TY - JOUR
T1 - The use of social media for a better world
T2 - roles of social experience, empathy and personal impulsiveness in charitable crowdfunding
AU - Li, Boying
AU - Hou, Fangfang
AU - Guan, Zhengzhi
AU - Chong, Alain Yee Loong
N1 - Funding Information:
Funding: This study was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No: 72101130), Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China (No: LQ21G030016) and XJTLU Research Development Funding (No: RDF-21-02-032).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.
PY - 2023/9/8
Y1 - 2023/9/8
N2 - Purpose: Charitable crowdfunding features are embedded in social media platforms to encourage pro-social behaviors. Although such new practice allows practitioners to leverage the power of a highly connected crowd, accomplishing the fundraising goal is still a challenge. This study seeks to understand what drives the donation intention in charitable crowdfunding features on social media platforms by examining the roles of social experience, empathy and personal impulsiveness. Design/methodology/approach: A survey questionnaire was distributed to social media users in China to collect data. A total of 206 valid responses were analyzed using structural equation modeling to test the proposed hypotheses. Findings: The results showed that empathy mediates interaction with the fundraiser and perceived proximity with the donatee on a user's donation intention. We also found that social influence on social media platforms positively influences empathy and donation intention. In addition, personal impulsiveness was found to moderate the relationship between empathy and donation intention. Originality/value: This study contributes to existing literature and practices. It identifies three dimensions of social experience and examines their effects on donation intention, providing insights into the charitable crowdfunding features on social media. Moreover, this study extends the understanding to empathy by delineating its mediating role in the relationship between social experience and donation intention and examining how personal impulsiveness moderates the effect of empathy on donation intention. Furthermore, this study provides valuable insights for practitioners to craft strategies to stimulate pro-social behaviors and increase donations.
AB - Purpose: Charitable crowdfunding features are embedded in social media platforms to encourage pro-social behaviors. Although such new practice allows practitioners to leverage the power of a highly connected crowd, accomplishing the fundraising goal is still a challenge. This study seeks to understand what drives the donation intention in charitable crowdfunding features on social media platforms by examining the roles of social experience, empathy and personal impulsiveness. Design/methodology/approach: A survey questionnaire was distributed to social media users in China to collect data. A total of 206 valid responses were analyzed using structural equation modeling to test the proposed hypotheses. Findings: The results showed that empathy mediates interaction with the fundraiser and perceived proximity with the donatee on a user's donation intention. We also found that social influence on social media platforms positively influences empathy and donation intention. In addition, personal impulsiveness was found to moderate the relationship between empathy and donation intention. Originality/value: This study contributes to existing literature and practices. It identifies three dimensions of social experience and examines their effects on donation intention, providing insights into the charitable crowdfunding features on social media. Moreover, this study extends the understanding to empathy by delineating its mediating role in the relationship between social experience and donation intention and examining how personal impulsiveness moderates the effect of empathy on donation intention. Furthermore, this study provides valuable insights for practitioners to craft strategies to stimulate pro-social behaviors and increase donations.
KW - Charitable crowdfunding
KW - Donation intention
KW - Empathy
KW - Personal impulsiveness
KW - Social experience
KW - Social media
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85139128453&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1108/ITP-04-2021-0264
DO - 10.1108/ITP-04-2021-0264
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85139128453
SN - 0959-3845
VL - 36
SP - 2587
EP - 2610
JO - Information Technology and People
JF - Information Technology and People
IS - 6
ER -