Hyunjin Kang

Source Cues in Online News: Is the Proximate Source More Powerful than Distal Sources?

With the rise of intermediaries such as portals, social-bookmarking sites, and microblogs, online news is often carried through multiple sources. However, the perceived credibility of different source cues attached to a single news story can be quite different. So, how do readers evaluate the story? Do users factor in all distal sources, or do they simply refer to the proximate source delivering the news? Using a 2 (involvement) × 2 (proximal source credibility) × 2 (distal source credibility) full-factorial between-subjects experiment (N = 231), we found that while highly involved readers considered both types of sources, low-involvement readers were primarily influenced by the proximate source.

Unlocking the privacy paradox: do cognitive heuristics hold the key?

Even though users have become increasingly concerned about their privacy online, they continue to disclose deeply personal information in a number of online venues, including e-commerce portals and social networking sites. Scholars have tried to explain this inconsistency between attitudes and behavior by suggesting that online users consciously weigh the trade-off between the costs and benefits of online information disclosure. We argue that online user behaviors are not always rational, but may occur due to expedient decision-making in the heat of the moment. Such decisions are based on cognitive heuristics (i.e., rules of thumb) rather than on a careful analysis of each transaction. Based on this premise, we seek to identify the specific triggers for disclosure of private information online. In the experiment reported here, we explore the operation of two specific heuristics-benefit and fuzzy boundary-in influencing privacy-related attitudes and behaviors. Theoretical and design implications are discussed.

WHY READ ONLINE NEWS? THE STRUCTURAL RELATIONSHIPS AMONG MOTIVATIONS, BEHAVIORS, AND CONSUMPTION IN SOUTH KOREA

Using cross-sectional data (N = 811) implemented by the Korea Information Society Development Institute, this study investigated the effects of online users’ motivations (information-seeking, entertainment, and social utility) for reading online news on their online news usage and consumption in South Korea. Consistent with our predictions, the motivations were associated with in-depth reading. Our findings also indicated that in-depth reading mediated the association between the motivations for using and the actual use of online news, whereas interactions and source-checking did not mediate the relationship. The implications of the study and recommendations for future research directions are also discussed.

When Self Is the Source: Effects of Media Customization on Message Processing

Customization of media technologies enables users to become active sources in the communication process. But, does this sense of “self-as-source” alter the way users process information received via customized interfaces? A between-subjects experiment (N = 146) was conducted to answer this question. Data indicate that the effect of self-driven customization (high vs. low self-as-source) on persuasive message processing is mediated by perceived identity. Those who experience high self-as-source tend to process messages less systematically, but perceive the message topic as more important and show greater intention to follow the suggestions of messages than those with a low sense of self-as-source, an effect that is mediated by perceived identity. Theoretical implications for persuasive technologies, dual process models, and the agency model of customization are discussed, followed by practical implications for communicators who wish to incorporate new media technologies into their social influence campaigns.

The Primer of Social Media Analytics

This article is intended to serve as a primer of social media analytics. The paper explores different dimensions of social media analytics by drawing on a review of the literature. Specifically, the paper sheds light on the definitional aspects, types of social media data and types of analytics to improve firm performance. The findings of the paper will help the reader to grasp the fundamentals of social media analytics.