Tweets We Like Aren’t Alike: Time of Day Affects Engagement with Vice and Virtue Tweets[Specious Reward: A Behavioral Theory of Impulsiveness and Impulse Control]

Consumers are increasingly engaging with content on social media platforms, such as by “following” Twitter accounts and “liking” tweets. How does their engagement change through the day for vice content offering immediate gratification versus virtue content offering long-term knowledge benefits? Examining when (morning vs. evening) engagement happens with which content (vice vs. virtue), the current research reveals a time-of-day asymmetry. As morning turns to evening, engagement shifts away from virtue and toward vice content. This asymmetry is documented in three studies using actual Twitter data—millions of data points collected every 30 minutes over long periods of time—and one study using an experimental setting. Consistent with a process of self-control failure, one of the Twitter data studies shows a theory-driven moderation of the asymmetry, and the experiment shows mediation via self-control. However, multiple processes are likely at play, as time does not unfold in isolation during a day, but co-occurs with the unfolding of multiple events. These results provide new insights into social media engagement and guide practitioners on when to post which content.