Research seminar by Dr. Mahdi Abouei

Title: The Impact of Emotional Expressions on the Popularity of Discussion Threads: Evidence from Reddit

Description:

Purpose – Users contribute to online communities by posting and responding to discussion threads. Nonetheless, only a small fraction of these threads gain popularity and guide the flow of the community discourse. Prior studies have revealed the importance of several factors in driving thread popularity; yet, despite the prevalence of emotional expressions, the role of emotional content within discussion threads remains understudied. This study addresses this gap by investigating the impact of thread starters’ valence and embedded discrete emotions of anger, anxiety, and sadness on thread popularity, drawing on the negativity bias and emotion as social information theories.
Design/methodology/approach – Using two samples from Reddit, including 367 threads related to COVID-19 vaccination and 472 threads from r/Medicine, this study employs negative binomial regression analysis to examine the hypothesized relationships.
Findings – The results demonstrate that while negativity is a significant predictor of thread popularity, the expression of discrete negative emotions in the thread starter influences popularity in various ways. While anger decreases, anxiety and sadness enhance thread popularity when expressed in the COVID-19 vaccination subreddits. However, in the r/Medicine sample, whereas anger and anxiety increase thread popularity, sadness does not influence popularity.
Originality/value – This study contributes to theory by offering a new definition of thread popularity and enhancing our understanding of the impact of emotional expressions in online discussions. It also offers practical implications for online community members and moderators seeking to publish and promote discussion posts that help achieve community goals.

Bio: Mahdi joined Toronto Metropolitan University as a Limited-Term Assistant Professor of Information Technology Management at Ted Rogers School of Management. He received his PhD in Business Administration (Information Systems) from DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University, where he defended his PhD thesis on “Data Science Professionals’ Innovation with Big Data Analytics Technologies.” He also has a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering.
Mahdi’s primary research focuses on using and implementing big data analytics and artificial intelligence in organizations and broader society. He further researched user behavior in online communities. Mahdi also has work experience as a postdoctoral fellow at McMaster's Digital Transformation Centre and a Business Intelligence project manager at a management consulting company.