{"title":"Networked Identities: Exploring the Role of Social Networking to Optimize Event Marketing by Higher Education Institutions in the Middle East","authors":"M. Asim, Azmat Rasul","doi":"10.1177/1326365X20970422","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"This article examines the growing use and influence of two popular social networking sites—Facebook and LinkedIn—in the Middle East. Under the premise of Social Identity theory, we focus on the impact of posting information about academic-related events on social networking sites. We recruited 180 participants in a laboratory-based experiment using a 2 (medium type) × 2 (message valance) × 2 (group affiliation) factorial design to assess the moderating role of medium credibility, electronic word-of-mouth valence (eWOM) and perceived in-group affiliation of the respondents. The results indicate that, under the same moderating conditions, popular and widely used social sites are more capable of generating a positive response from students than sites that are not popular or widely used. In addition, the theoretical and practical implications of the findings are addressed.","PeriodicalId":43557,"journal":{"name":"Asia Pacific Media Educator","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0000,"publicationDate":"2020-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1326365X20970422","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Asia Pacific Media Educator","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1326365X20970422","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"Social Sciences","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
This article examines the growing use and influence of two popular social networking sites—Facebook and LinkedIn—in the Middle East. Under the premise of Social Identity theory, we focus on the impact of posting information about academic-related events on social networking sites. We recruited 180 participants in a laboratory-based experiment using a 2 (medium type) × 2 (message valance) × 2 (group affiliation) factorial design to assess the moderating role of medium credibility, electronic word-of-mouth valence (eWOM) and perceived in-group affiliation of the respondents. The results indicate that, under the same moderating conditions, popular and widely used social sites are more capable of generating a positive response from students than sites that are not popular or widely used. In addition, the theoretical and practical implications of the findings are addressed.
期刊介绍:
Asia Pacific Media Educator is an international refereed journal published twice a year by SAGE Publications (New Delhi) in collaboration with the School of the Arts, English and Media, Faculty of Law, Humanities and the Arts, University of Wollongong in Australia. The journal follows international norms and procedures of blind peer reviewing by scholars representing a wide range of multi-disciplinary areas. APME focuses on generating discussions and dialogues among media educators, researchers and journalists. Content ranges from critical commentaries and essays to research reports and papers that contribute to journalism theory development and offer innovative ideas in improving the standard and currency of media reportage, teaching and training specific to the Asia Pacific region. Papers that integrate media theories with applications to professional practice, media training and journalism education are usually selected for peer review. APME also carries a Q&A section with book authors. APME takes conventional book reviews to a more creative level where reviewers directly engage with authors to understand the process that authors take in researching and writing the book, clarify their assumptions and pose critical questions.