Journal
INFORMATION & MANAGEMENT
Volume 53, Issue 6, Pages 752-766Publisher
ELSEVIER
DOI: 10.1016/j.im.2016.02.009
Keywords
Social networking site; Multi-homing intention; Multiple usage; IT adoption and use; Service complementarity; Optimum stimulation level
Funding
- National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) [71501042, 71172188, 71331007]
- Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities in University of International Business and Economics [CXTD6-03]
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Given the increasingly intense competition for social networking sites (SNSs), ensuring sustainable growth in user base has emerged as a critical issue for SNS operators. Contrary to the common belief that SNS users are committed to using one SNS, anecdotal evidence suggests that most users use multiple SNSs simultaneously. This study attempts to understand this phenomenon of users' multi-homing on SNSs. Building upon optimum stimulation level (OSL) theory, uses and gratifications theory, and literature on choice complementarity, a theoretical model for investigating SNS users' multi-homing intention is proposed. An analysis of survey data collected from 383 SNS users shows that OSL positively affects users' perceived complementarity between different SNSs in gratifying their four facets of needs, namely, interpersonal communication, self-presentation, information, and entertainment. Among the four dimensions of perceived complementarity, only interpersonal communication and information aspects significantly affect users' intention to multi-home on SNSs. The results from this study offer theoretical and practical implications for understanding and managing users' multi-homing use of SNSs. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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