Predictors of Online News-Sharing Intention in the U.S and South Korea: An Application of the Theory of Reasoned Action

ABSTRACT

In its use of interactive media technology, the public takes on an important role in disseminating news, especially when sharing it through social networking sites. This study demonstrates what motivates media users to participate in the process of sharing online news in two cultures: South Korea and the United States (U.S.). Employing the theory of reasoned action, this study empirically displays how the intention to share online news is influenced by attitudes and subjective norms. Particularly, this study measures both attitudes toward and subjective norms about (1) the specific news article and (2) social media participation. Our findings reveal more substantial effects that attitudes have on behavioral intention than subjective norms in the U.S. group. The discussion highlights the theoretical and practical implications of our findings.

KEYWORDS:

• Social Media
• Online Information Sharing
• News Audience
• Newsworthiness
• A Comparative Study

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. This study was part of a larger online study that included random assignment to the experimental condition. Specifically, respondents were randomly assigned to read one of four experimental designs (2 x 2 news article: high vs. low cancer risks from the nuclear accident; high vs. low social media metrics). Because this study particularly focused on examining the roles of attitudes and subjective norms to explain individuals’ information-sharing intention, we should note that we did not assess the effect of experimental stimuli. Instead, potential confounding effects of the original experimental manipulations were controlled in the analytical models.

Additional information

Funding

The authors received no specific funding for this work.

Notes on contributors

Jiyoun Kim

Jiyoun Kim, PhD, is an assistant professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Maryland. She earned his PhD at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research is broadly concerned with science, health and risk communication. She is particularly interested in how we can harness the power of communication to design and deliver effective messaging to help the public have more meaningful conversations about science and health issues in order to help the public make more informed decisions.

Kang Namkoong

Kang Namkoong, PhD, is an assistant professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Maryland. He earned his PhD at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His research focuses on the interrelationships between emerging media and health communication, with areas of focus including web- and mobile-based eHealth system effects, cancer communications, health promotion, occupational health and safety, and nutrition education for underserved populations. His recent work investigates the potential of mobile communication technologies in public health campaigns.

Junhan Chen

Junhan Chen is currently a doctoral student in the Department of Communication at University of Maryland, College Park. Her research focuses on the effect of social norms in health behavior change and the use of emerging media including social media, augmented reality, and virtual reality in health and risk communication. She earned her M.A. in Communication from University of Wisconsin-Madison and her B.A. in Journalism from Peking University in China.