uses and gratifications of linkedin

An Exploratory Study of the Uses and

Gratifications of the LinkedIn Social

Networking Site

Presented by: James Kinneer

•Problem Statement

•Summary of Literature

•Methods

•Data Analysis

•Discussion



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Problem Statement

The goal of this project was to identify the uses and

gratifications of the social network site LinkedIn.com



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•Methods

•Data Analysis

•Discussion



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Summary of Literature

•Online social networks are among the most commonly used

Internet sites.

•LinkedIn is a social networking site with a business

orientation and grown to 47 million users in 200 countries.

•Online social network can solidify strong ties and expand

weak tie relationships.

•Previous research suggests networks used primarily to

maintain current relationships.

•Key uses and gratifications of online social networks include

social, content and process dimensions.



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•Methods

•Data Analysis

•Discussion



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Methods

•Online survey with four major sections.

•Section 1 – Informed consent

•Section 2 - LinkedIn Usage

•Section 3 - Open Text Entry Uses and Gratifications Questions

•Section 4 – Demographics

•Invitation posted on LinkedIn discussion groups

• Conducted the last two weeks of November, 2009



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Sample

•47 responses

•55% male, 45% female

•82% Caucasian

•61% above age 35



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•Methods

•Data Analysis

•Discussion



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Key Word/Comment Frequency Percentage

Making New Connections 16 37.21%

Marketing/Sales 6 13.95%

Maintaining/Renewing Connections 5 11.63%

Information 5 11.63%

Business Orientation 4 9.30%

Perpetual Contact 2 4.65%

Employment 2 4.65%

Usability 2 4.65%

Helping Others 1 2.33%

Table 1 – Frequency of Mentions (Question 2.1)

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think about

what you enjoy most about using LinkedIn?



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Information. 15 28.41%



Groups 6 11.76%

Usability 3 5.88%

Discussions 3 5.88%

Business Orientation 3 5.88%

Visible Network 2 5.88%




What other words describe what you enjoy most about interacting with

the LinkedIn site?



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Information 14 23.33%


Expertise Sharing 3 5.00%


Employment 3 5.00%

Online Presence 2 3.33%

Discussions 1 1.67%

Communication 1 1.67%


Using simple, easy-to-understand terms, what do you use LinkedIn for?



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Groups 16 25.81%

Applications 9 14.52%

Answers 9 14.52%


Jobs 7 11.29%

Search 6 9.68%


Marketing/Sales

.

1 1.61%


What online activities and LinkedIn applications are most important to you?



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•Methods

•Data Analysis

•Discussion



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Discussion

•Making new contacts cited more often than maintaining

existing contacts – in contrast to studies of other social

networks (Joinson, 2008)

•Information sharing identified as a key gratification of using

LinkedIn

•Identified gratifications align with social, content and

process categories suggested by Stafford, Stafford &

Schkade (2004)



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Further Research

•Develop a quantitative survey instrument to measure the

importance of each identified use/gratification



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Questions?

uses and gratifications of linkedin

Education