Conceptualizing the Assimilation and Risk of Online Social Media in Saudi Arabia: An Empirical Study

This chapter examines the assimilation and risk of online social media (OSM) in Saudi Arabia. It seeks to identify the nomological set of antecedents that can explain the variation in the assimilation of OSM and the impact of OSM on the Saudi community. Using the diffusion of innovation theory, the institutional theory, and qualitative data of six case studies (experts of social, media, and regulatory institutions), this chapter proposes a theoretical framework that can be used to explain the factors that could influence the assimilation of OSM and its impact on the Saudi community. A series of theoretical propositions are proposed. The results indicate that several individual, technological, and institutional factors were identified as antecedents for the successful assimilation of OSM. They include personal innovativeness, risk appetite, relative advantages, compatibility, complexity, perceived uncertainty, normative pressure, coercive pressure, and mimetic pressure. The results also show that the assimilation of OSM is likely to be associated with risks, including impact on personality attributes, depression level, productivity level, social values, family structure, public transparency, and religious information.