Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

User Engagement with Interactive Media: A Communication Perspective

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Why Engagement Matters

Abstract

This chapter builds on previous work that positions user engagement on the user involvement continuum and suggests that user engagement is comprised of physical interactions with media, cognitive involvement, absorption in media content, and behavioral outcomes in the form of outreach or media participation. The authors explore medium or interface characteristics and individual differences in the form of “power users” as determinants of user engagement, and persuasion as an outcome. An empirical example is user to illustrate the relationship between physical interactions, cognitive engagement, imagery engagement, and user attitudes and behavioral intentions. The chapter acknowledges and seeks to remedy the challenge associated with integrating conceptual frameworks of user engagement into design principles.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Adamo-Villani, N., Richardson, J., Carpenter, E., Moore, G.: A photorealistic 3d virtual laboratory for undergraduate instruction in Microcontroller Technology. In: 33rd SIGGRAPH 2006 (S. 21). ACM, New York (2006)

    Google Scholar 

  2. Agarwal, R., Karahanna, E.: Time flies when you’re having fun: cognitive absorption and beliefs about information technology usage. MIS Q 24, 665–694 (2000). doi:10.2307/3250951

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Askwith, I.D.: Television 2.0: reconceptualizing TV as an engagement medium. Doctoral dissertation, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Chicago (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  4. Attfield, S., Kazai, G., Lalmas, M., Piwowarski, B.: Towards a science of user engagement (Position Paper). In: WSDM Workshop on User Modeling for Web Applications (2011)

    Google Scholar 

  5. Bellur, S., Sundar, S.S.: Interactivity as conversation: Can back and forth interactions affect user cognitions and attitudes? Paper presented at the 63rd Annual Conference of the International Communication Association, London (2013)

    Google Scholar 

  6. Bhargava, H.K., Feng, J.: America Online’s Internet access service: how to deter unwanted customers. Electron. Commer. Res. Appl. 4 (1), 35–48 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Biocca, F.: Virtual reality technology: a tutorial. J. Commun. 42 (4), 23–72 (1992). doi:10.1111/j.1460-2466.1992.tb00811.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Bucy, E.P.: Interactivity in society: locating an elusive concept. Inf. Soc. 20, 373–383 (2004). doi:10.1080/01972240490508063

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Bucy, E., Tao, C.-C.: The mediated moderation model of interactivity. Media Psychol. 9 (3), 647–672 (2007). doi:10.1080/15213260701283269

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Busselle, R., Bilandzic, H.: Fictionality and perceived realism in experiencing stories: a model of narrative comprehension and engagement. Commun. Theory 18 (2), 255–280 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Busselle, R., Bilandzic, H.: Measuring narrative engagement. Media Psychol. 12 (4), 321–347 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Calder, B.J., Malthouse, E.C., Schaedel, U.: An experimental study of the relationship between online engagement and advertising effectiveness. J. Interact. Mark. 23 (4), 321–331 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Carr, N.G.: The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains. W.W. Norton, New York (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  14. Cha, M., Haddadi, H., Benevenuto, F., Gummadi, K.P.: Measuring userinfluence in twitter: the million follower fallacy. In: 4th International Conference on Weblogs and Social Media (ICWSM), vol. 14(1), pp. 8–17 (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  15. Chapman, P., Selvarajah, S., Webster, J.: Engagement in multimedia training systems. In: Proceedings of the 32nd Annual Hawaii International Conference on Systems Sciences (1999). doi:10.1109/HICSS.1999.772808

    Google Scholar 

  16. Chu, S.C., Kim, Y.: Determinants of consumer engagement in electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) in social networking sites. Int. J. Advert. 30 (1), 47–75 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Coyle, J.R., Thorson, E.: The effects of progressive levels of interactivity and vividness in Web marketing sites. J. Advert. 30, 65–77 (2001)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Cunningham, T., Hall, A.S., Young, C.: The advertising magnifier effect: an MTV study. J. Advert. Res. 46 (4), 369 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Dobele, A., Toleman, D., Beverland, M.: Controlled infection! Spreading the brand message through viral marketing. Bus. Horiz. 48 (2), 143–149 (2005)

    Google Scholar 

  20. Dobrian, F., Sekar, V., Awan, A., Stoica, I., Joseph, D., Ganjam, A., Zhang, H.: Understanding the impact of video quality on user engagement. ACM SIGCOMM Comput. Commun. Rev. 41 (4), 362–373 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Dow, S., Mehta, M., Harmon, E., MacIntyre, B., Mateas, M.: Presence and engagement in an interactive drama. In: Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 1475–1484. ACM, New York (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  22. Evans, D.: Soc Media Marketing: The Next Generation of Business Engagement. Wiley, Hoboken (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  23. Eveland, W.P., Marton, K., Seo, M.: Moving beyond “just the facts”: the influence of online news on the content and structure of public affairs knowledge. Commun. Res. 31 (1), 82–108 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Falls, J.: What’s the value of social media “engagement?” The Financial Brand. http://thefinancialbrand.com/35062/social-media-engagement-in-banking/ (2013). Cited 15 Feb 2015

  25. Fazio, R.H., Zanna, M.P., Cooper, J.: Direct experience and attitude-behavior consistency: an information processing analysis. Personal. Soc. Psychol. Bull. 4 (1), 48–51 (1978). doi:10.1177/014616727800400109

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Green, M.C., Brock, T.C.: The role of transportation in the persuasiveness of public narratives. J. Personal. Soc. Psychol. 79 (5), 701 (2000)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Harden, L., Heyman, B.: Digital Engagement: Internet Marketing that Captures Customers and Builds Intense Brand Loyalty. AMACOM, New York (2009)

    Google Scholar 

  28. Hayes, A.F.: Introduction to Mediation, Moderation, and Conditional Process Analysis: A Regression-Based Approach. Guilford, New York (2013)

    Google Scholar 

  29. Heath, R.: How do we predict advertising attention and engagement? University of Bath School of Management Working Paper Series. http://opus.bath.ac.uk/286/1/2007-09.pdf (2007). Cited 15 Feb 2015

  30. Hennig-Thurau, T., Gwinner, K.P., Walsh, G. Gremler, D.D.: Electronic word-of-mouth via consumer-opinion platforms: what motivates consumers to articulate themselves on the internet? J. Interact. Mark. 18 (1), 38–52 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Hu, Y., Sundar, S.S. Effects of online health sources on credibility and behavioral intentions. Commun. Res. 37 (1), 105–132 (2010). doi:10.1177/0093650209351512

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. IJsselsteijn, W.A., de Ridder, H., Freeman, J., Avons, S.: Presence: concept, determinants and measurement. Proc. SPIE, Hum. Vis. Electron. Imaging V 3959, 520–529 (2000). doi:10.1177/0093650209351512

    Google Scholar 

  33. Indvik, L.: Cost Per Like: A Subjective Valuation of Your Facebook Fans. http://mashable.com/2013/04/26/facebook-cost-per-like/ (2013). Cited 15 Feb 2015

  34. Jacques, R., Preece, J., Carey T.: Engagement as a design concept for multimedia. Can. J. Educ. Commun. 24 (1), 49–59 (1995)

    Google Scholar 

  35. Kalyanaraman, S., Sundar, S.: The psychological appeal of personalized content in web portals: does customization affect attitudes and behavior? J. Commun. 56 (1), 110–132 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Klein, L.R.: Creating virtual product experiences: the role of telepresence. J. Interact. Mark. 17, 41–55 (2003). doi:10.1002/dir.10046

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Lee, S.-S. Lee, W.: Exploring effectiveness of physical metaphor in interaction design. In: CHI 2009 Proceedings. ACM, Boston (2009)

    Google Scholar 

  38. Li, H., Daugherty, T., Biocca, F.: Impact of 3-D advertising on product knowledge, brand attitude, and purchase intention: the mediating role of presence. J. Advert. 31 (3), 43–57 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. Lindgaard, G., Dudek, C., Sen, D., Sumegi, L., Noonan, P.: An exploration of relations between visual appeal, trustworthiness and perceived usability of homepages. ACM Trans. Comput.-Hum. Interact. 18 (1), 1–28 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Liu, Y., Shrum, L.J.: What is interactivity and is it always such a good thing? Implications of definition, person, and situation for the influence of interactivity on advertising effectiveness. J. Advert. 31 (4), 53–64 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. Liu, Y., Shrum, L.J.: A dual-process model of interactivity effects. J. Advert. 38 (2), 53–68 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. McMillan, S.J.: A four-part model of cyber-interactivity: some cyber-places are more interactive than others. New Media Soc. 4 (2), 271–291 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  43. Mollen, A., Wilson, H.: Engagement, telepresence and interactivity in online consumer experience: reconciling scholastic and managerial perspectives. J. Bus. Res. 63 (9), 919–925 (2010)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  44. O’Brien, H., Toms, E.G.: What is user engagement? A conceptual framework for defining user engagement with technology. J. Am. Soc. Inf. Sci. Technol. 59 (6), 938–955 (2008)

    Google Scholar 

  45. O’Brien, H., Toms, E.G.: The development and evaluation of a survey to measure user engagement. J. Am. Soc. Inf. Sci. Technol. 61 (1), 50–69 (2010)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Oh, J., Bellur, S., Sundar, S.S.: Clicking, assessing, immersing and sharing: an empirical model of user engagement with interactive media. Commun. Res. (2015). doi:10.1177/0093650215600493 [Published online before print September 21, 2015] (in press)

    Google Scholar 

  47. Oh, J., Sundar, S. S.: How does interactivity persuade? Effects of interactivity on cognitive absorption, elaboration, and attitudes. J. Commun. 65, 213–236 (2015)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  48. Parsons, T.: Generating ‘Engagement’ on Facebook Is Just The Beginning. The Financial Brand. http://thefinancialbrand.com/37709/facebook-engagement-roi-metrics-in-banking/ (2014). Cited 15 Feb 2015

  49. Plummer, J., Cook, B., Diforio, D., Schachter, B., Sokolyanskaya, I. Korde, T.: Measures of Engagement. Advertising Research Foundation, New York (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  50. Rafaeli, S.: From new media to communication. Sage Annual Rev. Commun. Res. 16, 110–134 (1988)

    Google Scholar 

  51. Reeves, B., Nass, C.: The Media Equation: How People Treat Computers, Television, and New Media. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (1997)

    Google Scholar 

  52. Reeves, B., Nass, C.: Perceptual user interfaces: perceptual bandwidth. Commun. ACM 43 (3), 65–70 (2000)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  53. Rogers, A.M.: The Virtuous Cycle: Online News, Industry Change and User Choice. Res Pap 104. http://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/gs_rp/104 (2011). Cited 15 Feb 2015

  54. Schlosser, A.E.: Experiencing products in the virtual world: the rule of goal and imagery in influencing attitudes versus purchase intentions. J. Consum. Res. 30, 184–198 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  55. Shepard, R.N.: The mental image. Am. Psychol. 33 (2), 125–137 (1978). doi:10.1037/0003-066X.33.2.125

    Article  Google Scholar 

  56. Slater, M.D. Rouner, D.: Entertainment, education and elaboration likelihood: understanding the processing of narrative persuasion. Commun. Theory 12 (2), 173–191 (2002)

    Google Scholar 

  57. Smith, R.E., Swinyard, W.R.: Cognitive response to advertising and trial: belief strength, belief confidence and product curiosity. J. Advert. 17 (3), 3–14 (1988)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  58. Steuer, J.: Defining virtual reality: dimensions determining telepresence. J. Commun. 42 (4), 73–93 (1992)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  59. Strange, J.J., Leung, C.C.: How anecdotal accounts in news and in fiction can influence judgments of a social problem’s urgency, causes, and cures. Personal. Soc. Psychol. Bull. 25 (4), 436–449 (1999)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  60. Stromer-Galley, J.: Interactivity-as-product and interactivity-as-process. Inf. Soc. 20 (5), 391–394 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  61. Sundar, S.S.: Multimedia effects on processing and perception of online news: a study of picture, audio, and video downloads. J. Mass Commun. Q. 77, 480–499 (2000). doi:10.1177/107769900007700302

    Google Scholar 

  62. Sundar, S.S.: Social psychology of interactivity in human-website interaction. In: Joinson, A.N., McKenna, K.Y.A., Postmes, T., Reips, U.-D. (eds.) The Oxford Handbook of Internet Psychology, pp. 89–104. Oxford University Press, Oxford (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  63. Sundar, S.S.: The MAIN model: a heuristic approach to understanding technology effects on credibility. In: Metzger, M.J., Flanagin, A.J. (eds.) Digital Media, Youth, and Credibility, pp. 72–100. MIT, Cambridge (2008)

    Google Scholar 

  64. Sundar, S.S., Marathe, S.S.: Personalization versus customization: the importance of agency, privacy, and power usage. Hum. Commun. Res. 36 (3), 298–322 (2010)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  65. Sundar, S.S., Knobloch-Westerwick, S., Hastall, M.R.: News cues: information scent and cognitive heuristics. J. Am. Soc. Inf. Sci. Technol. 58 (3), 366–378 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  66. Sundar, S.S., Xu, Q., Bellur, S., Jia, H., Oh, J., Khoo, G.-S.: Click, drag, flip, and mouse-over: effects of modality interactivity on user engagement with web content. Paper presented at the 60th Annual Conference of the International Communication Association, Singapore (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  67. Sundar, S.S., Oh, J., Bellur, S., Jia, H., Kim, H.S.: Interactivity as self-expression: a field experiment with customization and blogging. In: Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 395–404. ACM, New York (2012)

    Google Scholar 

  68. Sundar, S.S., Bellur, S., Oh, J., Xu, Q., Jia, H.: User experience of on-screen interaction techniques: an experimental investigation of clicking, sliding, zooming, hovering, dragging and flipping. Hum. Comput. Interact. 29 (2), 109–152 (2014)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  69. Sundar, S.S., Bellur, S., Oh, J., Jia, H., Kim, H.S.: Theoretical importance of contingency in human-computer interaction: effects of message interactivity on user engagement. Commun. Res. (2014). doi:10.1177/0093650214534962. http://crx.sagepub.com/content/early/2014/05/21/0093650214534962 [Published online before print on May 22, 2014] (in press)

    Google Scholar 

  70. Sutcliffe, A.: Designing for user engagement: aesthetic and attractive user interfaces. Synth. Lect. Hum.-Cent. Inform. 2 (1), 1–55 (2009)

    Article  MathSciNet  Google Scholar 

  71. Tavanti, M., Lind, M.: 2D vs 3D, Implications on spatial memory. In: Proceedings of IEEE Symposium on Information Visualization (INFOVIS’01), San Diego, 22–23 October, pp. 139–148 (2001)

    Google Scholar 

  72. Venkatesh, V., Davis, F.D.: A theoretical extension of the technology acceptance model: four longitudinal field studies. Manag. Sci. 46 (2), 186–204 (2000)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  73. Vorderer, P.: Entertainment theory. In: Bryant, J., Roskos-Ewoldsen, D., Cantor, J. (eds.) Communication and Emotion: Essays in Honor of Dolf Zimmerman, pp. 131–153. Erlbaum, Mahwah (2003)

    Google Scholar 

  74. Wang, A.: Advertising engagement: a driver of message involvement on message effects. J. Advert. Res. 46 (4), 355–368 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  75. Webster, J., Ho, H.: Audience engagement in multimedia presentations. ACM SIGMIS Database 28 (2), 63–77 (1997)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  76. Wise, K., Bolls, P.D., Schaefer, S.R.: Choosing and reading online news: how available choice affects cognitive processing. J. Broadcast Electron. Media 52 (1), 69–85 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  77. Witmer, B.G., Singer, M.J.: Measuring presence in virtual environments: a presence questionnaire. Presence 7 (3), 225–240 (1998). doi:10.1162/105474698565686

    Article  Google Scholar 

  78. Wu, G., Wu, G.: Conceptualizing and measuring the perceived interactivity of websites. J. Curr. Issues Res. Advert. 28 (1), 87–104 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  79. Xu, Q., Sundar, S.S.: Lights, camera, music, interaction! Interactive persuasion in e-commerce. Commun. Res. 41 (2), 282–308 (2014). doi:10.1177/0093650212439062

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Robert Morris University, Moon Township, PA, USA

    Jeeyun Oh

  2. The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA

    S. Shyam Sundar

Authors
  1. Jeeyun Oh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. S. Shyam Sundar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jeeyun Oh .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

    Heather O'Brien

  2. University of York, York, United Kingdom

    Paul Cairns

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Oh, J., Sundar, S.S. (2016). User Engagement with Interactive Media: A Communication Perspective. In: O'Brien, H., Cairns, P. (eds) Why Engagement Matters. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27446-1_8

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27446-1_8

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-27444-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-27446-1

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation