Social media metrics: Third-person perceptions of health information

• Thesis—social media metrics (SMM) alter perceptions of online health content.
• SMM: number of shares, comments.
• Low levels of SMM are perceived to have greater impact on others than on the self.
• High levels of SMM lead to diminished self-other discrepancies.
• SMM ultimately alter behaviors resulting from online health news exposure.

The present study investigated the role of social media metrics (i.e., number of shares and comments) displayed alongside online news stories in shaping users’ perceptions of the content and its influence. In a web-based experiment (N = 144), participants first read a cancer news story that displayed either a high or a low level of social media metrics, then reported their perceived story influence on the self and others, as well as their behavioral intentions. In the low social media metrics condition, the general story influence was perceived to be stronger for others than for the self, indicative of the “third-person effect.” This effect, however, was diminished to insignificant levels in the high social media metrics condition. Further, social media metrics had an ultimate indirect effect on behavioral intentions via the third-person effect. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are provided in the end.