This study investigates the mediating effect of engagement in the relationship between online advertising by beauty academies and consumers' behavioral intention. A survey was conducted with students enrolled in beauty academies, and the collected data were analyzed using SPSS 25.0 and PROCESS Macro 4.3.1. Bootstrapping techniques were employed to verify the mediating effects. The results indicated that native advertising had a significant indirect effect on behavioral intention through engagement, supporting a full mediation model. In contrast, retargeting advertising demonstrated both significant direct and indirect effects, confirming a partial mediation model. These findings suggest that native advertising primarily influences behavioral intention through enhanced engagement, whereas retargeting advertising operates through both direct and mediated pathways. The study emphasizes the strategic value of incorporating engagement-driven elements in social media advertising to more effectively guide consumer behavior.
Ha et al. (Sun,) studied this question.