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Purpose Social recruiting has gained momentum with the surge in social media use, particularly as Gen Z enters the job market. Our study aims to examine how Instagram use among Gen Z job seekers impacts their intention to apply to the company utilizing Instagram for recruiting. Design/methodology/approach We conducted a mixed-method study to investigate the dual mechanisms underlying attraction to organizations (affective route) as well as job and organization information (cognitive route) through a survey and semi-structured interviews. Findings We found that Gen Z job seekers are attracted to the organizations they recognize through Instagram, which ultimately positively affects their intention to apply. Specifically, qualitative research confirmed that well-curated Instagram feeds have a positive impact on individual's attitude toward a company. Research limitations/implications This study contributes to the understanding of Instagram as a recruitment tool by expanding the uses and gratifications theory to include its influence on decision-making processes and addressing gaps in research on Gen Z's perceptions of Instagram. However, this study is limited in that it focuses solely on Koreans, making it difficult to generalize the findings. Originality/value This study focused on how psychological attachment to Instagram influences Gen Z's employment intentions, while also utilizing a sequential explanatory mixed-methods approach to provide a more in-depth exploration of the antecedents of their employment intentions. Qualitative research enabled the identification of the underlying mechanism by demonstrating that only one of the two mediators exhibited a significant indirect effect.
Kim et al. (Tue,) studied this question.