One‐approach‐fits‐all? Use and evaluation of social media information for different goals

Abstract

The study investigated whether undergraduate students adopt a “one‐size‐fits‐all” approach when using social media to meet different goals (entertainment, information‐seeking/learning, personal identity, and social interaction/ integration). Findings suggest the selective use of platforms for different goals. The perceived usefulness of elements in evaluating social media information also differed across goals, particularly for entertainment. Multiple regression analyses revealed the familiarity with social media information quality issues, self‐efficacy, and gender significantly associated with respondents' tendency to give dissimilar usefulness ratings across goals.