Researchers develop new framework for understanding how emotions shape behavior online
Every day, billions of people scroll through social media posts, online reviews and news feeds filled with emotional content—from glowing five-star reviews to rage-inducing social media rants. Those emotions can quietly shape what people buy, what they believe and how they act.
A new framework for understanding how emotions influence online behavior has been developed by researchers at the University of South Florida. Published in MIS Quarterly, the paper introduces the Tripartite Reactions to Emotions (TRE) Theory, which explains how emotional content in online posts and reviews can trigger three distinct psychological responses in readers.
These reactions can occur simultaneously and often lead to conflicting behaviors. Dezhi Yin, the lead author and a professor at the University of South Florida Muma College of Business, explains that the theory helps researchers, platform designers, marketers, and policymakers anticipate, measure, and manage the effects of emotional content online.
One surprising insight from the TRE Theory is that an emotional post or review can simultaneously push people towards and away from a product or brand. For instance, an angry review might cause readers to distrust the reviewer and discount the review, while still negatively impacting their perception of the product being reviewed.
The TRE Framework allows for a better understanding of how these different reactions interact, providing a clearer picture of why the same piece of emotional content can have multiple effects on those who encounter it. The co-authors of the paper include Samuel Bond from Georgia Institute of Technology and Han Zhang from Hong Kong Baptist University.
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