The Effects of Quote Retweet on Subsequent Posting Behavior and Morality Expression on Social Media

Abstract

Guided by the Threshold model and Self-justification theory, we propose and test a research model regarding the impact of online discussion activity on users’ behaviors on social media. Specifically, we examine the effects of quote retweeting a tweet related to immigration policies and border issues on users’ subsequent posting behaviors and morality expression. In addition, we test the moderating effect of individual threshold level and behavior-opinion inconsistency on the main effect. Results indicate that individuals, who quote retweeted the selected-topic tweets, are likely to post more topic-related tweets and express more on morality. This impact can be strengthened when individuals have higher threshold levels or larger behavior-opinion inconsistency. These findings provide both theoretical and practical implications for social media governance.