Associations Between TCM Short-Form Video Exposure and Health Maintenance Behaviors: The Mediating Roles of Outcome Expectations and Cultural Confidence
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61360/BoniGHSS262020080303Keywords:
traditional Chinese medicine, short-form videos, social media exposure, young adultsAbstract
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has gained increasing prominence in China as a component of health literacy and self-care practices. However, how TCM-related information on social media is associated with individuals’ perceptions and behavioral tendencies remains underexplored. Drawing on cultural confidence and outcome expectations, this study examines how exposure to TCM short-form videos is associated with young Chinese adults’ (aged 18-34) willingness to adopt health maintenance behaviors. Results indicate that exposure to TCM short-form videos is positively associated with cultural confidence, outcome expectations, and willingness to adopt health maintenance behaviors. Outcome expectations significantly mediated this association. In addition, a significant serial mediation pathway was observed. These findings highlight the role of short-form video exposure in shaping health-related perceptions and behavioral tendencies, with practical implications for promoting TCM-related health practices among young Chinese adults.
References
Chen, Z., Hassan, A. B., & Ghazali, S. S. (2024). The Role of Community Education in China in the Transmission of Traditional Culture: A Systematic Literature Review. Int. J. Acad. Res. Bus. Soc. Sci, 14, 1-15.
Dalmer, N. K. (2017). Questioning reliability assessments of health information on social media. Journal of the Medical Library Association: JMLA, 105(1), 61.
Deng, Z., & Liu, S. (2017). Understanding consumer health information-seeking behavior from the perspective of the risk perception attitude framework and social support in mobile social media websites. International Journal of Medical Informatics, 105, 98–109.
Jaakkola, T., Yli-Piipari, S., Huotari, P., Watt, A., & Liukkonen, J. (2016). Fundamental movement skills and physical fitness as predictors of physical activity: A 6-year follow-up study. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 26(1), 74–81.
Kirkpatrick, C. E., & Lawrie, L. L. (2024). Can videos on TikTok improve pap smear attitudes and intentions? Effects of source and autonomy support in short-form health videos. Health Communication, 39(10), 2066-2078.
Lor, M., & Gao, C. (2020). Hmong and Chinese Qualitative Research Interview Questions: Assumptions and Implications of Applying the Survey. The essential role of language in survey research, 181.
Lu, M., Duan, T., Zou, Q., Xu, J., & Pang, F. (2025). Parental beliefs, parental support, and physical activity in children with autism spectrum disorder: A network analysis. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 1–14.
Nasiru, M. A., & Md Dahlan, N. H. (2020). Exploratory factor analysis in establishing dimensions of intervention programmes among obstetric vesicovaginal fistula victims in Northern Nigeria. Journal of Critical Reviews, 7(8), 1554–1560.
Niu, Z., Willoughby, J., & Zhou, R. (2021). Associations of health literacy, social media use, and self-efficacy with health information-seeking intentions among social media users in China: Cross-sectional survey. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 23(2), e19134.
Oh, J., Zhuo, S., & Jin, E. (2023). Surprise of serious COVID-19 vaccination messages on TikTok: The effect of expectancy violation on message effectiveness. Science Communication, 45(5), 596–626.
Pu, J., Mei, H., Lei, L., Li, D., Zhao, J., Li, B., Wang, H., Ma, Y., & Du, X. B. (2021). Knowledge of medical professionals, their practices, and their attitudes toward traditional Chinese medicine for the prevention and treatment of coronavirus disease 2019: A survey in Sichuan, China. PLOS ONE, 16(3), e0234855.
Radević, I., Dimovski, V., Lojpur, A., & Colnar, S. (2023). Quality of healthcare services in focus: The role of knowledge transfer, hierarchical organizational structure, and trust. Knowledge Management Research & Practice, 21(3), 525–536.
Raquepo, T. M., Sadeghi, S., Truong, T., & Rao, B. (2023). 44382 The Rise of Traditional Chinese Medicine Promoted by Social Media in Western Dermatology. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 89(3), AB237.
Richaud, M. C., Mesurado, B., & Lemos, V. (2013). Links between perception of parental actions and prosocial behavior in early adolescence. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 22(5), 637-646.
Russo, A. (2011). Transformations in cultural communication: Social media, cultural exchange, and creative connections. Curator: The Museum Journal, 54(3), 327–346.
Wang, D., Lu, J., Zhou, J., & Wong, V. K. W. (2024). Useful or not? The discussion of traditional Chinese medicine to treat COVID-19 on a Chinese social networking site. BMJ Global Health, 9(6).
Wang, X., Chen, J., Feng, M., Zhuang, M., Wang, J., Zhang, L., ... & Chen, H. (2023). Demand and influencing factors of “Internet+ Traditional Chinese Medicine” home nursing service for older adult patients with chronic diseases: a mixed research perspective. Frontiers in public health, 11, 1271082.
Yao, L., Li, Y., Lian, Q., Sun, J., Zhao, S., & Wang, P. (2022). Health information sharing on social media: quality assessment of short videos about chronic kidney disease. BMC nephrology, 23(1), 378.
ZCX. (2023). Promoting the protection, inheritance and innovation of traditional Chinese medicine. http://www.legaldaily.com.cn/index/content/2023-11/14/content_8926931.html
Zeballos Rivas, D. R., Lopez Jaldin, M. L., Nina Canaviri, B., Portugal Escalante, L. F., Alanes Fernández, A. M., & Aguilar Ticona, J. P. (2021). Social media exposure, risk perception, preventive behaviors and attitudes during the COVID-19 epidemic in La Paz, Bolivia: A cross-sectional study. PLOS ONE, 16(1), e0245859.
Zhou, F. (2023). Traditional Knowledge, science and China's pride: how a TCM social media account legitimizes TCM treatment of Covid-19. Social Semiotics, 33(4), 697-713.
Zhu, T., Wu, Q., & Guenier, A. (2025). Transcultural dissemination of Traditional Chinese Medicine through tourism: Pathways, challenges, and innovations. New Techno-Humanities.
Younger, J., Gandhi, V., Hubbard, E., & Mackey, S. (2012). Development of the Stanford Expectations of Treatment Scale (SETS): A tool for measuring patient outcome expectancy in clinical trials. Clinical Trials, 9(6), 767–776.
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Zixin Zhang, DONGHWA CHUNG, Yanfang Meng, Jiaqi Wang, Hua Ran

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.


