How do User Commitment and Lean Usage Promote Rich Usage in Social Virtual Worlds: Differential and Quadratic Relationships

Social virtual world (SVW) platforms face a critical challenge to retain a sound base of active users, which is key to their success and requires a deep understanding of how much (lean usage) and how exactly (rich usage) users' usage behaviours occur in these platforms. While both lean and rich usage are pivotal considerations in the SVW context, prior research has primarily assumed an omnibus conceptualisation of SVW usage that does not differentiate subtypes of usage. This results in limited knowledge about the sophisticated relationships and differences between lean and rich usage, making it difficult to reconcile inconclusive findings regarding how SVW usage is affected by its antecedents (e.g., commitment). In this paper, we draw upon the tripartite view of system usage to substantiate lean and rich usage constructs in the SVW context. Then, based upon the sociotechnical perspective (particularly the concepts of multifinality and equifinality) and the literature on SVW usage, we develop a research model to investigate the curvilinear relationships between lean usage (manifested in the extent and breadth of usage) and rich usage (represented by task variety and cognitive absorption), and the differential effects of two commitment components (affective and calculative commitment) on rich versus lean usage in the SVW context. Using two-wave field survey data from 312 users of Second Life (a pioneering SVW platform), we find sophisticated (linear/quadratic) relationships between lean and rich usage constructs: the extent of usage triggers the breadth of usage and task variety, and has a convex (U-shaped) relationship with cognitive absorption; the breadth of usage is positively related to cognitive absorption and has a concave (inverted J-shaped) relationship with task variety. Furthermore, we confirm that affective commitment positively affects both lean and rich usage, whereas calculative commitment directly triggers only lean usage (the breadth of usage) but not rich usage. These findings have important theoretical implications for the research on SVW usage and commitment and provide useful insights for SVW practitioners to promote users' prolonged and active usage behaviours.