Why youth continue watching reality shows on social media? A case study in Vietnam

Abstract

This research investigates the motivations of Vietnamese college students to use social media to watch reality shows. Understanding students’ motivations for using social media to watch reality shows is vital to developing relevant and compelling content, creating content that meets the insight of target audiences, and promoting the growth of the media industry and the interests of users and businesses. This research uniquely combines Technology Acceptance Model and Use and Gratification Theory theoretical frameworks to develop a conceptual model to investigate the motivations that motivate Vietnamese students to watch reality shows through social media platforms. Findings show that college students know the ease of use and usefulness of media technology and the basic cognitive, social, and emotional satisfaction they derive from media use to watch reality shows. The results show that this study was successful in exploring Vietnamese students’ motivation for utilizing social media to view reality shows. This research contributes to individuals’ understanding and motivation for using social media to meet their needs. These findings help improve the content creation capabilities of reality show producers through technological innovation and enhanced experiences based on the needs of viewers, especially Vietnamese students.