Excessive Use of Social Networking Sites and Intention to Invest in Stock Market among Gen Z: A Parallel Mediation Model

Abstract

The use of social media sites is inevitable. It is one of the most influential means of communication nowadays, particularly among Generation Z, who are often referred to as digital natives. The objective of this study is to examine the influence of excessive use of social networking sites (SNS) on investment intention in the stock market among Generation Z. The study further investigates the parallel mediating roles of financial attitude and perceived behavioral control (PBC). A cross-sectional self-administered questionnaire was conducted among Gen Z in India and responses were analyzed using variance-based structural equation modeling in SmartPLS 4 software. Additionally, the predictive relevance of investment intention was found using PLSPredict. The results revealed that the excessive usage of social media positively influences the intention of this young generation to participate in the securities market. Further, the parallel mediation results establish the role of financial attitude and PBC between excessive use of SNS and investment intention. The predictive power of investment intention was reported to be high. These findings have significant practical implications for financial service providers, finance content creators on various social media platforms (influencers), and financial advisers.