Social Networking Fatigue, its Antecedents, and Discontinuance Usage Intention: Empirical Model Validation

Abstract

Purpose: As more people want to register a social media presence, ineluctably, this creates a huge amount of content online. Prior research highlights that excessive information on social media platforms leads to a usage related behavior termed as “social networking fatigue.” The present research draws from three major theories in information systems research- limited capacity model (LCM), technology acceptance model (TAM) and unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT), to effectively understand the phenomenon of social networking fatigue. Design/methodology/approach: Online structured questionnaires were used to gather empirical data from 327 social networking users, out of which 306 samples were included in final analysis. Structural equation modelling (SEM) technique was employed for assessing the hypothesized relationships. Findings: The empirical findings exhibit that potent antecedents of SNF – privacy concerns, ease-of-use, and usefulness contribute significantly; while, self-efficacy doesn’t exhibit any significant influence. In addition, the linkage between SNF positively and significantly effect discontinuance usage intention. Theoretical and practical implications: This research contributes to the limited literature on SNF by extending the LCM theory into virtual space context. Also, the research findings may assist the social media managers and online experts to formulate strategies for content modification and user engagement. Originality/value: This study represents a novel attempt to investigate the structural linkage between SNF, its potent antecedents, and discontinuance usage intention, which as per the authors’ knowledge, has been under-explored by prior researchers in this domain.