• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.139-149
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• 2002

The aim of this study is to examine the consumer information behavior and consumer satisfaction in virtual community, and analyse influential variables on these. The data for this study were collected from members of virtual community for cosmetics in DAUM ( www.daum.net) through self-report questionnaires. Main findings are following; Virtual community consumer experiences satisfaction for products including information, and information behavior. And the greater information behaviors are associated with the greater satisfaction. And the virtual community consumers' information behavior and satisfaction don't differ largely by internet variables and socio-demographic variables. On the other hand, virtual community consumers' information behavior and satisfaction are associated with psychological variables like community membership, information wants, enduring involvements. In conclusion, these satisfactions make the effect of ‘feedback’ to information behavior, so these virtual community is able to be activated. And this also means that virtual community is Ideal space for consumer to expand information behavior.

• Journal of the Korean Operations Research and Management Science Society
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.19-45
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• 2010

Virtual Communities, which are formed on the Internet, are expected to serve the needs of members for e-collaboration, e-communication, information and knowledge sharing. The executives of organizations should consider virtual community as a new innovation or knowledge pool since members share knowledge. However, many virtual community have failed due to members' low willingness to engage and furthermore to share knowledge with other members. Thus, there is a need to understand and foster the determinants of members' sense of belonging behavior in virtual community. This study develops an integrated model designed to investigate and explain the relationships between contextual factors, personal perceptions of virtual community, usability, trust and sense of belonging in using a certain virtual community. Empirical data was collected from 201 and tested using structural equation modeling (SEM) to verify the fit of the hypothetical model. The results show that the perceived usability and community trust of members significantly influences sense of belonging in using the virtual community, and information quality, system quality, familiarity on the virtual community are significantly influence the usability but not reputation. And I confirmed that perceived shared vision and responsiveness play the role of determinants in making the member's trust, perceived risk influence the making community trust in directly. The results of the study can be used to identify the motivation underlying members' sense of belonging in a certain virtual community by investigating the impacts of contextual factors and personal perceptions on virtual community, the integrated model better explains behavior than other proposed models. This study might help executives of virtual communities and organizations to manage and promote these determinants of sense of belonging to stimulate members' willingness to engage the community and futhermore enhance their virtual community loyalty.

• Journal of the Korean housing association
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.91-99
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• 2009

With the development of the internet and the spread of 'digital home', apartment houses equipped with the homepages connecting apartment houses as one cyberspace unit have increased. The virtual community with a homepage in apartment complex have improved the effect on management businesses in the side of a apartment manager and increased the importance of the space with a strong tie between residents in the side of residents. But the apartment residents didn't make full use of the virtual community because they have the low level of recognition of it. Therefore, this study attempted to present basic materials for the scheme to revitalize the virtual community. For this purpose, it attempted to find residents' recognition of and participation in the virtual community and demand for the classified contents conducted before this study. In the research method, it conducted the questionnaire research. The results are as follows. 1) First of all, It was found that the apartment residents had the low level of recognition of the virtual community. There was a significant difference according to the degree and the level of using the internet. Some easy-access programs are necessary. 2) The apartment residents took part in the virtual community about 67 percents because there was a lack of the public relation of the virtual community. 3) It was found that there was a significant positive correlation between the level of recognition and participation. 4) An attempt was made to identify the apartment residents' demand for the type of virtual community contents. It was found that most of contents were needed. 'apartment complex introduction and management information' showed the highest score among them. 5) Most respondents are affirmative to the virtual community. Therefore the residential community could be reinforced if the contents of virtual community is developed and well operated in the future.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.399-409
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• 2022

The purpose of this study is to examine the role of virtual community participation and engagement in the brand decision by building community and brand trust. In this study, two theories (Social Capital Theory and Theory of Collective Action) were tested. Both theories were linked based on existing literature, and empirical evidence was obtained through testing hypotheses. Students from five prestigious Pakistani business schools provided a total of 849 replies. The measurement model and structural model were both analyzed using the partial least square (PLS) method. The findings show that virtual community engagement and participation have a positive and significant impact on virtual community trust. Although virtual community engagement has a positive effect on brand trust, we found no evidence of a link between virtual community participation and brand trust. Later, these trusts positively influence brand choice. This study has several managerial implications. The suggested model of this study helps managers to get customers' insight, choose the right target market, and set integrated marketing communication strategies besides social media marketing strategies. The study represents a new perspective of consumer behavior that helps to understand how a customer behaves in virtual communities to trust and take the final decision to purchase.

• Information Systems Review
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.325-335
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• 2001

• Journal of Information Technology Applications and Management
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.71-92
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• 2005

As the Internet establishes and reinforces connections between people, virtual community is becoming one of considerable business model. We believe that benefits of the virtual community go to both customer and vendor organizing virtual community. Despite the explosive growth of virtual communities on the Internet, empirical research has been focused to study the issues related to characteristics of virtual community The objective of this study is to enhance the understanding about virtual communities as an e-business model by Customer Relation Management and by empirically validating their effect on the performance of website. Through path analysis, we find support for relations behavior influence the online commitment. we also find that the online commitment enhance the organization citizenship behavior. Finally, we discuss several theoretical and practical Implications, and suggest limitations for research and future research issue.

• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.19-38
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• 2014

This study focused on the role of active knowledge seeking (knowledge browsing and knowledge searching) in the context of virtual community of interest. Knowledge seeking is rarely studied as an antecedent in knowledge management (KM) research. Active knowledge seeking is considered as antecedents of sense of virtual community which mediates to knowledge sharing intention and virtual community promotion. Research hypotheses are tested by applying structure equation modeling with survey data from virtual community members in South Korea. Active knowledge seeking behavior was found to be the strong predictor of sense of virtual community, which, in turn, positively affects knowledge sharing intention and virtual community promotion. Implication to practitioners is to understand and accommodate the members' knowledge seeking efforts, who are potential contributors and promoters of the virtual community. Knowledge seeking, knowledge sharing and promoting virtual community are more of human activities than technology and this study extends the understanding of such human activities. By providing a mechanism of how knowledge seeking and sharing could work harmoniously, a virtuous circle with win-win situation could be achieved in virtual communities.

• Proceeding of Spring/Autumn Annual Conference of KHA
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• 2008.04a
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• pp.349-353
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• 2008

With the development of the internet and the spread of 'digital home', the communities in cyber space have been especially revitalized since the information-oriented society. Apartment houses provided networks that are well equipped with internet websites, which build up the houses as a virtual space unit. This study attempted to conducted the questionnaire research for apartment occupants in order to investigate their recognition of and participation in the virtual community and demand for the classified contents The results are as follows. 1) First of all, some easy-access programs are necessary to be groped while aggressive promotional strategies for virtual community that create interests of residents are required to make progress to increase the participation for virtual community 2) 'Gender', 'the form of ownership' and 'level of using the Internet' show significant differences in the case of 'needs in the like-minded people's association', the participation of residents that is induced by both online and offline can cause positive effects on community activity 3) Needs in community enrichment are generally high so that various contents development related to those are necessary. 4) Effects of virtual community on the residential community are on the whole affirmative.

• Asia pacific journal of information systems
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.57-79
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• 2010

In a virtual community, one can possess multiple identities and pretend to be different by creating self-identity in contrast with his or her actual self. Does false identity undermine the qualitative growth of a virtual community by reducing members' accountability? Or does it stimulate their contributive behaviors by ensuring freedom of speech? It is imperative to understand the effects of multi-identity considering the distinct properties of a virtual community in which people easily change their identities at little or no cost. To answer these questions, we adopted the concept of self-discrepancy from the social psychology theory rooted in the concept of the self and developed a theoretical model to predict quality of contribution of the individual member in virtual communities. Based on the self-discrepancy theory, we first identified two different domains of the self: (1) an "actual self" that consists of attributes that the person believes he or she currently possesses in real life and (2) a "cyber self" that consists of attributes the person believes he or she possesses in a virtual community. Next, we derived an index for two different types of self-discrepancy by using the differences between the actual and the cyber identities: Personal Self-discrepancy and Social Self-discrepancy. Personal Self-discrepancy reflects the degree of discrepancy between actual and cyber identity regarding a person's intelligence, education, and expertise. Social Self-discrepancy reflects the degree of discrepancy between actual and cyber identity regarding a person's morality, sociability, and accordance with social norms. Finally, we linked them with sense of virtual community, perceived privacy rights, and quality of contribution to examine how having a multi-identity influences an individual's psychological state and contributive behaviors in a virtual community. The results of the analysis based on 266 respondents showed that Social Self-discrepancy negatively influenced both the Sense of Virtual Community and Perceived Privacy Rights, while Personal Self-discrepancy negatively influenced only Perceived Privacy Rights, thereby resulting in reduced quality of contribution in virtual communities. Based on the results of this analysis, we can explain the dysfunctions of multi-identity in virtual communities. First, people who pretend to be different by engaging in socially undesirable behaviors under their alternative identities are more likely to suffer lower levels of psychological wellbeing and thus experience lower levels of sense of virtual community than others. Second, people do not perceive a high level of privacy rights reflecting catharsis, recovery, or autonomy, even though they create different selves and engage in socially undesirable behaviors in a virtual community. Third, people who pretend to be different persons in terms of their intelligence, education, or expertise also indirectly debase the quality of contribution by decreasing perceived privacy rights. The results suggest that virtual community managers should pay more attention to the negative influences exercised by multi-identity on the quality of contribution, thereby controlling the need to create alternative identities in virtual communities. We hope that more research will be conducted on this underexplored area of multi-identity and that our theoretical framework will serve as a useful conceptual tool for all endeavors.

• Journal of Information Technology Applications and Management
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.181-203
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• 2015

Customers who show high level of brand loyalty are one of the most important corporate assets. Accordingly, customers' brand loyalty has been addressed as a critical issue for the business success. In today's business environment where business channels to customers have expanded and diversified continuously, especially the use of social network services (SNSs) have drawn a lot of attention as an effective channel to promote customers' brand loyalty. This study, thus, analyzes the impact of the virtual brand community identity on customers' brand loyalty, focusing on the role of the sense of communities as mediators. The analysis was conducted by using the data collected from 239 users of Chinese virtual brand communities. The results show that both virtual brand community identity and the sense of communities significantly influence on customers' brand loyalty. Furthermore, the results reveal that both of the community belongingness and community trust composing the sense of community partially mediate virtual brand community and brand loyalty as hypothesized. Based on the results, the strategic implications are suggested and discussed, focusing on improving the customers' brand loyalty in the context of SNSs. Our findings and discussions can help companies develop their customer strategies for utilizing the virtual communities to strengthen customers' brand loyalty.