You see a great viral video online and you share it with friends and colleagues. Many of us do it every day without a second thought as to why certain content triggers the ‘share’ impulse in our brains. As creators of content its handy to know what the science is behind a great viral video.
At the University of Pennsylvania, Prof Jonah Berger argues that ‘arousal’ is behind why people share certain stories or content online, ‘When people are physiologically aroused, due to emotional stimuli or otherwise, the automatic nervous is activated, which then boosts social transmission. Simply put, evoking certain emotions helps get a message shared.’
Anxiety, anger or amusement are ‘high arousal’ emotions whereas sadness or contentment are ‘low arousal’. Experiments with groups of students showed students who felt high arousal emotions after watching video content were much more likely to share it with others.
Berger argues that the implications of his study are quite broad, ‘People’s behavior is heavily influenced by what others say and do. Whether you are a company trying to get people to talk more about your brand, or a public health organization trying to get people to spread your healthy eating message, these results provide insight into how to design more effective messages and communication strategies.’
See the full article in the Journal of Psychological Science here: http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/news/releases/why-do-we-share-our-feelings-with-others.html
Sharing video - what the shrink thinks
26th August 2011 - 12:21pm by ST16
Posted in Youtube, Online Video, Social Media, Viral
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