Understanding the Sense of Community and Continuance Intention in Virtual Communities: The Role of Commitment and Type of Community. (June 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: González-Anta, Baltasar; Orengo, Virginia; Zornoza, Ana; Peñarroja, Vicente; Martínez-Tur, Vicente
• Is Part Of: Social science computer review. Volume 39:Number 3(2021)
• Page Start: 335
• Page End: 352
• Publication Date: 2021-06
• Subjects: virtual community participation -- intention to continue -- virtual learning communities -- virtual communities of practice -- communities of interest -- sense of virtual community -- commitment; Social sciences -- Data processing -- Periodicals; Computers -- Social aspects -- Periodicals; Microcomputers -- Periodicals; Sciences sociales -- Informatique -- Périodiques; Micro-ordinateurs -- Périodiques; 300.285
• DOI: 10.1177/0894439319859590
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0894-4393

Abstract

Virtual communities (VCs) have become essential in current organizations and society, and so their sustainability is a topic of interest for researchers and practitioners. We focus on the sense of virtual community (SoVC) and commitment as relevant antecedents in achieving the success and maintenance of different types of VCs (communities of interest, virtual learning communities, and VCs of practice). Specifically, this study examines a moderated mediation model in which the type of VC moderates the indirect effect of a SoVC on the intention to continue through the perceived commitment of the users of the VC. The sample consists of 299 members of VCs. The results showed that SoVC influenced the intention to continue via commitment to VCs. Additionally, the relationship between SoVC and commitment was higher for communities of interest and virtual learning communities than for VCs of practice. This article contributes to previous literature by identifying the importance of participants' engagement and the contingent effect of the type of community. Implications of the study and directions for future research are discussed.