Understanding online regret experience in Facebook use - Effects of brand participation, accessibility & problematic use

The past few years have witnessed the emergence of research examining online regret experience. The presence of online regret generates negative use experience and even leads to service switching and discontinuity. However, to date, only limited research has examined the conceptualization of this new yet very important phenomenon in the field of technology use. To address this research gap, the present study has examined the relative influence of SNS brand participation, technology accessibility attributes (including Facebook usage parameters) and problematic Facebook use in predicting regret experience regarding Facebook use. A pen-and-paper cross-sectional survey was administered to 804 adolescent Facebook users (aged 13-18 years). The study results suggest that adolescent users with varying technology accessibility did not differ in their online regret experience, but excessive Facebook users and those actively participating in brand communities tended to experience higher regret. Other findings suggest that two variables, namely parents' perceptions of problematic Facebook use and conflict with friends due to Facebook use, were significant predictors of online regret experience. This study presents different theoretical and practical implications for both research and practice.