quit

Trends in virtual communities from the perspective of presumers

O desenvolvimento de tecnologias de comunicação e de informação, tais como a Internet, revolucionou as formas de comunicação de maneira jamais vista. Uma das principais evidências desse fato é que as pessoas se aproximam, formando grupos de relacionamento online conhecidos por comunidades virtuais. Este artigo tem como propósito identificar as tendências quanto ao futuro das comunidades virtuais a partir da perspectiva de um perfil de usuário específico – os prosumers. Para tanto, foram realizadas combinações de diferentes técnicas qualitativas, envolvendo a utilização de imagens, entrevistas em profundidade, técnicas projetivas e, ainda, análise de cenários. Os resultados obtidos sugerem que as tendências de uso e participação das comunidades virtuais, do ponto de vista dos prosumers, estão vinculadas a cenários mais inovadores: de maior participação ativa dos usuários, maior envolvimento das pessoas, adoção de novas tecnologias e formas de acesso, entre outros. Além disso, demonstram a importância de sua consideração dentro das políticas de marketing e a influência que terão no futuro sobre os consumidores e sobre o processo de prosumption.The development of communication and information technologies, like the Internet, has revolutionized forms of communication in a way never seen before. One of the main evidences of this fact is that people are joining together, forming online relationship groups known as virtual communities. The purpose of this paper is to identify the trends as to the future of virtual communities from the perspective of a specific user profile, the prosumer. To do so, combinations of different qualitative techniques were used, involving images, in-depth interviews, projective techniques and scenario analysis. The results obtained suggest that the use and participation trends of virtual communities, from the point of view of prosumers, are linked to more innovative scenarios, where there is a greater active participation by users, more involvement of people, the adoption of new technologies and forms of access. Furthermore, they show how important it is to consider them in marketing policies and the influence they will have in the future on consumers and on the prosumption process

The relationship between passion for the cause and sense of virtual community in a Facebook-based cause-related virtual community

A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, Wits Business School to fulfilments of the requirements of a Master of Management by Research 30 March 2015Our understanding of the psychological construct of sense of community has been developing steadily, particularly since the publication of the seminal work by McMillan and Chavis (1986). Pertinent to this study, the sense of community construct has been applied to the virtual world, leading to the concept of sense of virtual community (SoVC), that is, a sense of community felt by members of a virtual community. This study synthesises the findings of the extant literature to build a multi-dimensional model of sense of community. Moving to a specific context, this study examines SoVC among members of cause-related virtual communities. Examples of such communities can be found in the Facebook communities that have developed around the various branches of the Red Cross and of World Vision. Among members of such communities, some level of support for the mediating cause organisation can be presumed to exist. This is referred to in this dissertation as Passion for the Cause (PFC). Empirical and theoretical work on the interaction between SoVC and PFC is lacking. This study investigates the extent to which SoVC and PFC are associated and seeks to bring clarity to the nature of the association. The research instrument was an online self-completion survey. The Facebook pages of South African cause organisations were used to invite community members to complete the survey. Respondents were participants in the Facebook-based communities of South African cause organisations (n = 67). The research instrument included a scale for SoVC (12 items) and a scale for PFC (6 items). An exploratory factor analysis was done to identify the latent factors of SoVC in this context. Adequate support was found for the conceptualisation of three factors of SoVC, namely, General Benefit, Friendship, and Helping. This was followed by a series of multiple regression analyses aimed at testing the relationships between PFC and SoVC and its factors. SoVC and PFC were found to be highly correlated. Furthermore, PFC was found to significantly predict SoVC. It was also found to predict the SoVC factor conceptualised as General Benefit. Finally, SoVC was found to predict PFC. Notably, PFC was found to be less able to predict SoVC than was SoVC able to predict PFC. Implications for the moderators of cause-related virtual communities are discussed.MB201

Relationship between Information and Communication Technology and competitiveness in the tourism industry: A mapping review

[EN] The main goal of this study is to review several previously published papers about the relationship between Information and Communication Technology and competitiveness in the tourism industry, to determine trends, research approaches and contextualization of former studies. Ninety papers were selected from the most visited journal databases of scientist papers related to tourism and technology: ScienceDirect, Scopus, Web of Science, ProQuest, EBSCO, DOAJ, and Emerald. Once applied the Systematic Mapping Review methodology, it was found that there are four major categories in which the relationship between the constructs can be grouped competitiveness and Information and Communication Technology; direct positive relationship, negative relationship, no relationship and positive relationship through other factors. Currently, there is consensus between researchers and professionals about the positive relationship between Information and Communication Technology and competitiveness on the tourism industry from the macroeconomic point of view. However, at a microeconomic level, the discussion has not yet been resolved since the adoption of technology or any other type of resource can generate dissimilar results in different companies given the characteristics of each firm. Future lines of research should focus on determining what the factors are,and under what conditions the digitalization of firms translates into improvements in their productivity and competitiveness.Villa-Espinosa, DM.; González-Ladrón-De-Guevara, F.; Miñana Terol, JL. (2018). Relationship between Information and Communication Technology and competitiveness in the tourism industry: A mapping review. Revista Iberoamericana de Turismo. 8(2):143-173. https://doi.org/10.2436/20.8070.01.106S1431738

An Examination of Automobile Online Brand Communities (AOBCs) in the U.S. and South Korea: Linkages among Motivation, Experience, and Satisfaction

This study explores automobile online brand communities in the different cultural contexts between South Korea and the United States. The core assumption is that members of automobile online brand communities in different cultures have different motivation orientations to visit their online communities and have different community experiences. Hofstede’s cultural dimensions were utilized as embedded cultural circumstances in examining relationships between different motivation orientations and community experiences. Two steps of qualitative and quantitative research methods were adopted to determine the relationships among community members’ motivation orientations, community experiences, and satisfaction. The study found that Korean automobile online brand community (KAOBC) members have stronger social, business, and communication motivations than American automobile online brand community (AAOBC) members. These community members’ motivations also influenced their community experiences. Both social network motivations and communication motivations are crucial predictors for four community experiences: Community loyalty, trust, membership identity, and word of mouth (WOM). Community members who have a stronger social networking and/or communication motivation are more likely to have a higher level of community loyalty, trust, membership identity, and WOM. Finally, community experiences were the most important indicators of the satisfaction of online community members among nationality, demographic factors, and motivation orientations

A mediated model of E-WOM effects towards continuous use intention of social commerce

Electronic Word of Mouth (e-WOM) plays a significant role in influencing users’ behavioural intention in social commerce (s-commerce). Research on the influence of perceived attributes of e-WOM on continuous use intention of s-commerce is limited to users’ attitudes in continuous usage of s-commerce. However, other contextual factors like trust and commitment are very crucial in sustaining a seller-buyer relationship on s-commerce. Moreover, there has been fierce competition to retain customers and ensure continuous usage of s-commerce to gain competitive advantage. This study integrates Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Commitment-Trust Theory (CTT) to examine the relationship between perceived attributes of e-WOM, trust, commitment, and continuous use intention of s-commerce. The framework also examines the mediational effects of those factors and their relationships. This study adapts post-positivism paradigm and quantitative research method. Data was collected from 365 s-commerce users in Malaysia through online survey. The data was analysed using statistical analysis techniques and Structural Equation Modelling. The results showed that continuous use intention is significantly affected by perceived usefulness, ease of use, and enjoyment of e-WOM. It is also revealed that trust and commitment significantly affected continuous use intention. Meanwhile, perceived ease of use and perceived enjoyment are found to significantly influence trust. Furthermore, perceived enjoyment influenced commitment only. Additionally, trust significantly mediated the relationship between perceived usefulness, perceived enjoyment and continuous use intention. Lastly, commitment significantly mediated the relationships between perceived ease of use, perceived enjoyment, and continuous use intention. Theoretically, this study contributes by incorporating CTT and TAM to show the relationship for perceived attributes of e-WOM, trust, and commitment in the context of continuous use of s-commerce. Practically, it provides knowledge about the factors that are vital to businesses operating over the s-commerce platforms

Factors affecting users' intention to continue using virtual community

A research model of individual users' continuance intention to use virtual communities is proposed and empirically examined in this study. To test this model, an online survey was conducted among users of a web-based Bulletin Board System sponsored by a local university in mainland China. Consistent with prior information systems continuance studies, the results showed that satisfaction was the most salient determinant of continuance intention to participate in the virtual community while sense of belonging had a significant but weaker influence on it. Contrary to the proposed hypotheses, only positive disconfirmations of purposive value and entertainment value significantly affected user satisfaction. Implications for both researchers and practitioners are discussed. © 2007 IEEE

Explaining users’ intentions to continue participating in Web 2.0 communities: The case of Facebook in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Traditional communications media has been transformed and reshaped with the introduction of the Internet and its technologies. The Internet has massively evolved over time, and the World Wide Web or otherwise referred to as Web 1.0 has developed to what is so called Web 2.0. The explosive diffusion of this global system has fostered the emergence of Web-based communities supported by the existence of globally connected individuals. As both the number of World Wide Web virtual community sites and users has expanded and grown quickly, these communities have become a subject of study to researchers of multiple disciplines. However, sustaining a successful operation of any Web 2.0 community depends on the continuous participation of its own users. It is massively important to maintain committed members in terms of continuous participation. Yet, their level of participation might vary depending on one‘s personal, social, situational, and cultural influences that eventually affect their intentions and behaviour on whether to continue or discontinue participating in that community. Facebook as a particular Web 2.0 community has been used as an exemplary case study in this research reflecting the drivers of its continuous usage in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Moreover, very few studies on Web 2.0 communities covered the Middle East area and more specifically there is almost absence of research in Jordan on how users of Facebook along with their cultural and behavioural influences would continue using this Web 2.0 community or not. Therefore, this study tackles this issue to investigate the influences affecting the continuous participation in these communities This research develops a conceptual framework that can be used as an instrument to guide empirical work in the field of Web 2.0 communities. The empirical context of the research is random Facebook users in Jordan, where data were analysed using quantitative and qualitative research approaches. Results and findings show that Personal attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioural control has shown to be all significant and highly influential on affecting users‘ intentions to continue participating on Facebook, perceived behavioural control (i.e. facilitating conditions, controllability) ranked the highest in its significance towards examining users’ intentions to continue participating on Facebook. Followed by the subjective norms (i.e. critical mass, compliance, and informational influences), then ranked the personal attitude (i.e. satisfaction, compatibility). Results have proved that most Facebook users in Jordan do participate on this site in the first place to deliver epistemic value elements, not with a much difference came the social value after, then ranked the hedonic third. The utilitarian value proved to be insignificant by all means, therefore, users intend to continue participating on Facebook despite of the perceived value elements to be delivered. Interestingly, analysis have proved the insignificance of the three cultural dimensions (i.e. masculinity vs. Femininity, individualism vs. Collectivism, and long-term vs. Short-term orientation), therefore, it has not been considered moderating in the framework of this research. Furthermore, the study concludes with specific implications for relevant theories, and useful findings on the individual, organizational, and the societal levels. Additionally, researchers in similar areas can find this work useful as a way to approach new streams in studying participation in Web 2.0 communities