The Effects of Non-central Information Cues in Social Media Posts An Eye-Tracking Experiment with High- and Low-Involvement Product Posts
(A2025-126180)

AUTHORS

Frank Hälsig, Saarland Business School | htw saar; Stefanie Mueller, Leibniz Institute for Psychology (ZPID); Robin Eltner, Saarland Business School (htw saar); Lena Hartmann, Saarland Business School (htw saar); Tatjana König, Saarland Business School htw saar

ABSTRACT

Social media posts typically allow for evaluations of other users. Likes are displayed in non-central areas of a post. In response to criticism for inducing herding effects and social pressure Insta¬gram started to offer feed versions with hidden Like numbers. Drawing on information and social influence theory, we use a 2 (Likes: displayed vs. hidden) x 2 (Involvement: high vs. low) mixed factorial design to analyze the effects of Like-number-display for high- vs. low-Involvement product posts. Results of the eye-tracking study (N=95) differed between involvement groups: in contrast to high-involvement posts, low-involvement product posts showed longer fixation times in total – and particularly for the non-central Like-area – when Like numbers were displayed than when not. Mixed-ANOVA-results further show marginally significant interaction effects on purchase and eWoM-sharing intention. Impli¬cations address differences in eWoM marketing for high- vs. low-involvement products.