디지털콘텐츠학회논문지 Journal of Digital Contents Society JDCS Vol. 20, No. 8, pp. 1543-1552, Aug. 2019 소셜 TV 시청 : 다른 TV 시청자에 대한 지각과 사회적 현존감의 효과 송 하 연1* · 김 지 현2 · 최 윤 정3 1가천대학교 글로벌경영학과 2Nicholson School of Communication and Media, University of Central Florida 3카이스트 문술미래전략대학원 Social TV Viewing : The Effect of Virtual Co-Viewers and the Role of Social Presence Hayeon Song1* · Jihyun Kim2 · Yunjung Choi3 1Department of Global Business, Gachon University, 1342 Seongnamdaero, Sujeong-gu, Korea 2Nicholson School of Communication and Media, University of Central Florida, USA 3KAIST Moon Soul Graduate School of Future Strategy [요 약] TV를 볼 때 다른 사람들과 소셜 미디어로 시청중인 TV 프로그램에 관해 이야기하는 행동이 늘어나고 있다. 소셜 TV 라고 하는 이 새로운 TV 시청 방법은 물리적으로는 같은 공간에 있지 않지만 소셜미디어라는 가상의 공간에서 함께 하며 사회적 커뮤니케이 션을 하는 것을 말한다. 본 연구의 목적은 어떻게 그리고 왜 사회적인 면의 소셜 TV 시청이 즐거움에 영향을 미치는가를 연구함에 있다. 330명의 소셜 TV 시청자의 설문조사를 바탕으로 소셜 TV 시청자가 다른 소셜 TV 시청자가 자신과 얼마나 비슷하다고 지각 하였는지에 따라 소셜 TV 시청이 사회적 현존감을 높이고 그에 따라 즐거움을 높인다는 결과를 찾을 수 있었다. [Abstract] Watching TV while communicating with other TV viewers via social media about the TV program is increasingly becoming popular. Called social TV viewing, this new TV viewing allows social interactions with virtual co-viewers, who are physically away but virtually together. The purpose of the study is to unfold how and why social aspects of social TV viewing affect enjoyment. Data were collected using an online survey from 330 social TV viewers. Primary findings suggest that social TV viewers’ perceived similarity (homophily) of virtual co-viewers positively affect a feeling of social presence, which in turn increases enjoyment. 색인어 : 동종선호, 소셜 TV, 사회적 현존감, 소셜 미디어, TV Keyword : Homophily, Social TV, Social presence, Social media, TV http://dx.doi.org/10.9728/dcs.2019.20.8.1543 Received 10 July 2019; Revised 01 August 2019 Accepted 26 August 2019 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-CommercialLicense(http://creativecommons *Corresponding Author; Hayeon Song .org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the Tel: +82-31-750-5228 original work is properly cited. E-mail: [email protected] Copyright ⓒ 2019 The Digital Contents Society 1543 http://www.dcs.or.kr pISSN: 1598-2009 eISSN: 2287-738X 디지털콘텐츠학회논문지(J. DCS) Vol. 20, No. 8, pp. 1543-1552, Aug. 2019 Ⅰ. Introduction application converging platforms that enable TV viewers to integrate TV viewing and social interactions[6]. In other Watching TV while communicating with other TV viewers research, social TV is defined as “socially connected TV"[7] via social media about the TV program is increasingly that uses a TV monitor as a first screen and smartphone or becoming popular. According to Ericsson Consumer Insight tablet as a second screen[6]. Social TV is also described with Summary Report[1], 62% of TV viewers of seven countries, focus on behavioral aspects such as viewing activities, rather including the United States, have used social media while than technological aspects of social TV devices or watching TV. Nielson[2] reported that an average of 14.2 applications. For example, research describes social TV as million interactions about a TV program occurred on social “sociable, computer-mediated group viewing experiences”[7] media in the U.S. in the fall of 2016. Interestingly, TV or a virtual couch for “watching together as if in the same viewers reported that they enjoy sharing their viewing room”[8]. Of these various approaches, the current study’s experiences with others on Twitter more than watching TV focus is on behavioral aspects rather than technological alone[3]. This phenomenon indicates that TV viewers engage aspects. Thus, the current investigation describes social TV as in active communication with other TV viewers connected a socially connected TV viewing practice with real-time online by communicating about the particular TV program back-channel conversations through social media[6] [9]. while watching it[4]. Generally speaking, this type of TV Twitter is dominantly used among social TV viewers to viewing practice is called social TV viewing. share their thoughts and opinions about a particular TV Inherently, social TV viewing involves interactions with program and learn about other viewers’ experiences. Wohn virtual co-viewers. Virtual co-viewers can be understood as and Na[10] analyzed Twitter messages about President Barack other social TV viewers, who watch the same TV program and Obama’s live speech and a reality show, So You Think You share their thoughts about it on social media. In this sense, Can Dance, which was televised nationwide in the United virtual co-viewers are physically away but virtually together. States in 2009. The study found that Twitter facilitated The social interaction with virtual co-viewers is an integral communal co-viewing experiences among viewers through part of social TV viewing, and it is one of the core conversations about the program. characteristics that differentiate this new TV viewing behavior Given that online social interaction is the focal feature of from the traditional one. social TV viewing that differentiates it from traditional TV Social TV viewing is fundamentally based on viewing, virtual co-viewers might affect overall viewing humans’ needs to belong and maintain meaningful experiences. In this investigation, virtual co-viewers refer to relationships with others[5]. Thus, social interaction with other social TV viewers, who watch the same TV program virtual co-viewers is a focal feature of social TV. This unique and share their thoughts about it on social media. Thus, nature of social TV viewing indicates that social aspects play virtual co-viewers are physically away but virtually together a crucial role in the understanding of social TV experiences. on social media. Although some information is available, more research is needed to better understand how social aspects of social TV experiences influence social TV enjoyment. In particular, it is 2-2 Homophily of Virtual Co-Viewers not clear “why” social perceptions about virtual co-viewers Virtual co-viewers’ community is potentially limitless matter in social TV enjoyment. In this regard, the current because social media audience, in essence, is limitless. For study addresses the unanswered question by focusing on social example, a majority of Twitter accounts are public and presence, which is one of the most important concepts for anyone can be part of the community. This nature allows mediated experiences. people to get to know each other in online community. Technically, reciprocity is not expected in conversations on Twitter. Some may be vocal, while others might be quiet. In Ⅱ. Social TV the absence of enough information about the community, people often take some cues from the social media 2-1 Social TV and Virtual Co-Viewers environment to imagine the community[11]. Marwick and Given that social TV viewing is a relatively new Boyd[12] use the term, networked audience, to explain the phenomenon, the concept has not been uniformly defined yet. nature of social media audience. They explain that “while the Some research describes social TV as a new technological http://dx.doi.org/10.9728/dcs.2019.20.8.1543 1544 Social TV Viewing : The Effect of Virtual Co-Viewers and the Role of Social Presence broadcast audience is a faceless mass, the networked audience While interacting with virtual co-viewers, social TV is unidentified but contains familiar faces; it is both viewers might experience a feeling of social presence. Social potentially public and personal. Like the broadcast audience, presence is one of the important concepts to the the networked audience includes random, unknown understanding of mediated-communication experiences (e.g. individuals, but, unlike the broadcast audience it has a [20-21]). Initially conceptualized by Short et al.[21] the notion presumption of personal authenticity and connection (p. 129).” is described as “the degree of salience of the other person in When imaging the community of virtual co-viewers, the interaction and the consequent salience of the homophily of the community would be one of the significant interpersonal relationships” (p. 65). Short et al.[21] influences on social TV viewing experiences. Homophily emphasized the quality and property of a medium as a way of refers to perceived similarity to others. Various types of increasing the degree of social presence. Their research found homophily have been studied such as status/background that face-to-face communi cation is the most effective way of homophily focusing on socio-demographic status (e.g., communication followed by video, audio, and text-based ethnicity, gender, age, etc.) and value/attitude homophily media. focusing on similar values, attitudes, and beliefs. Research has As technologies evolve, the concept of social presence has consistently indicated that humans tend to bond more with expanded its scope by highlighting media users’ subjective others that are similar to themselves than dissimilar ones. perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors[22-24]. Biocca et al. [24] Consequently, people’s interpersonal network tends to be identified social presence as an outcome of cognitive structured based on homogeneity of demographic, social, and stimulations and classified social presence into co-presence, individual characteristics[13]. psychological involvement, and behavioral engagement. The current body of literature does not provide concrete Co-presence is concerned with a feeling of being with evidence regarding the relationship between homophily and another. Focusing on sensory awareness of the embodied presence, although there some studies showing the possible other, co- presence is usually understood as “we are link; one study shows that homophily can affect socal together,” a feeling like being with someone.