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Unpackaging stakeholders’ motivation for participating in the social media of the higher education sector: A comparison of the European and US experience

Laura Saraite-Sariene (Department of Economics and Business, University of Almeria, Almeria, Spain)
María del Mar Gálvez-Rodríguez (Department of Economics and Business, University of Almeria, Almeria, Spain)
Arturo Haro-de-Rosario (Department of Economics and Business, University of Almeria, Almeria, Spain)
Carmen Caba-Perez (Department of Economics and Business, University of Almeria, Almeria, Spain)

Online Information Review

ISSN: 1468-4527

Article publication date: 24 September 2019

Issue publication date: 22 November 2019

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Abstract

Purpose

Increasingly, universities are adopting social media as a strategy to improve their competitive advantage. However, little is known of whether or not stakeholders are actually engaging with universities in such online environments. The purpose of this paper is, first, to analyze the level of stakeholders’ engagement via social media, particularly Facebook, in European and US universities. Second, to examine the influencing factors that boost online interactions, in particular, “location,” “transparency,” “size,” “academic performance” and “activity.”

Design/methodology/approach

An engagement index and a multivariate regression analysis were carried out. Regarding the sample, European and US universities belonging to the “Top 100” of the Academic Ranking of World Universities were analyzed.

Findings

Despite the large online community that US universities possess, European universities attain the higher level of online engagement from its stakeholders. In particular, the greatest level of engagement is achieved by European universities of greater size, in terms of students, with lower academic performance and a lower level of online activity.

Social implications

This study contributes to existing literature by identifying the actual social impact of social media to build successful relationships with the stakeholders of higher education entities.

Originality/value

This paper can contribute to the current scarcity of literature concerning social media to improve new models of accountability in higher education entities with different managerial models.

Keywords

Citation

Saraite-Sariene, L., del Mar Gálvez-Rodríguez, M., Haro-de-Rosario, A. and Caba-Perez, C. (2019), "Unpackaging stakeholders’ motivation for participating in the social media of the higher education sector: A comparison of the European and US experience", Online Information Review, Vol. 43 No. 7, pp. 1151-1168. https://doi.org/10.1108/OIR-09-2018-0273

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited

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