Explaining perceived interactivity effects on attitudinal responses A field experiment on the impact of external and internal communication features in digital magazines

In the context of digital magazines, this study investigates why higher levels of perceived interactivity improve consumers’ attitudinal responses, and which interactive features have the ability to elicit these stronger interactivity perceptions. To examine this, a field experiment was conducted in which participants (n = 197) used a digital magazine with either (a) external communication features (facilitating social interactions on external platforms, like Facebook), (b) internal communication features (facilitating social interactions within the digital magazine itself), or (c) no communication features. Results revealed that both feature types increased consumers’ interactivity perceptions, but that the effects of the internal communication features were the strongest. Subsequently, mediation analyses revealed that the higher levels of perceived interactivity elicited stronger feelings of flow and enjoyment through which the positive findings of perceived interactivity on consumers’ attitudinal responses can be explained.