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Although a large volume of research on social networking sites (SNS) and their effects has been accumulated in the literature over the past few years, empirical studies examining how people use SNS in languages other than English are somewhat limited. Particularly, the use of Spanish SNS has rarely been investigated. To shed light on this research direction, the current study compared the effects of using Spanish and English SNS on individuals' cultural orientations and attitude formation. A total of 113 adult consumers participated in a laboratory experiment where they were asked to evaluate either of two experimental websites, one with Hispanic cultural connotations and the other with American cultural meanings. Their SNS usage and cultural orientations were measured. It was found that more frequent usage of Spanish SNS was significantly associated with a higher level of Hispanic cultural orientation and a more favorable attitude toward the website with American cultural meanings. However, the use of English SNS did not significantly influence people's American cultural orientations and their website evaluations. Usage of both Spanish and English SNS was found to be motivated by individuals' social play dependency on such media platforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dominating the media landscape today, social media are cultural institutions that influence users’ cultural orientation. This study focused on how using social media might strengthen or weaken people’s tendency toward certain cultural value systems. Specifically, how English and Spanish social media usage affected Hispanic users’ acculturation into the American culture was examined. Through a survey of 996 self-identified Hispanic respondents in the U.S., it was found that English social media usage helped them develop strong orientation toward the mainstream American culture, while Spanish social media consumption reinforced their ethnic Hispanic cultural identification. This study further examined whether Hispanics with various demographic characteristics used social media differently and acculturated into the American society to different degrees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]