Kim Hyang-Sook, Sundar S Shyam
a Department of Mass Communication & Communication Studies , Towson University.
b Media Effects Research Laboratory , The Pennsylvania State University.
Health Commun. 2016;31(5):583-95. doi: 10.1080/10410236.2014.981663. Epub 2015 Sep 30.
In an effort to encourage users to participate rather than lurk, online health forums provide authority badges (e.g., guru) to frequent contributors and popularity indicators (e.g., number of views) to their postings. Studies have shown the latter to be more effective, implying that bulletin-board users are motivated by external validation of their contributions. However, no consideration has yet been given to individual differences in the influence of such popularity indicators. Personality psychology suggests that individuals with external, rather than internal, locus of control are more likely to be other-directed and therefore more likely to be motivated by interface cues showing the bandwagon effect of their online posts. We investigate this hypothesis by analyzing data from a 2 (high vs. low authority cue) × 2 (strong vs. weak bandwagon cue) experiment with an online health community. Results show that strong bandwagon cues promote sense of community among users with internal, rather than external, locus of control. When bandwagon cues are weak, bestowal of high authority serves to heighten their sense of agency. Contrary to prediction, weak bandwagon cues appear to promote sense of community and sense of agency among those with external locus of control. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
为鼓励用户参与而非潜水，在线健康论坛为频繁贡献者提供权威徽章（如大师级），并为其帖子提供人气指标（如浏览量）。研究表明，后者更有效，这意味着公告板用户受到对其贡献的外部认可的激励。然而，尚未考虑此类人气指标影响中的个体差异。人格心理学表明，具有外部而非内部控制点的个体更可能受他人引导，因此更可能受到显示其在线帖子从众效应的界面线索的激励。我们通过分析来自一个在线健康社区的2（高权威线索与低权威线索）×2（强从众线索与弱从众线索）实验的数据来研究这一假设。结果表明，强从众线索在具有内部控制点而非外部控制点的用户中促进社区感。当从众线索较弱时，赋予高权威有助于增强他们的能动感。与预测相反，弱从众线索似乎在具有外部控制点的人群中促进社区感和能动感。本文讨论了理论和实践意义。
