Personality as a predictor of Business Social Media Usage: an Empirical Investigation of Xing Usage Patterns

Referring to recent research calls regarding the role of individual differences on technology adoption and use, this paper reports on an empirical investigation of the influence of a user’s personality on the usage of the European career-oriented social network XING and its usage intensity (n = 760). Using structural equation modeling, a significant influence of personality on the intensity of XING usage was found (R2 = 12.4%,α = 0.758). More specifically, results indicated the major role played by the personality traits Extraversion, Emotional Stability and Openness to Experience as proper predictors for XING usage. Contrary to prior research on private-oriented social media, I discovered a significant positive Emotional Stability–XING usage intensity relationship instead of a negative relationship which is explained by Goffman’s Self Presentation Theory.