How Mobile Health Livingstreaming Engages the Consumer-Insights from a Dual-Process Model

Abstract

Mobile health livestreaming has rapidly grown and become a popular platform for consumers to receive sustainable health consultation services. However, the factors influencing consumer engagement in this context still need clarification. To address this gap, we propose a framework based on dual-process theory, which suggests that cognitive mechanism and affective mechanism are two pathways that can cultivate consumer engagement in mobile health livestreaming. Using data from 499 Chinese consumers and the partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) approach, we empirically corroborated our framework. The results show that perceived intelligence significantly predicts consumer engagement, while concentration is positively associated with consumer engagement. Our results also indicate that concentration moderates the relationship between perceived intelligence and consumer engagement. In addition, mobile health livestreaming features can activate the two mechanisms. Perceived synchronicity and perceived vicariousness have a significant influence on perceived intelligence, while arousal and affinity are positively associated with concentration. This study carries considerable implications for the industry in support of promotional policies to engage consumers in mobile health livestreaming.