Determining multi-dimensional motivations driving e-WOM intention and purchase intention on WeChat: the significant role of active participation
| Date | 14 September 2023 |
| Pages | 113-132 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/AJIM-02-2023-0052 |
| Published date | 14 September 2023 |
| Author | Hua Pang,Jingying Wang |
Determining multi-dimensional
motivations driving e-WOM
intention and purchase intention
on WeChat: the significant role
of active participation
Hua Pang
School of New Media and Communication, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China, and
Jingying Wang
College of Management and Economics, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
Abstract
Purpose –Building upon uses and gratifications (UG) theory and social exchange theory, the current study
establishes a theoretical model to examine the underlying relationship between customer motivations, active
participation and electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM) and purchase intentions on WeChat.
Design/methodology/approach –The data were gathered in a web-based survey of 301 WeChat users in
mainland China. To empirically verify the proposed hypotheses, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and
structural equation modeling (SEM) were employed using online data.
Findings –Path analysis outcomes demonstrate that functional, hedonic and social motivations positively
affect WeChat users’active participation. In addition, active participation significantly influences e-WOM
intention while showing no correlation with purchase intention.
Research limitations/implications –Theoretically, this article can enrich the extant system of relevant
theoriesandofferafresh perspective for further research on the generation of consumers’e-WOM intention and
purchase intention in the WeChat context. Practically, the research outcomes provide insight for companies on
how to motivate customers to participate in online activities, which subsequently improve WeChat users’
willingness in conducting e-WOM communication and making purchase decisions.
Originality/value –Although mobile social media could serve as an influential marketing vehicle for
individuals’engagement in social and commercial activities in today’s mobile-matured environment, the
substantial impact of active engagement on the relationship between customer motivation and purchase
intention remains insufficiently explored. The outcomes not only contribute to the current body of knowledge,
but also offer several managerial guidance for companies that pay attention to mobile social media marketing
in a contemporary mobile media-saturated society.
Keywords Customer motivations, Customer behavior, active participation, e-WOM, purchase intention
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
With the overpowering advent of new media, consumers are increasingly utilizing mobile
social networking sites (SNSs) as crucial channels to foster information exchange and
improve consumption experiences in present-day business field (Demiray and Burnaz, 2019;
Shi et al., 2016;Zhang et al., 2020). The ever-growing evolution of digital technology and the
popularization of smartphones have offered additional resources for interpersonal
communications via social networks and virtual communities, substantially diversifying
interaction and cooperation possibilities for various consumers (Kang and Johnson, 2013;Lo
et al., 2020;Pang and Liu, 2023). Notably, numerous mobile SNSs are gradually transforming
themselves into social commerce platforms through embedding commerce-related
E-WOM
and purchase
intentions
on WeChat
113
This work was supported by the National Social Science Fund of China (Grant No. 19CXW035).
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/2050-3806.htm
Received 11 February 2023
Revised 27 May 2023
1 August 2023
Accepted 27 August 2023
Aslib Journal of Information
Management
Vol. 77 No. 1, 2025
pp. 113-132
© Emerald Publishing Limited
2050-3806
DOI 10.1108/AJIM-02-2023-0052
applications to their systems own to the continuing significance of social commerce for
individuals’purchasing journeys. Existing studies have acknowledged and well documented
that mobile social media provide a highly effective and flexible tool for a multitude of
consumers to construct a desirable private profile, establish personal connectedness, as well
as distribute product-related commentary (Azer and Ranaweera, 2022;Ko, 2020;Liang and
Yang, 2018). Ultimately, mobile SNSs could serve as an influential marketing vehicle for
individuals’engagement in social and commercial activities in today’s mobile-matured
environment.
Recently, the commercial viability of mobile social networking site SNS has garnered
substantial scholarly interest, prompting empirical investigations into the determinants that
drive consumer engagement with businesses in the mobile SNS environments (Daugherty
et al., 2017;Horng and Wu, 2020;Upadhyay and Kamble, 2023). Although previous studies
have investigated e-WOM intention and purchase intention on mobile SNS by utilizing
various frameworks, there still appears to be some important research gaps that demand
future exploration. First, despite the extensive research conducted on the key determinants of
behavioral intention among mobile SNS users from various perspectives, including social
media characteristics, attitude towards behavior, subjective norm and destination image
value (Abbasi et al., 2023;Wu and Kuang, 2021;Zeng and Seock, 2019), limited attention has
been given to the distinct dimensions of customer motivations that drive e-word-of-mouth
(e-WOM) and purchase intention on WeChat. Second, while various mobile SNSs are
commonly regarded as advantageous (Azer and Ranaweera, 2022;Demiray and Burnaz,
2019;Wu and Kuang, 2021;Zhang et al., 2017), their efficacy in fostering customer
engagement remains insufficiently explicated. This study is centered on the examination of
the impact of members’active participation on the facilitation of e-WOM intention and
purchase intention. Active members foster a highly engaging atmosphere where they provide
more favorable assessments of service encounters and delivery methods, which ultimately
enhance attitudinal and behavioral outcomes (Izogo and Mpinganjira, 2023;Liang and Yang,
2018;P€
oyry et al., 2013). For active users’immense value in transaction process (Kumar and
Singh, 2022;Zeng and Seock, 2019), it’s necessary to determine to what extent active
participation affects customer engagement (including e-WOM and purchase intention). The
objective of this investigation was to construct a theoretical framework that comprehends the
influential function of customers’engagement in mobile SNSs on their purchase inclination.
Thirdly, although active participation in the computer-mediated context has been deemed
significant (Choi and Scott, 2013;Ryu and Park, 2020;Upadhyay and Kamble, 2023), it
remains uncertain whether such participation can act as a mediator between the various
dimensions of motivations and purchase intention in the WeChat context. The existing
literature on this subject has predominantly presented descriptive accounts, with a dearth of
methodical exploration of content grounded in theoretical frameworks (Kang and Johnson,
2013;Kudeshia et al., 2016;Onofrei et al., 2022). There is a scarcity of research that explicitly
employs the theoretical frameworks of uses and gratifications (UG) and social exchange
theory in the domain of social psychology to investigate the dynamic impact of distinct
dimensions of motivations and active engagement on the electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM)
intention and purchase intention of WeChat users. Therefore, linking motivations and active
engagement to behavioral outcomes will give a more in-depth understanding of consumer
behavior in the context of mobile SNS and insight into the type of behavior that should be
encouraged in order to achieve a positive impact on e-WOM and purchase intention.
Based on the abovestatements, this study constructs a conceptualmodel to investigate the
relationshipsbetween customermotivations, active participationon WeChat, e-WOM intention
and purchase intention. Itwas anticipated that the model would provide applicable
implications for the leverage of interactions between customers and services onmobile
social media as well as stimulate updatedresearch agendas in web-based promotional
AJIM
77,1
114
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