Browsing by Author "LaRose, Robert"

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Broadband Internet adoption and utilization in the inner city: A comparison of competing theories
(2015-10-01)
Tsai, Hsin-yi Sandy
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LaRose, Robert
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傳播與科技學系
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Department of Communication and Technology
Factors influencing the adoption and utilization of technology have been extensively studied within a variety of theoretical paradigms but questions about their parsimony and their integrations with and contributions to overarching models of human behavior have been questioned. The present research employed a mail survey of inner city residents of a Midwestern state to analyze the sufficiency of the social cognitive theory (SCT) model of broadband adoption by testing it against variables drawn from the Model of Adoption of Technology in Households, Diffusion of Innovations, and the Unified Theory of the Acceptance and Utilization of Technology-2. The variables tested explained little additional variance in broadband intentions after accounting for SCT and demographic variables, arguing for the superior parsimony of the SCT model. Price sensitivity, often overlooked in adoption research, was a significant predictor of broadband intentions and its effect was interpreted through the SCT framework. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Generational differences in online safety perceptions, knowledge, and practices
(2016-09)
Jiang, Mengtian
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Tsai, Hsin-yi Sandy
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Cotten, Shelia R.
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Rifon, Nora J.
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LaRose, Robert
As Internet usage has proliferated in recent years so have online security threats. Internet users are increasingly susceptible to online security threats. Using a qualitative approach, this study conducted 18 focus groups to examine how three different generations perceive online safety, use coping strategies, and protect themselves online: Silent and GI generation (SGI) (born 1945 or earlier), older Baby Boomers (1946-1954), and Millennials (1977-1992). Results show that although each generation shares a variety of online safety concerns, SGIs and Boomers are more suspicious about online security, have less confidence in their abilities, are uncertain about the effectiveness of protection resources, perform fewer protection behaviors, and are more likely to rely on others\' assistance compared to the Millennial group. Our findings indicate online safety training is needed for all three generations, but especially for older adults. Tailored approaches are suggested to reach different generations.
High tension lines: Negative social exchange and psychological well-being in the context of instant messaging
(2019-04-01)
Tsai, Hsin-yi Sandy
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Hsu, Pei-Jung
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Chang, Chih-Ling
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Huang, Chun-Cheng
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Ho, Hsin-Fang
Instant messengers (IM) mediate several types of negative social exchanges that can affect the psychological well-being of their users. Using an instant messenger popular in Taiwan (LINE) as an example, this study examined the relationship between IM communication and well-being. An online survey was conducted and found that negative IM social exchanges in which messages were ignored by their recipients, interfered with other activities, or contained hostility or ridicule were directly related to a global measure of negative social exchange that included face-to-face as well as online interactions. Insensitive IM social exchanges were positively related to loneliness, depression, and fear of missing out (FoMO), and were negatively related to social support.
Social networking and adjustments among international students
(2012-05-01)
Lin, Jih-Hsuan
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Peng, Wei
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Kim, Mijung
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Kim, Sung Yeun
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LaRose, Robert
How do social media facilitate adjustment to changes in social structure and culture? This research examines the impact of online social networking on online and offline social capitals and adjustment of international students in the United States. A survey of 195 international students in a major Midwestern university showed that students' interactions with Americans and home country friends using Facebook, extroversion, and horizontal collectivism were positively related to international students' social adjustment and online bridging capital. Facebook usage mediated the relationship between extroversion and online social capital. The implications of social network site use, personality, and cultural difference on social capital and adjustment are discussed.
Understanding online safety behaviors: A protection motivation theory perspective
(2016-06)
Tsai, Hsin-yi Sandy
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Jiang, Mengtian
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Alhabash, Saleem
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LaRose, Robert
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Rifon, Nora J.
Internet users experience a variety of online security threats that require them to enact safety precautions. Protection motivation theory (PMT) provides a theoretical framework for understanding Internet users\' security protection that has informed past research. Ongoing research on online safety recommends new motivational factors that are integrated here in a PMT framework for the first time. Using PMT, a cross-sectional survey (N = 988) of Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) users was conducted to examine how classical and new PMT factors predicted security intentions. Coping appraisal variables were the strongest predictors of online safety intentions, especially habit strength, response efficacy, and personal responsibility. Threat severity was also a significant predictor. Incorporating additional factors (i.e., prior experiences, subjective norms, habit strength, perceived security support, and personal responsibility) into the conventional PMT model increased the model\'s explanatory power by 15%. Findings are discussed in relation to advancing PMT within the context of online security for home computer users. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.