Business Commons^™

Users’ Continued Usage Of Online Healthcare Virtual Communities: An Empirical Investigation In The Context Of Hiv Support Communities, Ruochen Liao, Rajiv Kishore, Michael J. Lee

Management, Entrepreneurship and Technology Faculty Publications

This study uses data from an online HIV/AIDS health support virtual community to examine whether users’ emotional states and the social support they receive influence their continued usage. We adopt grief theory to conceptualize the negative emotions that people living with HIV/AIDS could experience. Linguistic analysis is used to measure the emotional states of the users and the informational and emotional support that they receive. Results show that users showing a higher level of disbelief and yearning are more likely to leave the community while those with a high level of anger and depression are more likely to stay on. …