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Conflicting social influences regarding controversial information systems: the case of online dating

Qi Chen (School of Economics and Management, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, China)
Ofir Turel (Information Systems and Decision Sciences, California State University, Fullerton, California, USA)
Yufei Yuan (DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada)

Information Technology & People

ISSN: 0959-3845

Article publication date: 18 April 2022

Issue publication date: 21 March 2023

549

Abstract

Purpose

Controversial information systems (IS) represent a unique context in which certain members of a user's social circle may endorse the use of a system while others object to it. The purpose of this paper is to explore the simultaneous and often conflicting roles of such positive and negative social influences through social learning and ambivalence theories in shaping user adoption intention of a representative case of controversial IS, namely online dating services (ODS).

Design/methodology/approach

The model was tested with two empirical studies using structural equation modeling techniques. The data of these studies were collected from 451 (Study 1) and 510 (Study 2) single individuals (i.e. not in a relationship).

Findings

(1) Positive social influence has a stronger impact on perceived benefits and adoption intention, while negative social influence exerts a greater impact on perceived risks; (2) positive and negative social influences affect adoption intention toward ODS differently, through benefit and risk assessments; and (3) ambivalence significantly negatively moderates the effects of social influences on adoption.

Originality/value

This study enriches and extends the IS use, ambivalence theory, prospect theory, and social learning theory research streams. Furthermore, this study suggests that it is necessary to focus on not only the oft-considered positive but also negative social influences in IS research.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the National Nature Science Foundation of China (No. 72101045). The authors appreciate the editors and the anonymous review team for their insightful comments and suggestions.

Citation

Chen, Q., Turel, O. and Yuan, Y. (2023), "Conflicting social influences regarding controversial information systems: the case of online dating", Information Technology & People, Vol. 36 No. 2, pp. 834-866. https://doi.org/10.1108/ITP-11-2020-0782

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited

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