TV가 등장한 이후, 새로운 형태의 미디어가 사람들의 삶과 사회적 상호작용에 어떤 영향을 미치는지에 대한 논의는 오랫동안 지속되어왔다. 최근 등장한 소셜 네트워크 서비스(SNS) 및 인스턴트 메시징(IM)과 같은 새로운 형태의 인터넷 미디어들은 사용자들이 영화나 스포츠, 게임 등을 보며 이에 대한 생각이나 감정뿐만 아니라 경험을 공유할 수 있도록 노력하고 있다. 본 연구의 목표는 소셜 TV와 같은 온라인 양방향 미디어를 통해 공유 된 경험의 효과를 알아내는 것이다. 좀 더 구체적으로, 이 연구는 소셜 TV나 SNS 비디오 공유를 통한 공유된 경험이 지각된 유사성, 인지된 즐거움 및 몰입 경험에 긍정적인 영향을 미치는지 조사했다. 그런 다음, 인식의 즐거움과 흐름 경험이 사용 의도에 미치는 영향과 사회적 유인에 대한인지 된 유사성의 영향을 조사했다. 또한, 사회적 존재감과 심리적 거리에 따른 경험공유의 영향을 검토하였다.
Since the advent of the television (TV) era, there have been debates about how these new forms of media affect people’s lives and social interactions. There are similar debates around new forms of internet media such as social network sites (SNS) and instant messaging (IM). As a response, these media are attempting to emulate offline interactions by adopting various new features. Video-chat, for instance, is such an attempt, and it emulates offline interactions in that it has most of the non-verbal cues that are usually in face-to-face interaction. More recently, they are trying to let users share not just thoughts or feelings, but experiences, such as watching movies or sports games, as well. With the advent of social TV, an interactive platform for sharing the experience of watching videos, and with the virtual reality (VR) SNS on the horizon, it is time that we examine whether these attempts can be meaningful or not. Sharing of experience matters. Boothby et al. (2014) have found that sharing an experience, such as eating chocolate together, can amplify the emotional response to the experience, and increase enjoyment, feeling of absorption (flow), and the sense of similarity toward the other person. Also, previous studies that analyzed the use of SNS with technology acceptance model (TAM) have found that perceived enjoyment and flow experience can positively affect the user’s intention to use the media, while perceived similarity can increase social attraction toward the others. Drawing upon these studies, this study aimed to find out about the effects of shared experience through online interactive media such as social TV. More specifically, the study examined whether shared experience through social TV or SNS video-sharing has positive effects on perceived similarity, perceived enjoyment, and flow experience. Then, the effects of perceived enjoyment and flow experience on intention to use were checked, as well as the effect of perceived similarity on social attraction. Additionally, possible moderation of effects of shared experience by social presence and psychological distance was also checked. For this analysis, an online survey was conducted on 343 users (N = 343) of SNS video-sharing and social TV. Then, the research model was analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) in R software. The relationships between shared experience and perceived similarity, perceived enjoyment, and flow experience turned out to be significant, also the effects of perceived similarity on social attraction and the effects of perceived enjoyment and flow experience on intention to use were significant as well. The results show that shared experience on social TV has a positive effect on users’ perceived similarity, perceived enjoyment, and flow experience. In addition, perceived similarity has been shown to have a positive effect on users’ intention to use. Perceived enjoyment and flow experience have also been shown to have positive effects on users’ intention to use social TV. However, social presence and psychological distance did not have any moderating effect on this positive role of shared experience. All the main hypotheses were supported by the data, and the hypotheses supported in this study have some meaningful implications for users and the social media companies. First, users will be able to benefit from using social TV because it not only enhances their enjoyment and flow experience, but also increases social attraction toward other users, which can lead to favorable social relationships. On the other hand, businesses will also benefit because the social features of social TV will make the users more willing to consume their media contents. Finally, even though the moderating effects of social presence and psychological distance were not supported in this study, more research should be conducted on other possible moderating effects, in order to get more detailed insights on the direction of future developments efforts regarding social TV and similar media.