blog adults motivations

This article was downloaded by: [177.207.102.114]On: 29 September 2013, At: 06:08Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registeredoffice: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK

Atlantic Journal of CommunicationPublication details, including instructions for authors andsubscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/hajc20

Blogging the Time Away? Young Adults'Motivations for Blog UseCory L. Armstrong a & Melinda J. McAdams aa College of Journalism and Communications University of FloridaPublished online: 21 Apr 2011.

To cite this article: Cory L. Armstrong & Melinda J. McAdams (2011) Blogging the Time Away?Young Adults' Motivations for Blog Use, Atlantic Journal of Communication, 19:2, 113-128, DOI:10.1080/15456870.2011.561174

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15456870.2011.561174

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE

Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (theContent) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis,our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as tothe accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinionsand views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors,and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Contentshould not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sourcesof information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims,proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever orhowsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arisingout of the use of the Content.

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Anysubstantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing,systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms &Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions

Atlantic Journal of Communication, 19:113128, 2011

Copyright Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

ISSN: 1545-6870 print/1545-6889 online

DOI: 10.1080/15456870.2011.561174

Blogging the Time Away?Young Adults Motivations for Blog Use

Cory L. Armstrong and Melinda J. McAdamsCollege of Journalism and Communications

University of Florida

The content of Weblogs ranges from personal diary entries to interactive content from news

organizations. Employing the uses and gratifications framework, this study examined how much

time young adults spend with blogs and how well traditional predictors of media trust fit a model of

overall blog trust. Findings from data collections in 2005 and 2007 indicate that information seekers

trust blog content more than those using blogs for entertainment purposes. However, traditional

indicators of media trust, such as interest in current events, are negatively associated with blog

trust. Implications are discussed.

Online media, and particularly Weblogs, have reshaped the flow of information between the

public and media. The two-step flow of communication, where opinion leaders serve as an

intermediary between the media and public (Katz & Lazarsfeld, 1955), has been replaced by

what Reuters Information CEO Tom Glocer calls the two-way pipe. Glocer (2006) suggested

that the media can no longer dictate which information consumers obtainthe public can read,

publish, and disseminate material on a much larger scale than in the pre-Web era.

This shift has made way for the exponential growth of a kind of citizen journalism, where

individuals with little to no journalism training are producing content for mass audiences.

Although much of this content might not meet journalists criteria for reliable journalism,

the content nevertheless becomes part of a consumers diet of information and, in part, may

influence ones behaviors (see, e.g., Cooper, 2006; De Ziga, Puig-I-Abril, & Rojas, 2009).

Thus, the users trust in Weblogs deserves attention, as Weblogs constitute a large part of the

nonmainstream or noncommercial information content produced online.

Our research questions focus on how younger adults use Weblogs (hereafter blogs) and how

much they trust blog content. When they read a blog, how much time do they spend with the

blog? What motivations do they have for using blog content, and how does individual trust in

blog content compare to traditional predictors of media trust?

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Cory L. Armstrong, College of Journalism and Com-

munications, University of Florida, P.O. Box 118400, Gainesville, FL 32611-8400. E-mail: [email protected]

113

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013

114 ARMSTRONG AND McADAMS

Examining young adults attitudes about trusting media and blogs is important for mass

communication scholars. In terms of blogs, more than 54% are written by someone younger

than the age of 30 (Pew Research Center, 2006). The authors, regardless of their age, in many

cases serve as information providers alongside (or in lieu of) newspaperswhich makes the

question of how much this content is trusted by the coveted young adult readers even more

compelling, to both academics and practitioners.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Uses and Gratifications

One segment of mass communication research has focused on an individuals motivations for

using a particular medium. That is, what drives an individual to use a particular medium

and what benefits does he or she receive from its use? Scholars have termed this theoretical

approach uses and gratifications and argue that media users have specific goals in mind, using

media purposefully to achieve those goals (Bantz, 1982; Katz, Blumler, & Gurevitch, 1974;

Rosengren, Philip, & Wenner, 1985). Thus, when individuals are using media, their choice of

newspapers, television, or Internet is active and deliberate.

Although the uses and gratifications perspective has been used to explain many variations

in media use, recent research has focused on two dimensions of the overall use typologies:

surveillance use, where users seek information from media to increase, reinforce, or modify

viewpoints; and entertainment/leisure use, in which amusement and reduction of cognitive

stimulation become the main gratifications of media use (Rosengren et al., 1985; Rubin & Perse,

1987a, 1987b). Other researchers have reported that individuals found specific motivations for

media use, such as reducing anxiety (Kellerman & Reynolds, 1990), escaping from problems

(Rubin, 1983), and relieving boredom (Vincent & Basil, 1997). Scholars have designated four

types of need gratifications for media use (McQuail, Blumler, & Brown, 1972): diversion or

escape, personal relationships (both in the sense of providing fodder for conversation and as a

substitute for tangible relationships), personal identity or individual psychology (largely in the

sense of reinforcing values or exploring new ones, and reassurance for the ideas one already

holds), and surveillance (as a means to gain information and stay up to date).

However, much of the seminal work on uses and gratifications focused on the use of

traditional media, including newspapers and television. With the rise of the Internet and mobile

devices, uses of media have changed. A study of college students found that although the

basic motivations for media useinformation seeking or leisure activityhavent changed, the

sources and providers to which students go for these media have changed (Diddi & LaRose,

2006). This study of news consumption patterns suggested that the top two locations where

students seek news content are their campus newspaper and news Internet portals.

Given the pervasiveness of the Internetand, in particular for this study, blogsscholars

have attempted to determine the motivations for its use. Early research has generally found

that, similar to traditional media, individuals use the Internet largely for either surveillance or

entertainment purposes (Ferguson & Perse, 2000; Papacharissi & Rubin, 2000). A set of studies

by Johnson and Kaye attempted to isolate specific motivations and how each motivation relates

to specific Web sites. For example, the scholars found that information seeking was more likely

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013

MOTIVATIONS FOR WEBLOG USE 115

for those visiting sports-focused Web sites (T. J. Johnson & Kaye, 2003) but that politically

oriented Web sites and forums may be more used for guidance purposes, such as determining

voter preference (Kaye & Johnson, 2004). Recent research has found that blog credibility was

higher for those using blogs for information-seeking purposes (e.g., Armstrong & McAdams,

2009; T. J. Johnson, Kaye, Bichard, & Wong, 2008).

Blogs and Blog Users

This study focuses on blogs, a portion of the Internet that has seen exponential growth in

recent years. In this article, we define a blog as a hierarchy of text, images, media objects and

data, arranged chronologically, that can be viewed in an HTML browser (Winer, 2003). Many

blogs include predominantly or only text. A blog entry (or, more commonly, a blog post) is

a complete unit of content. There might be several posts in one day, but typically each post

has its own headline and can be linked to individually. The length of a post can vary widely

within one blog.

In perhaps the first study examining the uses and gratifications of blogs (in which 3,747 blog

users were surveyed), the main motivations found for blog use were surveillance (social and

political), convenience, and personal fulfillment (Kaye, 2005). However, Kaye pointed out that

reading and participating in blogs can also gratify excitement, entertainment and relaxation

needs (p. 90), which suggests that blogs are also used as a leisure activity. A 2006 study found

that bloggersthose who maintain their own blogstend to view their activity as a hobby, or

something they do in their leisure time (Pew Research Center, 2006). More recently, a 2008

study of journalists and public relations practitioners found that blog authors and users rated

blogs as more credible than nonblog users did (Sweetser, Porter, Chung, & Kim, 2008).

Kaye (2005) found that for some motivations, blog usage (measured in hours used per week)

was a predictor, but Internet experience (measured in years of use) was not. This suggests that

effects of blog usage may not be parallel to effects of other media and that the time spent with

individual blogs may be important for study. As she noted,

Blog users may be as actively engaged as they wish. They may fully participate in online discussions

and send in links to additional information or they may choose to be more passive and aloof and

merely read the opinions of others. The amount of participation can vary from session to session

and Weblog to Weblog, but is determined by the user, not the technology. (Kaye, 2005, p. 75)

A Pew Research Center study in 2003 found that about 11% of Internet users at that

time had read blogs (Rainie, 2005). Subsequent Pew studies showed that the percentage had

increased to 27% by November 2004 but had not changed by September 2005 (see, e.g., Pew

Internet & American Life, 2005; Rainie, 2005). Rainie (2005) concluded that blog readers are

somewhat more of a mainstream group than bloggers themselves and noted recent growth in

blog readership among women and minorities. In a 2008 study of 3,615 adults in the United

States, 23% said they regularly or sometimes read blogs about politics or current events (Pew

Research Center, 2008). Blog readers, therefore, are not rare, but the amount of experience

with blogs can be expected to vary widely in the population of U.S. Internet users.

The aforementioned research suggests that blog users are a subset of all Internet users.

Roughly 57 million Americans read blogs, compared with 147 million who use the Internet

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


(Pew Research Center, 2006). These are people with more experience reading blogs, and

therefore they will evaluate content differently than nonblog users. In prior work, blog usage

served as a moderating variable in determining the credibility of blog content, in that blog users

were less likely than nonusers to subscribe to gender cues to determine credibility (Armstrong

& McAdams, 2010). This finding suggests that blog users have different criteria for evaluating

blogs than nonusers. In the present study, we believe that blog users will evaluate this blog

more quickly than nonusers and spend less time reading blogs employed in this study.

H1: Blog users will spend less time with the content of the blogs employed in this study

than nonblog users.

Media Trust Versus Blog Trust

Scholars have been fascinated with the level of trust placed in media channels over time (Cook

& Gronke, 2001; Jones, 2004; MORI Research Inc., 1985). Public confidence in media dropped

22 points to 32% between 1989 and 2000, around the time of George W. Bushs election to

office (P. Johnson, 2003). However, despite this sharp decline, media use appears to be at an

all-time high. For example, a Kaiser Family Foundation study found that the average parent

spends nearly 2.25 hr in a typical day looking at either a television or a computer screen

(Lenhart & Fox, 2006).

Media trust has been characterized as ones disposition to view media content as either

favorable or unfavorable (Gunther, 1992). However, Gunthers study found that ones situational

involvement with an issue, event, or story is a strong predictor of media trust. In terms

of political news, scholars have offered three main explanations for media distrust (Jones,

2004): content, which is often focused on horse-race coverage and less about issues; media

penchant for interpretation of information, rather than observation and reporting of events;

and sensationalism, where scandal is the focus of reporting. Two European scholars suggested

four potential dimensions of media trust: selectivity of topics, selectivity of facts, accuracy of

depictions, and journalistic assessments (Kohring & Matthes, 2007).

Further, scholars have suggested that consumers flock to media even if they dont trust it

merely to be exposed to the viewpoints expressed by political leaders (Tsfati & Cappella, 2005).

A 2004 study found that as Internet users became more experienced, they did not engage in

more online activities and varying types of contentinstead, these long-time users visited the

same core sites regularly (T. J. Johnson & Kaye, 2004a). This may suggest that experienced

Web users have developed a level of trust with a select set of online sites.

Prior studies have found that blog users believe blogs are more credible than other media

(T. J. Johnson & Kaye, 2004b), which suggests there may also be a difference in the level of

trust afforded to blogs between users and nonusers. Recent research lends credence to this idea

by finding that blog usage appears to act differently than other information sources, particularly

in the political realm (De Ziga et al., 2009; Kenix, 2009). We argue that many of those trust

differences may stem from the motivations of media consumers. In particular, individuals who

use media to seek information are likely viewing the media with different evaluation criteria

than those simply surfing the Internet or flipping television channels as a leisure activity. Those

seeking information are looking to be challenged, or to have their views reinforced, and blogs

provide a popular way of doing both. A 2007 study found that respondents who distrusted

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


traditional news media content about health-related information were more likely to go to the

Web in search of information (Rains, 2007).

Put differently, one of the functions of blogs is to criticize and question traditional media

(Cooper, 2006). Therefore it makes sense that blog users would seek out information to confirm,

reinforce, or refute their pointsperhaps by using other blogs. Most blog posts are written

by an individual based on personal opinions and experiences. However, research has found

that despite these unedited, personalized entries, more than one third of all bloggers attempt

to verify their facts before posting material (Pew Research Center, 2006). That suggests that

information contained in some blogs may be well researched and compelling in a way that

attracts these information seekers. It seems likely that if they read these blogs for information,

or to supplement other media, they may be evaluating the accuracy, content, and presentation

of the blogs. Once those criteria are established, trust in the blogs would likely increase. On

the other hand, those who read blogs for leisure use are not evaluating the content in the same

way. They are looking to be amused and entertained. Enjoyable and entertainment blogs may

or may not be accurate and trustworthy. Thus, it follows that motivations for usage may be

factor in determining trust in blogs in the same way as trust for other media.

H2: Those with information-seeking motivations will have more trust in blogs than those

with non-information-seeking motivations.

Finally, this study provides for a unique comparison of how predictors of media trust may be

applied toward blogs. That is, are blogs perceived as having the same utility and trustworthiness

as are often attributed to traditional media? Given that bloggers have broken some major news

stories and, in many instances have been deemed citizen journalists (e.g., Cooper, 2006;

Gillmor, 2004), it seems possible that predictors of media trust and blog trust may be similar.

Further, recent research has found that blogs use can predict online political discussion in the

same way that traditional media sources predict offline political discussion (De Ziga et al.,

2009). However, we argue that blogs function as alternative mediathat although they share

some of the same characteristics as mainstream media, they differ in that citizen journalists

and bloggers are not held to the same standards and practices as more established media. Thus,

we pose the following research question:

RQ1: How do individual motivations predicting media trust compare with individual moti-

vations as predictors of blog trust?

METHODS

This exploratory study employs two Web-based surveys conducted in November 2005 and

November 2007.1 Participants for the survey were drawn from several undergraduate classes

including some in a mass communications curriculumat a large southeastern university;

1A three-cell experiment was embedded in each of the surveys. The blog text was identical in all versions, but the

gender of the writer was manipulated. The cells were collapsed for this analysis, and we have no reason to believe

the results were affected by this action. More information about the experiment within the survey is available upon

request.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


students were offered extra credit for participating in this research experience. In Study 1, the

mean age for participants was 20.7 (SD D 1.45), with 58% female. The sample size in Study 1

was 586. Study 2 had a total sample size of 786. The mean age for participants was 20.54

(SD D 2.35), also with 58% female.

In both studies, respondents read one version of a blog entry. In Study 1, all respondents

read a blog post about rebuilding homes in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, whereas in

Study 2 respondents were randomly assigned to read a blog post about either bottled water or

college rankings. The text for each of the three posts was seven paragraphs (500600 words) in

length, and each post included six external links to other actual Web sites containing additional

information about topics discussed in the blog post. Each post was based on a real blog post

written by an amateur blogger. Appropriate links were added; for example, in a sentence about

unemployment rates in pre-Katrina New Orleans, a link to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

employment rates was provided. Some editing was necessary to increase the similarity of

the three posts. The bottled water post was lengthened, and the college rankings post was

shortened, to make them more similar to the New Orleans post used in Study 1. However, the

study authors attempted to maintain the tone and attitude of the original post in the rewrites

through word selection and voice.2 Further, each of the three posts was formatted in the same

page design, taken from a standard template at a popular blog hosting site with few alterations,

giving the appearance of an average, somewhat plain blog. No images were used in the posts.

The blog entries were selected for several attributes. One was length; an entry of 500 words

was estimated to be substantial but not burdensome for an experiment with college students.

Another was subject matter. We wanted posts with a personal voice and informal tone that also

addressed a topic that might interest a general audience. We were looking for a strong opinion

that seemed well grounded and plausible.

For Study 1, the hurricane damage to New Orleans had dominated recent print and broadcast

news reports at that time, so it would have been a familiar topic and close to home for students

in the southeastern United States. We saw rebuilding in New Orleans as an aspect of the story

that had not yet been hammered in the mainstream media. Thus we chose a blog post that we

expected would be fresh to most of our study participants, without being obscure.

For Study 2, we decided to find two posts that might be even more interesting and relevant to

an audience of undergraduate college students while having different subject matter from each

other. We did not want posts that sounded like news stories, essays, or diary entries; our goal

was something informational but not too dull. Our two posts seemed to be good counterpoints

to each other. The bottled water post contained numerous facts about the environment, disposal

of plastics, and water purity, but it was written in a snide, casual style with a youthful voice.3

The college rankings post was more traditional in structure and slightly formal in style, with an

older, more authoritative voice; it concerned whether choosing a college based on rankings is

wise in light of how the rankings are compileda topic we thought might warrant the attention

of undergraduate students.

2A screen capture of one version of the blog post used in Study 1 is available in the appendix. Upon request, the

authors can provide both the original and the edited text of each blog post.3The varying writing styles in Study 2 were employed to minimize artificiality in the experiment. By employing

different styles of writing, we could assume that the trust measures were based more in reality than by only providing

one type of blog for study. Each was a counterbalance to the post examined in Study 1.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


Dependent Variables

Three main dependent variables were used in this analysis. Unless otherwise noted, all of the

questions were measured on a 1-to-7 Likert scale asking participants their level of agreement

with a particular statement. In Study 1, of the 586 participants, 120 (20%; M D .47, SD D

1.14) clicked on at least one link in the story. Time spent was measured in seconds from the

time the respondent clicked into the blog post from the consent page until the time until the

respondent clicked out of the post and into the survey; the median was 174 s. In Study 2, 25.4%

of the 786 respondents clicked on at least one link (M D .28, SD D .43), and the median time

spent was 168 s.

Trust in media was measured from a two-item index asking respondents whether they trust

information they read in the news media and if they find most information in the news media

to be accurate (Study 1: r D .42, M D 8.86, SD D 2.21; Study 2: r D .37, M D 8.19,

SD D 2.20). Trust in blogs was measured using a three-item index asking respondents whether

personal blogs were just as trustworthy as those written by professionals, whether information

contained in blogs should be trusted, and whether a blog is an informative news article (Study 1

descriptives: D .66, M D 8.78, SD D 3.01; Study 2 descriptives: D .65, M D 9.29, SD D

2.99).4 The correlation between blog trust and media trust was r D .10 (p < .05) in Study 1

and r D .08 (p < .05) in Study 2.

Independent Variables

In Study 1, the variable blog users ( D .76, M D 5.05, SD D 4.22) was created from a three-

item index that asked respondents how many online blogs they read in the last seven days, the

average number of hours per week they spend reading or posting to blogs, and whether they

read blogs regularly (Study 2 descriptives: D .68, M D 3.82, SD D 2.75). Credibility of the

blog post (Study 1 descriptives: D .84; M D 24.8, SD D 6.3; Study 2 descriptives: D .85;

M D 29.48, SD D 6.01) was created from a six-item index asking participants to whether they

thought the blog post was interesting, accurate, credible, trustworthy, believable, and held the

respondents attention.5

Interest in current events (Study 1 descriptives: r D .53; M D 11.49, SD D 2.28; Study 2

descriptives: r D .51, M D11.65, SD D 2.13) was measured from two items asking respondents

if they were interested in news and information or whether they were interested in current

events. Media reflection (Study 1 descriptives: r D .35, M D 8.74, SD D 2.33; Study 2

descriptives: r D .37, M D 9.52, SD D 2.37) was measured by asking respondents whether

they try to make sense of what they encounter in the media by comparing it to their own

experiences and whether, after getting information from the media, they use it to help organize

their thoughts (Cho et al., 2009). An eight-item index was used to create the surveillance-use

variable (Study 1 descriptives: D .93, M D 25.65, SD D 10.99; Study 2 descriptives: D

.92, M D 28.00, SD D 11.05), including questions asking respondents on a 1-to-7 scale to

4The alpha coefficient for this variable is lower than ideal, but all three items loaded strongly on one factor in

Study 1 (.76 or above factor loading) and the findings were the same using a one-item indicator of trust only. Therefore,

we believe the three-item scale bolstered the findings and we replicated the measure in Study 2.5These source credibility measures were taken from Armstrong and Nelson (2005). Scholars have argued that trust

and credibility are separate, although related, concepts (see, e.g., Kohring & Matthes, 2007).

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


rate their level of agreement with their media use habits. They were asked if they use blogs to

check accuracy of other media, to access information quickly, to find information not found in

traditional media, to supplement other media, to keep up with the main issues of the day, to be

informed, to find specific information, or to compare to traditional media accounts. The leisure-

use variable (Study 1 descriptives: D .87, M D 20.22, SD D 8.03; Study 2 descriptives: D

.86, M D 20.82, SD D 7.70) was created from six questions asking whether respondents used

blogs for excitement, to be in contact with like-minded people, for entertainment purposes, to

be amused, because it helps me relax, to follow what my personal friends and colleagues are

doing (see past studies, such as Kaye, 2005, or Rubin & Perse, 1987b, for an in-depth look at

uses and gratifications measures).

The hypotheses and research questions in this study were examined using the SPSS statistical

package, including difference of mean tests and hierarchical linear regression.

RESULTS

The first hypothesis focused on blog users, suggesting that blog users would spend less time

reading the post. Using difference of mean tests, the median number of seconds for nonusers

was 162, whereas the median for blog users was 182.1, for a difference of 20.1 s, t (532) D

1.65, p D .10, ns. In Study 2, the median number of seconds for nonusers was 183, whereas

the median for blog users was 293 s, for a difference of 110 s, t (752) D 1.23, p D .21, ns.

The first hypothesis was not supported in this analysis.

The second hypothesis suggested that those with information-seeking motivations would be

more trusting of blog content. Again, using difference of mean tests, the mean level of blog trust

for low information seekers in Study 1 was 7.82, compared to a mean of 9.70 for those who are

high information seekers, t (536)D 7.78, p D .01. In Study 2, the mean level of blog trust for

low information seekers was 8.19, compared to a mean of 10.30 for those who are high infor-

mation seekers, t (739) D 10.28, p D .01. This result lends support to the second hypothesis.

The research question examined how predictors of media trust compared with those pre-

dicting blog trust. It was tested from two hierarchical regressions, with trust in blogs and trust

in media as the dependent variables (see Tables 1 and 2). In Study 1, the first regression block

included demographic variables of gender and race and was not a significant predictor in this

analysis for either variable. The second block, which accounted for 12.0% of the variance for

blog trust (p < .01), included characteristics of blog users and the specific blog. Credibility of

the blog post was found to be a significant positive predictor of overall trust in blogs ( D

.28, p < .01). For media trust, no significant results were found in this block.

In the third block, media use variables were added. Blog usage was found to be a negative

predictor of media trust ( D .27, p < .05), but the block was not a significant contributor

to the analysis. The fourth block accounted for 20.1% of variance (p < .01) for overall blog

trust. Informational media use was found to be a positive predictor of overall trust in blogs

( D .20, p < .05) along with media reflection ( D .31, p < .01), whereas interest in current

events ( D .35, p < .01) was found to be a negative predictor of overall trust in blogs.

Leisure use was found to be a positive predictor for overall media use ( D .22, p < .05).

In Study 2 (see Table 2), the first block controlled for demographics and the different blog

posts and was not a significant contributor to the analysis for either overall blog trust or overall

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


TABLE 1

Hierarchical Linear Regression of Blogging Attitudes and Behavior on Media and Blog Trust in Study 1

Variable

Final Beta for

Overall Blog Trust

Final Beta for

Overall Media Trust

Block 1

Gender (Female) .17* .14

Race (White) .06 .18#

Inc. R2 (%) 1.4 5.3#

Block 2

Number of seconds on post .05 .01

Credibility of blog post .28** .09

Total links clicked .16# .11

Inc. R2 (%) 12.0** 2.7

Block 3

Blog usage .01 .27*

Media usage .11 .06

Inc. R2 (%) 0.5 4.6#

Block 4

Informational Weblog use .20* .15

Leisure Weblog use .06 .22*

Interest in current events .35** .07

Media reflection .31** .08

Trust in media/blogs overall .07 .09

Inc. R2 (%) 20.1** 5.7

34.0** 19.6

Total R2

*p < .05. **p < .01. # D p < :10.

media trust. The second block focused on the individual blog characteristics and accounted for

18.5% of the variance for overall blog trust (p < .01). Credibility writer ( D .11, p < .01)

and time spent on post ( D .12, p < .05) were positive predictors of blog trust. Credibility

of the blog post was a positive predictor for media trust. Block three contained media use and

blog use variablesneither was found to be a significant predictor in this analysis.

In the fourth block, media uses and gratifications, variables of media trust and reflection

on media content were added, accounting for 18.7% of the variance for blog trust (p < .01)

and 2.3% in the media trust analysis (p < .05). For overall blog trust, a significant negative

relationships was found for interest in current events ( D .23, p < .01). Informational media

use was found to be a positive predictor ( D .39, p < .01), similar to Study 1. For overall

media trust, media reflection was a significant positive contributor ( D .12, p < .01).

DISCUSSION

This study examined the motivations for individuals use of blogs and explored the factors that

affect the time individuals spend on this type of content. Two major findings resulted from

this study: (a) Individuals who use blogs for information-seeking purposes are more likely to

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


TABLE 2

Hierarchical Linear Regression of Blogging Attitudes and Behavior on Media and Blog Trust in Study 2

Variable

Final Beta for

Overall Blog Trust

Final Beta for

Overall Media Trust

Block 1

Gender (Female) .06 .02

Race (White) .05 .05

Post (Bottled water) .01 .00

Inc. R2 (%) 1.0# 0.6

Block 2

Number of seconds on post .12* .01

Credibility of blog post .04* .13*

Credibility of post writer .11** .08

Total links clicked .05 .03

Inc. R2 (%) 8.5** 1.5*

Block 3

Blog use .07# .08

Media use .15 .06

Inc. R2 (%) 4.5** 0.9#

Block 4

Informational Weblog use .39** .07

Leisure Weblog use .06 .01

Interest in current events .23** .02

Media reflection .00 .12**

Trust in media/blogs overall .04 .84

Inc. R2 (%) 18.7** 2.3*

32.7** 5.2*

Total R2

*p < .05. **p < .01. # D p < :10.

trust the content contained in the blogs than those who use blogs for leisure activities, and

(b) individual motivations for blog trust appear to be different from those for other types of

media trust.

Our major findings concern how blogs are used by young adults. The idea that individuals

who use blogs specifically for information-seeking purposes are more likely to trust them is

intriguing for a number of reasons. First, overall users of blogs do not necessarily trust blogs.

Thus, blog use is not a predictor of blog trust. The motivation or intention of the blog user,

however, does appear to be a predictor of blog trust.

The respondents within this survey are young adults, and they may hear (or read) more

about blogs than the general population does. Blogs are often seen as antimainstream or

alternative media. Given younger adults avoidance of traditional news media (Mindich, 2005;

Pew Research Center, 2010), blogs may be considered informational by these users because

they dont consume traditional news media. This idea is supported by our findings that interest

in current events has an inverse relationship with blog trust. More specifically, those individuals

interested in current events in this study did not demonstrate trust in blog content. These users

may well be looking for types of information other than public affairs or traditional news

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


content, or they may conceptualize news and information differently. This line of research

should be fruitful for future scholarship.

Second, these findings may result because many blogs are, in fact, well researched and well

thought-out. Previous research on bloggers has found that more than 35% attempt to verify

information before posting it and that roughly the same number include the location of the

original information within their post (Pew Research Center, 2006). For example, the most

popular blogs are authored by individuals who consider their blog posts to be a job, not just

a hobby. Among the Top 10 blogs listed in Technorati are The Huffington Post, Engadget,

and Lifehackerall of which are commercial, for-profit entities.6 To be fair, a content analysis

would have to be conducted to empirically test this idea, which is speculative on our part.

Our results also indicate that respondents view blogs differently than other news media,

which supports some prior findings from De Ziga et al. (2009). Traditional predictors, such

as current events interest and media reflection, did not have the same impact on blog trust as

on media trust, suggesting that despite the exponential growth of blogs in recent years, young

adults may not evaluate blogs in the same way as they do newspapers, television news, or online

news sites, despite the fact that the blogs may be owned by some of the same organizations.

Conversely, the negative association between interest in current events and blog trust may

indicate that respondents arent going to use blogs to learn about current events. Although

current events could include any type of timely information, these respondents may link that

concept with, for example, primarily political information. Thus, it could be that respondents

who reflect on media are actually connecting their blog usage with consumption of soft news

(e.g., celebrity news and television), whereas traditional hard news and current event seekers

may not be the ones using blogs on a regular basis. Future research may want to examine this

idea further, as this study did not attempt to differentiate blog content in that way.

It was somewhat of a surprise to find no significant difference in time spent between the

blog users and the nonblog users. One possible explanation is that as undergraduate students

involved in a study, our participants simply had a low level of interest in the subjects of the

blog posts. The question remains as to whether blog users make conclusions related to trust

based on a blogs appearance or design, or whether their trust decision is based purely on the

content. What is certain, however, is that as increasing numbers of people create blogs and

other online information sources in an expanding network of noncommercial peer production

(Benkler, 2006), researchers should address questions about which factors contribute to users

trust in these sources. Future scholarship is undoubtedly needed to flesh out this idea.

Finally, it is noteworthy that the results for media reflection were inconsistent between the

two studies. Reflection and integration of ideas have often been examined by asking respondents

how often they incorporate media content into their deliberation about ideas and societal issues

(see, e.g., McLeod et al., 1999). In this case, media reflection was found to predict blog trust

but not media trust in Study 1; however, the findings were reversed in Study 2. Because

blogs of all types grew exponentially between 2005 and 2007, it seems likely that more

reflectionand perhaps skepticism toward their contentoccurred among those who were

early adopters of blog content. Thus, when blogs became mainstream, early adopters began to

lose faith in their usefulness as an informational tool. This could also coincide with the grown

6Information obtained from http://technorati.com/pop/blogs/ on March 30, 2009.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


of social media, such as Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter, but this study did not address that

connection.

Limitations and Future Directions

A few caveats are necessary for discussion. This study examined three blog entries. We did

not measure subject interest in the topics. Future research may want to examine how varying

designs and topics may change motivations or trust in blog content. Second, the generic design

of the blog may have influenced trust. Experienced blog users may have recognized the blog

post design as being rather generic and therefore deemed it less trustworthy. Although we found

no significant differences between the blog posts in Study 2, it may be that the different writing

styles were more influential than accounted for here. We employed different measures to capture

blog trust and media trust, which could, in part, account for some of the differences in the

empirical findings. However, we feel our measures more accurately reflect individual attitudes

about those constructs. Finally, we used an undergraduate student sample within this study, so

generalizing the results to the general population should be done with caution, although we

point out that those younger than 30 are still the most prevalent blog authors, so we believe

our sample is appropriate.7

Overall, this study provided new insight into how blogs are being perceived by media con-

sumers. Both scholars and practitioners can use our findings to rethink how they develop online

informational content based on their varying audiences. Blogs clearly have unique influence

over consumers from other informational and recreational media, which opens up a new line of

research. Finally, our study extended work in media gratifications scholarship, reinforcing the

idea that younger readers use and consume media differently than other demographic segments.

REFERENCES

Armstrong, C. L., & McAdams, M. J. (2009). Blogs of information: How gender cues and individual motivations

influence perceptions of credibility. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 14, 435456.

Armstrong, C. L., & McAdams, M. J. (2010). Believing blogs: Does a bloggers gender influence credibility? In R. A.

Lind (Ed.), Race/gender/media: Considering diversity across audiences, content, and producers (2nd ed., pp. 3038).

Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Armstrong, C. L., & Nelson, M. R. (2005). How newspaper sources trigger gender stereotypes. Journalism & Mass

Communication Quarterly, 82, 820837.

Bantz, C. R. (1982). Exploring uses and gratifications: A comparison of reported uses of television and reported uses

of favorite program type. Communication Research, 9, 352379.

Benkler, Y. (2006). The wealth of networks. Retrieved February 9, 2010, from http://www.benkler.org/Benkler_Wealth_

Of_Networks.pdf

Cho, J., Shah, D. V., McLeod, J. M., McLeod, D. M., Scholl, R. M., & Gotlieb, M. R. (2009). Campaigns, reflection,

and deliberation: Advancing an O-S-R-O-R model of communication effects. Communication Theory, 19, 6688.

Cook, T. E., & Gronke, P. (2001, April). The dimensions of institutional trust: How distinct is public confidence in

the media? Paper presented at the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, IL.

Cooper, S. D. (2006). Watching the watchdogs: Bloggers as the fifth estate. Spokane, WA: Marquette.

7A recent study of Americans in Grades 7 through 12 showed that 49% had read blogs and 28% had written a

blog (Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts, 2010).

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


De Ziga, H. G., Puig-I-Abril, E., & Rojas, E. (2009). Weblogs, traditional sources online and political participation:

An assessment of how the internet is changing the political environment. New Media & Society, 11, 553574.

Diddi, A., & LaRose, R. (2006). Getting hooked on news: Uses and gratifications and the formation of news habits

among college students in an internet environment. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 50, 193210.

Ferguson, D., & Perse, E. M. (2000). The World Wide Web as a functional alternative to television. Journal of

Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 44, 155174.

Gillmor, D. (2004). We the media: Grassroots journalism by the people, for the people. Sebastopol, CA: OReilly

Media.

Glocer, T. (2006). Trust in the age of citizen journalism. Retrieved March 22, 2007, from http://tomglocer.com/blogs/

sample_weblog/archive/2006/12/12/142.aspx

Gunther, A. C. (1992). Biased press or biased public? Attitudes toward media coverage of social groups. Public

Opinion Quarterly, 56, 147167.

Johnson, P. (2003). Trust in media keeps on slipping. USA Today. Available from http://www.usatoday.com/life/2003-

05-27-media-trust_x.htm

Johnson, T. J., & Kaye, B. K. (2003, August). The World Wide Web of sports: A path model examining how online

gratifications and reliance predict credibility of online sports information. Paper presented at the National Conference

for Association for Educators in Journalism and Mass Communication, Kansas City, MO.

Johnson, T. J., & Kaye, B. K. (2004a). For whom the web tolls: How internet experience predicts web reliance and

credibility. Atlantic Journal of Communication, 12, 1945.

Johnson, T. J., & Kaye, B. K. (2004b). Wag the blog: How reliance on traditional media and the internet influence

credibility perceptions of weblogs among blog users. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 81, 622

642.

Johnson, T. J., Kaye, B. K., Bichard, S. L., & Wong, W. J. (2008). Every blog has its day: Politically-interested Internet

users perceptions of blog credibility. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 13(1), 100122.

Jones, D. A. (2004). Why Americans dont trust the media. Press/Politics, 9(2), 6075.

Katz, E., Blumler, J., & Gurevitch, M. (1974). Uses and gratifications research. Public Opinion Quarterly, 37, 504523.

Katz, E., & Lazarsfeld, P. F. (1955). Personal influence. New York: Free Press.

Kaye, B. K. (2005). Its a blog, blog, blog, blog world. Atlantic Journal of Communication, 13, 7395.

Kaye, B. K., & Johnson, T. J. (2004). A web for all reasons: Uses and gratifications of internet resources for political

information. Telematics and Informatics, 21, 197223.

Kellerman, K., & Reynolds, R. (1990). When ignorance is bliss: The role of motivation to reduce uncertainty in

uncertainty reduction theory. Human Communication Research, 17(1), 575.

Kenix, L. J. (2009). Blogs as alternative. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 14, 790822.

Kohring, M., & Matthes, J. (2007). Trust in news media: Development and validation of a multidimensional scale.

Communication Research, 34, 231252.

Lenhart, A., & Fox, S. (2006). Bloggers. A portrait of the Internets new storytellers. Pew Internet & American Life

Project. Retrieved March 29, 2008, from http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP%20Bloggers%20Report%20July%

2019%202006.pdf

McLeod, J. M., Zubric, J., Keum, H., Deshpande, S., Cho, J., Stein, S. E., et al. (2001). Reflecting and connecting:

Testing a communication mediation model of civic participation. Paper Submitted to the Association for Education

in Journalism and Mass Communication Annual Meeting, August.

McQuail, D., Blumler, J., & Brown, J. R. (1972). The television audience: A revised perspective. In D. McQuail (Ed.),

Sociology of mass communication (pp. 135165). Middlesex, England: Penguin.

Mindich, D. (2005). Tuned out: Why Americans under 40 dont follow the news. New York: Oxford University Press.

MORI Research Inc. (1985).Newspaper credibility: Building reader trust. Reston, VA: American Society of Newspaper

Editors.

Papacharissi, Z., & Rubin, A. M. (2000). Predictors of internet use. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 44,

175196.

Pew Research Center. (2006). Bloggers: A portrait of the internets new storytellers. Pew Internet & American Life

Project. Retrieved March 15, 2007, from http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP%20Bloggers%20Report%20July%

2019%202006.pdf

Pew Research Center. (2008). Audience segments in a changing news environment: Key news audiences now blend

online and traditional sources. Pew Research Center Biennial News Consumption Survey. Retrieved March 30, 2009,

from http://people-press.org/report/444/news-media

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


Pew Research Center. (2010, February). Millennials: A portrait of generation next. Retrieved May 3, 2010, from

http://pewsocialtrends.org/assets/pdf/millennials-confident-connected-open-to-change.pdf

Rainie, L. (2005, January). The state of blogging [Data memo]. RetrievedMarch 15, 2006, from http://www.pewinternet.

org/pdfs/PIP_blogging_data.pdf

Rains, S. A. (2007). Perceptions of traditional information sources and the use of the World Wide Web to seek health

information: Findings from the Health Information National Trends Survey. Journal of Health Communication, 12,

667680.

Rideout, V. J., Foehr, U. G., & Roberts, D. F. (2010).Generation m2: Media in the lives of 8- to 18-year-olds.Retrieved

January 29, 2010, from http://www.kff.org/entmedia/mh012010pkg.cfm

Rosengren, K. E., Philip, P., & Wenner, L. (1985). Media gratifications research: Current perspectives. Beverly Hills,

CA: Sage.

Rubin, A. M. (1983). Television uses and gratifications: The interactions of viewing patterns and motivations. Journal

of Broadcasting, 27(1), 3751.

Rubin, A. M., & Perse, E. M. (1987a). Audience activity and soap opera involvement: A uses and effects investigation.

Human Communication Research, 14, 246268.

Rubin, A. M., & Perse, E. M. (1987b). Audience activity and television news gratifications. Communication Research,

14(1), 5884.

Sweetser, K. D., Porter, L. V., Chung, D. S., & Kim, E. (2008). Credibility and the use of blogs among professionals

in the communication industry. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 85(1), 169185.

Tsfati, Y., & Cappella, J. N. (2005). Why do people watch news they do not trust? The need for cognition as a

moderator in the association between news media skepticism and exposure. Media Psychology, 7, 251271.

Vincent, R. C., & Basil, M. D. (1997). College students news gratifications, media use and current events knowledge.

Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 41, 380392.

Winer, D. (2003). What makes a weblog a weblog? Retrieved January 16, 2010, from http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/

whatmakesaweblogaweblog.html

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


APPENDIX

Screen Capture of a Version of the Study 1 Blog Post

Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013


Dow

nloa

ded

by [1

77.20

7.102

.114]

at 06

:08 29

Septe

mber

2013

blog adults motivations

Documents