Exploring the antecedents of mobile social media subscribers’ unfollowing intention during natural disasters

Mobile social media subscribers’ unfollowing rate has remained high during natural disasters in recent years, which poses a challenge to the crisis communication during natural disasters. This manuscript uses the stressor–strain–outcome framework and media dependency theory to examine the prerequisites of mobile social media subscribers’ unfollowing intention during natural disasters. It considers the negative information-related features of mobile social media. The analysis employs data gathered from 761 mobile social media subscribers in China and reveals that dissatisfaction, fatigue, and social media dependency positively affect mobile social media subscribers’ unfollowing intention during natural disasters. The results reported in this manuscript enrich the existing literature on crisis communication and offer practical recommendations to mobile social media managers to avoid mass subscribers losses while sustaining existing subscriber base during natural disasters.