Examining social media engagement through health-related message framing in different cultures

Abstract

The present study contributes to cultural aspects of responsible social media marketing, representing digital innovation and health communication. We intended to explore how the congruence between health message framing and national culture-driven regulatory focus influences social media engagement. Our study finds that conformity of framing and an individual’s nationality leads health-related messages (vaping in this article) to have a more persuasive effect on social media in terms of user engagement. Our findings further suggest how users’ belief in conspiracy theories related to health issues diminishes the positive influence of congruent health messages in terms of persuasiveness and consequently social media engagement in terms of health messages. We base our findings on a sample of 239 participants in the UK and employ a moderated mediation analysis to test the study hypotheses.