Does the intensity of use of social media influence the economic sustainability of the university?

In the last decades the term sustainability has become indispensable for society, governments and companies. Its correct implementation is of utmost importance, and therefore public institutions continuously promote the actions of sustainable development. During the pandemic, universities adapted to online teaching, using different platforms or even social media. The intensity of social media use has had positive and negative impacts. Several studies have linked the use of social media to sustainable development. Therefore, this study analyses the intensity of social media use in public universities and the relationship between the three dimensions of sustainability. To achieve the objectives set out, a sample of 447 users was used, and the data was analysed based on PLS-SEM (Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling). Variance-based SEM is a methodological option to carry out analyses that measure the simultaneous behaviour of dependence relationships. The results have shown that the intensity of the use of social media and the economic sustainability of universities is weak, even if it is positive. Furthermore, there is a strong and positive relationship between the three dimensions of sustainability at the university level. This study contributes to the academic literature on the subject and highlights the critical role of higher education institutions in promoting sustainability.

Analyzing the User Behavior toward Electronic Commerce Stimuli.

Based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response paradigm this research analyzes the main differences between the effects of two types of web technologies: Verbal web technology (i.e., navigational structure as utilitarian stimulus) versus non-verbal web technology (music and presentation of products as hedonic stimuli). Specific webmosphere stimuli have not been examined yet as separate variables and their impact on internal and behavioral responses seems unknown. Therefore, the objective of this research consists in analyzing the impact of these web technologies -which constitute the web atmosphere or webmosphere of a website- on shopping human behavior (i.e., users' internal states -affective, cognitive, and satisfaction- and behavioral responses - approach responses, and real shopping outcomes-) within the retail online store created by computer, taking into account some mediator variables (i.e., involvement, atmospheric responsiveness, and perceived risk). A 2 ("free" versus "hierarchical" navigational structure) × 2 ("on" versus "off" music) × 2 ("moving" versus "static" images) between-subjects computer experimental design is used to test empirically this research. In addition, an integrated methodology was developed allowing the simulation, tracking and recording of virtual user behavior within an online shopping environment. As main conclusion, this study suggests that the positive responses of online consumers might increase when they are allowed to freely navigate the online stores and their experience is enriched by animate gifts and music background. The effect caused by mediator variables modifies relatively the final shopping human behavior.

Are the users of social networking sites homogeneous? A cross-cultural study.

The growing use of Social Networking Sites (SNS) around the world has made it necessary to understand individuals' behaviors within these sites according to different cultures. Based on a comparative study between two different European countries (The Netherlands versus Spain), a comparison of typologies of networked Internet users has been obtained through a latent segmentation approach. These typologies are based on the frequency with which users perform different activities, their socio-demographic variables, and experience in social networking and interaction patterns. The findings show new insights regarding international segmentation in order to analyse SNS user behaviors in both countries. These results are relevant for marketing strategists eager to use the communication potential of networked individuals and for marketers willing to explore the potential of online networking as a low cost and a highly efficient alternative to traditional networking approaches. For most businesses, expert users could be valuable opinion leaders and potential brand influencers.

Classifying and profiling Social Networking Site users: a latent segmentation approach.

Social Networking Sites (SNSs) have showed an exponential growth in the last years. The first step for an efficient use of SNSs stems from an understanding of the individuals' behaviors within these sites. In this research, we have obtained a typology of SNS users through a latent segmentation approach, based on the frequency by which users perform different activities within the SNSs, sociodemographic variables, experience in SNSs, and dimensions related to their interaction patterns. Four different segments have been obtained. The "introvert" and "novel" users are the more occasional. They utilize SNSs mainly to communicate with friends, although "introverts" are more passive users. The "versatile" user performs different activities, although occasionally. Finally, the "expert-communicator" performs a greater variety of activities with a higher frequency. They tend to perform some marketing-related activities such as commenting on ads or gathering information about products and brands as well as commenting ads. The companies can take advantage of these segmentation schemes in different ways: first, by tracking and monitoring information interchange between users regarding their products and brands. Second, they should match the SNS users' profiles with their market targets to use SNSs as marketing tools. Finally, for most business, the expert users could be interesting opinion leaders and potential brand influencers.