Social Media Competence Research Articles

Adoption intention of e-government application for public health risk communication: Risk information, social media competence and trust in the government.

Effective risk communication depends on the government's ability to deploy the latest communication technologies to promptly educate its citizens of new hazards and assist them in making informed decisions. This study investigates the influence of risk information seeking, social media competency and trust in the government on the intention to adopt e-government apps for communicating public health risks. To achieve the study's objective, a convenience sample of 149 Malaysian residents residing in Shah Alam was obtained via a structured questionnaire and subsequently analyzed using the Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Method. The validity and reliability of the study were evaluated through the outer loadings, Average Variance Extracted (AVE), and Composite Reliability (CR). The influence of underlying factors on the outcome was evaluated by examining path coefficients, standard errors, and t-values. The measurement model suggested to use three items to measure the risk information seeking and five to measure trust in the government information and social competence. Loadings ranged from 0.681 to 0.972. The three factors explained the 43.2% of the outcome variability, and all had a positive effect on the intention to adopt information from the e-government application with coefficients estimates ranging from 0.133 to 0.541. The model showed an adequate predictive relevance with Q2 = 0.381. Public health risk communication via e-government applications rely on the active and accountable engagement of the citizens. To stimulate higher acceptance and utilization of government digital services for sustainable health risk communication and management, the government must raise the public's level of digital literacy and proficiency. By offering training programs and demonstrations, the government may also need to think about making investments in education about digital and technological skill levels.

Nursing undergraduates' media competence in the context of health communication and its relationship to professionalism.

To investigate the association between professionalism and social media competence among Chinese mainland nursing undergraduates. This study employed a cross-sectional descriptive correlation design. From June to July 2021, 797 nursing students from four nursing colleges in Jiangsu Province, China, were chosen using stratified cluster sampling. The questionnaire included the Chinese version of the Nursing Professionalism Scale and the Social Media Competency Scale. The association between professionalism and social media competency was examined using Pearson's correlation analysis. The professionalism of nursing undergraduates (average scores:70.44 ± 8.82) was at a medium level. Social media self-efficacy, performance expectancy, facilitating conditions and social influence (3.76 ± 0.75, 3.87 ± 0.60, 3.53 ± 0.69, 3.41 ± 0.76) were at a medium-high level, while social media experience and effort expectancy (3.03 ± 0.72, 2.60 ± 0.59) were at medium and low levels. Among nursing undergraduates, professionalism was related to social media competence, among which, professionalism was positively correlated with social media self-efficacy (r = 0.40, p < 0.01), social media experience (r = 0.50, p < 0.01), performance expectancy (r = 0.34, p < 0.01), facilitating conditions (r = 0.41, p < 0.01), but negatively correlated with effort expectancy (r = -0.10, p < 0.01). The professionalism of nursing undergraduates is related to social media. The scores of social media self-efficacy, social media experience, performance expectancy and facilitating conditions of nursing students with high professionalism were higher than those of nursing students with low professionalism. This study suggests that developing a course on health communication on social media can help nursing students improve their professionalism. Participants completed a survey via the online survey platform Wenjuangxing.

The Effect of Millennial Employees' Social Media Competence and Future Work Self-Salience on Bootleg Innovation

The Effect of Millennial Employees' Social Media Competence and Future Work Self-Salience on Bootleg Innovation

Effectiveness of health communication courses on professionalism and social media competence among nursing students: A randomized controlled trial

BackgroundThe shaping and cultivation of professionalism of nursing students is very important for the improvement and retention of nursing workers' quality. In the context of social media, it is challenging for nursing students to use social media for health education. Health communication course has the potential to cultivate professionalism and social media competence of nursing students, but its role still needs to be explored. ObjectiveTo evaluate the effectiveness of health communication course intervention on improving the professionalism and social media competence of nursing students. DesignA randomized controlled trial. MethodsThe recruited nursing students were randomly divided into the intervention group (N = 50) and the control group (N = 51). The control group received routine nursing education. Intervention group received routine nursing education and health communication education courses. Both groups were required to submit a health communication work on any topic. The Nursing Professionalism Scale、Social Media Self-efficacy Scale and Social Media Experience Scale were used to evaluate the professionalism and social media competence of nursing students. The primary analysis used linear mixed models and followed the intention-to-treat principle. ResultsThe professionalism, social media self-efficacy and social media experience of students in the two groups were significantly improved, and the improvement of nursing students in the intervention group was higher than that in the control group. After the intervention of health communication course, there were significant differences in professionalism (p < 0.001), social media self-efficacy (p = 0.006) and social media experience (p = 0.013) between the two groups. Social media self-efficacy have an effect on professionalism (ꞵ = 0.22, p < 0.001, 95 % CI 0.17–0.26). ConclusionThe health communication course significantly improved social media competence and professionalism, which was significantly different from the control group, revealing the educational value of the intervention.Trial registration number: ChiCTR2200058425.

Exploring Secondary Vocational Students’ Digital Citizenship from the Perspective of Their Social Media Competence

Improving the digital citizenship of secondary vocational students is critical for cultivating vocational talents in education. It is an inevitable requirement for modernizing vocational education. Focusing on social media competence, this study explores possible ways to improve the digital citizenship of secondary vocational students. A total of 469 secondary vocational students in Wuhan city, Hubei province, were investigated using questionnaires. The data analysis shows that the four dimensions of social media competence (technical use, content interpretation, content generation, and anticipatory reflection) significantly predict digital citizenship. On this basis, we propose four paths for improving the digital citizenship of secondary vocational students: creating a suitable environment for secondary vocational students to apply their skills in information technology; enhancing the ability of secondary vocational students to discriminate about information on the Internet; improving students’ interpersonal communication ability when dealing with technical support; building an early warning system for secondary vocational students’ behavioral perception.

77.2 Psychiatric Self-Diagnoses and Suspected Social Media Contagion Effects: What Is the Role of the Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist?

The goals of this presentation are to: 1) identify parental and adolescent concerns regarding social media use; 2) recognize current shortcomings in psychiatric training when it comes to social media competence and propose future directions; and 3) discuss future roles for the child and adolescent psychiatrist at the advocacy, consultant, and political levels when it comes to adolescent social media use.

Savvy and woke: Gender, digital profile, social media competence, and political participation in gender issues among young Filipino netizens.

Social media has become a viable platform for political participation in issues related to gender, especially among the youth. Evidence suggests that gender and sexual identities, digital access, and skills foster political participation in social media. This study sought to determine the predictive relationship of gender, digital profile, and social media competence with social media political participation in gender issues (SMPP-GI) among young Filipino netizens through the lenses of social identity theory and resource model of political participation. A total of 1,090 college netizens aged 18–30 years old participated in this cross-sectional study. An online survey was used to collect data. The respondents reported low to moderate levels of SMPP-GI. Females and non-cisheterosexual respondents report higher scores in certain types of SMPP-GI. Respondents using more social media sites have higher levels of latent and counter engagement SMPP-GI. Among the four domains of social media competence, content generation significantly predicted all types of SMPP-GI, while content interpretation and anticipatory reflection were significantly linked with at least one type of engagement.

Public Employee Use of Social Media at Work: Competency, Collaboration, and Communication of Workplace Policy

Although the growth of social media has changed the way employees communicate at work, our understanding of the related workplace dynamics, particularly in public organizations, is still embryonic. This study fills these research gaps by testing hypotheses, drawn from social cognitive theory and social capital theory, using two sets of data on social media usage patterns and workplace practices among public employees. Our survey data ( n = 1,360) analysis revealed that most respondents (more than 72%) spent at least an hour per day on social media while at work, for both work- and non-work-related purposes. Furthermore, public employees with higher levels of social media competence (technical understanding and impact assessment) were more likely to report effective collaboration and seek assistance when needed. The results of scenario-based randomized survey experiment ( n = 600) show that the perceived fairness of social media-related termination decisions (or “get dooced”) was influenced by the presence of an explicit workplace social media policy.

Modelling factors of social media usage by B2B salespersons: an emerging market study

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to extend and contribute to the evolving phenomenon of social media usage by business-to-business (B2B) salespersons. It draws on the interactional psychology model and extended technology acceptance model to explore the said phenomenon.Design/methodology/approachA survey-based quantitative study was carried out. Responses were gathered through a self-administered and structured questionnaire, from 218 B2B salespersons who were pooled in using purposive and snowball sampling. The final data set was subjected to partial least squares-based structural equation modelling using WarpPLS 7.0.FindingsThis study found that individual factors, namely, salesperson’s social media competence and sales capabilities; organizational factors, namely, organizational commitment and organizational competence; and social factors, namely, image, result demonstrability and subjective norms, contribute positively and significantly towards social media usage by B2B salespeople. The study also found that the impact of individual factors on intention to use social media was partially mediated by its perceived usefulness, while in the case of organizational and social factors, the impact was fully mediated by its perceived ease of use.Research limitations/implicationsThis study provides a valuable addition to the existing literature on sales and social media; however, the contextualization cannot be ignored.Practical implicationsThis study enables firms to understand various factors affecting salespeople’ perception of social media and to make them appreciate its usage in improving sales performance and customer satisfaction.Originality/valueIt is the first study that models the factors of salespeople’s usage of social media in their job at three levels, namely, individual, organizational and social, and establishes the link between B2B salespersons’ perceived usefulness of social media, sales capabilities, social media competence and intention to use social media.

Experimental Research on Gifted Students and Social Media Communication Competence Program

The aim of this research was to develop a program to increase the social media communication competence levels of gifted students and to examine the effectiveness of the program. A 4- session program was developed within the scope of the research. The developed program was named SOMCOPGIS (Social Media Communication Competence Program for Gifted Students). A total of 32 experimental and control groups were formed using a random assignment method. The groups consisted of adolescent volunteers between the ages of 13 and 18 who all had low social media proficiency levels. In the data analysis non-parametric Friedman, Mann Whitney U tests, Social Media Competence Scale and analysis methods were used. Differences were found between the gifted students who participated in the SOMCOPGIS program and those who did not. It was observed that there was no significant difference in the social media competence scale scores of the adolescents in the control group obtained with the pre-test, post-test and follow-up test scales. This shows that SOMCOPGIS increased the social media communication proficiency level of the adolescents in the experimental group. This increase was found to be permanent with the follow-up test.

The Influence of B to B Firms Use of Multiple Social Media Platforms on Relationship Sales Performance: An Institutional Perspective

ABSTRACT Purpose: Overwhelmed by the huge rise in the number of social media (SM) platforms, B to B firms have been increasingly using multiple social media (SM) platforms to enhance their relationships with their customers. The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of the competitive pressure to use SM on B to B firms use of multiple SM platforms, organization and individual SM competences and on relationship sales performance. Method: An online survey is implemented to collect data from B to B firms from different industries in an emerging market, i.e. Kuwait, to produce 152 usable questionnaires. Structural equation modeling is carried out using Smart PLS 3. Findings: The main findings show that competitive pressure to use SM fully influences relationship sales performance through individual social media competence. It also influences relationship sales performance through two mediations (1) organizational SM competence, (2) on a less important level, through the use of multiple SM platforms and organizational SM competence. Additionally, both organization and individual SM competence are found to significantly influence relationship sales performance. Implications: This study uncovers the complex mechanism through which competitive pressures to use social media influence both individual and organization social media competence and their relationship with their customers. It demonstrates that the use of multiple SM platforms significantly increases relationship sales performance, but this influence is weak. Therefore, top managers must choose the right number of SM platforms and design clear SM strategies. Originality: This study sheds light on the influence of competitive pressure to use SM on B to B firms’ relationships with their customers i.e. relationship sales performance. This coercive pressure could potentially spread B to B firms’ resources over a large number of SM and lead to poor SM presence. The study also emphasizes the role of top management in choosing the optimal combination of SM platforms and developing their organization SM competence.

Investigating the Relationship Between Information Literacy and Social Media Competence Among University Students

Although the current landscape in education emphasizes the importance of developing students’ information literacy in formal education settings, little attention has been paid to information literacy within the context of social media use. This study investigated the relationship between information literacy and social media competence (SMC) among 1843 university students. This was done in order to increase knowledge of the components that may be important for preparing university students to be information literate citizens in social media environments. Students’ information literacy and SMC were measured by the Student Information Literacy Test and the SMC-CS scale respectively. Correlation and regression analyses were utilized to explore the relationship between university students’ information literacy and their SMC. The results showed that university students’ ability to utilize information technology to solve problems, and their sense of responsible behavior in cyberspace, are the most critical factors in predicting students’ SMC. Based on the findings, theoretical and practical implications are discussed in terms of enhancing university students’ information literacy and SMC.

Building better employer brands through employee social media competence and online social capital

AbstractDespite the significant and increasing influence of social media on employees' work lives, there is limited focus on employees' social media competencies from an employer branding or internal marketing perspective. Building on social identity and social exchange theories, this paper links employees' social media competence to an increase in online brand citizenship behaviour and reduction in feelings of psychological contract violation towards their employer's brand. We also examine the distinct mediatory effects of two forms of online social capital—bonding mediates the influence of employee social media competence on online brand citizenship and feelings of psychological contract violation, whilst Bridging only mediates the effect of social media competence on feelings of psychological contract violation. In doing so, we contribute to extant literature in two ways: (1) Address the need for research on social media in relation to employer branding; and (2) highlight the importance of building employee‐to‐employee and employee‐to‐employer relationships by virtual means in the context of employer branding. Therefore, this paper responds to calls for research that advances more responsible approaches to employer branding and internal marketing; that is, approaches that take into account employee competencies (emphasise need for skill development) as well as wellbeing (emphasise need for support).

The mediation-moderation effect on the nexus between social media adoption, customer satisfac-tion, social media competence and SMEs performance during COVID-19 pandemic

Numerous studies have been conducted on individual and organizational adoption of social media, and many of these studies were conducted in advanced economies by focusing on large corporations. This study addresses the gap by examining the use of social media by SMEs in West Africa, notably Nigeria. Using a structured questionnaire, 682 small business owners were questioned regarding their thoughts on social media adoption: cost, privacy, convenience, and quality of service. The PLS-SEM result reveals a structural relationship between social media adoption and SME performance. Due to the substantial change in operations induced by COVID-19, enterprises are increasing their involvement in social media marketing to improve performance, and the competence of social media strengthens the effect on customer satisfaction.

Trust in Government and Social Media Competence as Primary Drivers: Examining CitizensʼIntentions to Adopt Digital Government Applications for Risk Management

Trust in Government and Social Media Competence as Primary Drivers: Examining CitizensʼIntentions to Adopt Digital Government Applications for Risk Management

Cross-cultural Assessment of a Short Scale to Measure Employees’ Company Reputation-Related Social Media Competence

Anything employees post on social media is in the public domain, where it can cause reputational damage to the company. As social media use continues to grow worldwide, employees’ imprudent social media uses appear to be on the rise. This article provides an assessment of the Walsh et al. (J Interact Mark 36:46–59, 2016) scale to measure employees’ company reputation-related social media competence (RSMC), which comprises five dimensions: technical competence, visibility awareness competence, knowledge competence, impact assessment competence, and social media communication competence. This research presents and assesses an abbreviated version of the RSMC scale which is some 40% shorter than the original 21-item scale, using data from three culturally distinct countries—Germany, China, and the United States. The findings suggest that the RSMC short scale is valid in all three national contexts, achieves partial metric invariance, and has equivalent predictive validity. The discussion outlines some implications for both managers and researchers.

MEDIA EDUCATION FOR FUTURE MEDIA PROFESSIONALS: DESIGNING AND IMPLEMENTING A TRAINING PROGRAMME

The paper presents the experience of the media education project for journalism students at Sumy State University. The workshops dealt with different media categories (media agencies, media technologies, media languages, media audience, media representations) and necessary components of communicative competence (technical information competence, information competence, social information competence, technical media competence, media competence, social media competence). During October 2017 - January 2018, five workshops and seminars were held. For each activity, input and output survey was conducted to assess the extent to which the level of knowledge and skills of the participants on a particular topic increased, as well as how the participants evaluated the project. On average, 32 people took part in each workshop, 78% of them filled in the questionnaires (in total 140 input and 112 output questionnaires were analysed). The results showed that despite the high level of initial knowledge of the participants, the training course contributed to their understanding of certain media categories and other specific issues. The participants also pointed out the importance and relevance of the information for their professional activity. The survey of 29 regular project participants and 27 professional journalists working in the mass media of Sumy Region was conducted to assess the project effectiveness. The participants highly assessed their knowledge of media literacy. The students’ results were similar to those of professionals’ (in the assessment of knowledge acquired, understanding the notion of media literacy, determining the main tasks of media education and the most effective ways of acquiring media competences). However, the students evaluated their analytical skills lower and rarely applied them. Further workshops will be aimed at dealing with this issue. The analysis of survey results proves the efficiency of the combination of formal and non-formal teaching methods for journalism students. It is important both for the training participants and the universities as they have become more competitive and able to face the challenges of academic education nowadays. The experience described can be implemented by other academic institutions to improve the quality of journalism education in Ukraine.

Understanding Social Media Competence in Higher Education: Development and Validation of an Instrument

The rapid integration of social media into personal, professional, and educational settings has catalyzed the need to assess social media competence. This study provides the rationale for developing an instrument to conduct such an assessment, and the research illustrates evidence of validity and reliability in assessing social media competence in the field of higher education. The instrument includes 28 items and 4 dimensions: technical usability, content interpretation, content generation, and anticipatory reflection. Data were collected from a sample of 622 college students. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted, and this study finds that the instrument shows no signs of deficiency in its validity or reliability when measuring social media competence. Accordingly, the instrument could be used to evaluate and improve levels of social media competence in higher education.

Adoption of E-Government Applications for Public Health Risk Communication: Government Trust and Social Media Competence as Primary Drivers

Building upon a framework of the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, this study explores the determinants of citizens’ intentions to use the government’s mobile application for public health risk communication. An online survey was conducted with a quota sample of 700 Korean citizens. The results from structural equation modeling suggest that social media competence and trust in government information are primary determinants of willingness to accept the new application and intention to use it. Trust in government information appeared to influence the acceptance of the application both directly and indirectly through performance expectancy and effort expectancy. More confidence in the use of social media led to higher levels of performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and facilitating conditions, all of which subsequently contributed to willingness to accept the application. The acceptance of the application further influenced intention to use the application and the likelihood of positive recommendations. The findings suggest that while developing applications that meet public expectations for informational benefits and time efficiency is important, it is also necessary for the government to build trust and improve citizens’ ability to use new tools in order for new information technology initiatives to fully benefit citizens.

Social media competence and digital citizenship among college students

The global emergence of new media and social change have drawn attention to the topic of digital citizenship. Previous literature has examined individuals’ digital citizenship with some determinants of technology use. However, individuals’ level of social media competence (SMC) has not yet been examined in relation to digital citizenship. To increase knowledge of the ingredients that may be important for education programs to improve individuals’ digital citizenship, this study examined SMC and digital citizenship among 772 college students. The results identified that five of the six social media competencies examined were predictors of individuals’ digital citizenship. These findings provided empirical evidence of a relationship between SMC and digital citizenship, which should be considered by researchers and practitioners when formalizing educational programs, developing curricula, and designing pedagogy for improving individuals’ digital citizenship.