Consumer perception of knowledge-sharing in travel-related Online Social Networks
Introduction
Online Social Networks (OSNs) have become important social platforms for computer-mediated communications (Ellison et al., 2014, Majchrzak et al., 2013), acting as cyber “coffee shops” where people are able to find and then electronically ‘talk’ to others with similar interests (Ayeh, Au, & Law, 2013). As a Web 2.0 technology, OSNs are gaining attention as knowledge sharing platforms for the travel and tourism industry as more and more travelers are using this method to exchange information (Bradley et al., 2015, Kandampully et al., 2015, Law et al., 2014, Morosan et al., 2014). They have been recognized as innovative knowledge sharing networks (e.g. product reviews, trends, restaurant and hotel reviews, and travel blogs) by enabling users to connect, share, and interact with others (Inversini and Masiero, 2014, Öz, 2015, Uhrig et al., 2010). They are powerful platforms that allow users to collaborate and contribute to developing, extending, rating, commenting on travel related experiences (destination reviews, TripAdvisor things to do lists, Yelp reviews, restaurant Instagram pages, etc.). Among OSNs, TripAdvisor has more than 175 million reviews. Tourism and hospitality stakeholders often open and manage accounts on numerous platforms including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Vine, Snapchat, Twitter and Google+. OSNs have therefore become the mainstay of a digital marketing strategy for the travel industry. It is estimated that online reviews influence more than US$10 billion in online travel purchases every year (Nusair, Bilgihan, Okumus, & Cobanoglu, 2013).
OSNs are creating “collective knowledge” and becoming a major source to gather knowledge among consumers (Ayeh et al., 2013, Bilgihan et al., 2014, Sigala, 2012). Thus, user generated content is on the rise. Data available from national statistical surveys show that the main interest for OSN websites is to share information and to seek advice (Vickery & Wunsch-Vincent, 2007). Mackenzie (2011) compiled various marketing research, and reported that 81% of online population received recommendation from friends and other OSN users prior to a purchase decision and 74% of those who received a recommendation found it to be influential in their decision making process. Another survey conducted by Sheraton Hotels reveal that 64% of respondents use OSNs to make their travel plans (Mackenzie, 2011). It is also reported that more than half of Facebook members use the site to get travel-related information (Mackenzie, 2011). OSNs play vital roles in the decision-making process of travelers as they engage in OSNs to obtain travel related information and share their personal experiences, reviews, comments, and opinions (Inversini and Masiero, 2014, Law et al., 2015). In sum, consumers in the OSN medium are influenced by the opinions of other people in making purchasing decisions (e.g. when choosing hotels, restaurants, attractions, and destinations).
Internet users are not only using OSNs to search information, but they are also the ones who create the content in them (Bronner and de Hoog, 2011, Sigala, 2012). The motives of travelers to share their experiences and knowledge in OSNs have not been examined. Most OSN users are lurkers who read discussions, reviews, and feedback but rarely or never participate (Heinonen, 2011). The biggest challenge for tourism firms is to convince users to share knowledge with other members in OSNs (Urban, Sultan, & Qualls, 2012). Thus, success of OSN profiles of tourism companies and organizations depends on whether users are willing to share their experiences and knowledge with other users (Aluri et al., 2015, Bakshy et al., 2012, Lee et al., 2005, Sigala, 2012). The willingness of travelers to participate in knowledge sharing is of importance to the travel and tourism industry. Therefore, the aim of the current study is to examine the factors that motivate users to share travel related information in OSNs using a multidisciplinary approach to the topic that combines an understanding to social, marketing and information systems literature. In summary, this study will introduce a theoretical model to understand the antecedents of the intention to share knowledge behaviors. The authors have first developed a measurement model based on an extensive literature review and then empirically tested this model.
Section snippets
Knowledge sharing
Knowledge sharing occurs when an individual intends to deliver, obtain, and communicate knowledge (Chen et al., 2013, Hung and Cheng, 2013, Okumus, 2013). Ma and Chan (2014, p. 52) define knowledge sharing as “the communication of knowledge from a source in such a way that it is learned and applied by the recipient”. Knowledge sharing is further defined as “the combination of one or both parties seeking knowledge in response to the request, such that one or both parties are affected by the
Measurement
An online questionnaire was designed to assess OSN user perceptions of the research constructs using multiple-item scales, adjusted from existent research that reported high reliability, convergent and discriminant validity. All constructs were measured using multiple items, which were gathered in the survey using a seven-point Likert type scale. The constructs were primarily adapted from previous studies but making minor wording changes to tailor them to the OSN travel context. Pretesting of
Analysis of the measurement model (CFA)
The measurement model for the six constructs was first assessed by a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using AMOS 20.0. The goodness-of-fit measures were used to assess the overall model fit. The CFA overall fit was acceptable (Hair, Anderson, Tatham, & Black, 1998) with indices of Chi-square/df equal to 3.67, RMSEA of 0.091, NFI of 0.93, CFI of 0.95, GFI of 0.89, RFI of 0.91and IFI of 0.91. Convergent validity was assessed by examining the magnitude, direction, and statistical significance of
Discussion and conclusions
OSNs are important tools for travelers as they play a critical role in the travelers' decision making process. Most travelers read discussions, reviews, and feedback but rarely or never share their knowledge with other travelers. It is challenging to convince travelers to share their knowledge with other members in OSNs. Therefore, the goal of this research was to investigate the precursors of “intention to share knowledge” behaviors in the context of OSNs. A summary of study results, including
Limitations and future research
While the current study attempts to fill a gap in the literature, several limitations persist. First, there may be other antecedents that potentially influence intention to share knowledge such as monetary and psychological benefits. Also, there might be some potential moderators such as personal innovativeness and prior experience with OSNs. Another limitation is that the current research collected data using an online survey. Despite the many advantages of online surveys, it appears that
Dr. Anil Bilgihan is an Assistant Professor in the College of Business at the Florida Atlantic University, USA. He earned his Ph.D. from University of Central Florida. He earned his Master of Science degree from the University of Delaware in hospitality information management. His main field of research are e-commerce and hospitality information systems. Anil has widely published in leading journals, including Information & Management, Tourism Management, Computers in Human Behavior, and
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Dr. Anil Bilgihan is an Assistant Professor in the College of Business at the Florida Atlantic University, USA. He earned his Ph.D. from University of Central Florida. He earned his Master of Science degree from the University of Delaware in hospitality information management. His main field of research are e-commerce and hospitality information systems. Anil has widely published in leading journals, including Information & Management, Tourism Management, Computers in Human Behavior, and Electronic Commerce Research and Applications.
Dr. Albert Barreda is an Assistant Professor at Missouri State University. He completed his Ph.D. at Rosen College of Hospitality Management, University of Central Florida. He earned his Master degree in Hospitality and Tourism Management from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA. His Bachelor of Science in Communication Sciences was from the San Agustin State University, Arequipa, Peru. His research focuses on vacation ownership, strategic intuition, branding structure, hospitality bankruptcy, finance, and hotel management.
Dr. Okumus is a Professor in the Hospitality Services Department with the Rosen College of Hospitality Management. He received his Ph.D. in Strategic Hotel Management in 2000 from Oxford Brookes University, UK. His research focuses on strategy implementation, change management, competitive advantage, knowledge management, crisis management, cross-cultural management, destination marketing, information technology and developing countries. He has over 67 refereed journal articles and over 160 academic publications (refereed journal articles, book chapters, conference presentations, etc.). He is the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management (IJCHM). He also serves on the editorial boards of 14 international journals. He is a frequent speaker at international conferences.
Dr. Khaldoon Nusair is an Associate Professor and Head of Marketing Department in the College of Economics & Political Science at Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat. Prior to joining Sultan Qaboos University, Dr. Nusair was an Associate Professor at University of Central Florida, Orlando. He earned his Ph.D. in Hospitality Management with Consumer Behavior, E-commerce, & Research Methodology concentrations from The Ohio State University, in Columbus, OH. He holds two Master of Science degrees both from The State University of New York at Stony Brook; the first in Technological Systems Management and the second in Management Information Systems. Dr. Nusair's research interests include Consumer Behavior & E-commerce. He is the author of one book and more than 80 refereed papers in leading academic journals and proceedings of international conferences. He has consulting experience in the areas of Information Systems, Marketing & E-commerce.