Exploring the Dimensions of Cognitive Absorption in a Hedonic Systems Context

The popular conceptualization of the Information Systems variable Cognitive Absorption (CA) has five dimensions- Focussed Immersion (FI), Temporal Dissociation (TD), Heightened Enjoyment (HE), Control (Con), and Curiosity (Cur). The authors address the gap in the literature on absorption and flow experience in Social Networking Sites (SNS) use by exploring the dimensions of the construct, their relationships among each other and with user beliefs, and to continued use of SNS. Data collected from a sample of 448 Indian social media users was analysed using Structural Equation Modelling. The results showed that Perceived Ease of Use of the system increases Curiosity, Control and Heightened Enjoyment for users. Curiosity and Heightened Enjoyment emerged as the strongest predictors of reuse intentions, along with Perceived Usefulness and Perceived Ease of Use. However, Focussed Immersion, Temporal Dissociation and Control were not found to influence Continuance Intentions in an SNS context. The study’s findings strengthen the understanding of hedonic system reuse intentions from an intrinsic motivational perspective. Practitioners can use the insights to design SNS to tap into the salient motivational factors and thereby enhance revisit intentions.