题　目：Immersion in Online Interaction Rituals: The Paradoxical Role of Time-Synchronized Comments on Video Platforms

嘉　宾：LIM KAI HIN，Professor，The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

主持人：张宏哲，助理教授，上海交通大学安泰经济与管理学院

时　间：2026年10月14日（周三）10:00-11:30

地　点：上海交通大学安泰经济与管理学院包兆龙图书馆A511

内容简介:

Many video platforms promote time-synchronized comments (TSCs), comments overlaid on videos in sync with specific timestamps, to facilitate social interaction and enhance video engagement. Yet TSCs can both enrich viewing experiences and distract viewers, thereby reducing engagement. Because TSCs appear as continuous overlaid streams that offer viewers little control over pacing or selection, their structural features may shape interaction in opposing ways. Drawing on interaction ritual theory, we identify two such features, comment density and word density, and examine their effects on video engagement, together with the moderating roles of content characteristics of both TSCs and videos. We test our framework through a field study using panel data from a leading TSC-enabled platform and a psychophysiological experiment that captures viewers’ real-time attentional, emotional, and behavioral responses. The results show that higher comment density strengthens perceived assembly, mutual focus of attention, and emotional entrainment, thereby increasing engagement. By contrast, greater word density disrupts mutual focus and emotional entrainment, thereby reducing engagement. Emotional entrainment emerges as the central mechanism. We also find that these effects vary with TSC emotional polarization and video genre. In addition, we test a reduced visual overlay design that mitigates the negative effects of TSCs. By clarifying how, when, and why TSCs enhance or disrupt engagement, this study extends understanding of micro-level social interaction in mediated contexts and offers guidance for improving TSC-enabled video experiences.

演讲人简介：

Kai H. Lim (林开) is Yeung Kin Man Chair Professor of Information Technology Innovation and Management, Faculty of Business, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU). He served as a Senior Editor of MIS Quarterly (2011-2016) and was on the editorial boards of ISR(2009-2011) , MISQ (2002-2005), and JAIS (2002-2011). His research has appeared in top journals such as MIS Quarterly, ISR, JMIS, and JAIS. Prior to joining PolyU, he was on the faculty of City University of Hong Kong (CityU), Case Western Reserve University, and the University of Hawaii. His research interests include e-Health, cross-cultural issues related to information systems management, digital transformation, IT-enabled business strategy, e-commerce, social media, and human-computer interactions. He has won numerous teaching and research awards, including the 2002/03 CityU’s University-Wide Teaching Excellence Award and 2020/21 CityU’s University-Wide Outstanding Research Award (2017). Kai is also an Honorary Professor of Fudan University, China and a Fellow of the Association for Information Systems (AIS Fellow).

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