Published content vs. live-streamed: Empirical from digital content activities in online healthcare communities

Online Health Communities (OHCs) serve as a platform for individuals seeking health support, where the exchange of health information harbors the potential to generate substantial social value. Existing literature reveals that previous research has primarily focused on the incentives for doctors' information sharing. However, the mechanism through which this information sharing translates into tangible benefits for hospitals remains unclear. To address these gaps, this study interprets it as a kind of digital content activity (DCA) and delves into its impact on hospitals' online demand in OHC. Analyzing data from over 2000 active hospitals on a leading OHC in China, our findings indicate that hospitals' published content activity consistently increases their online demand in OHC. In contrast, live-streamed content activity decreases online demand in the short term, yet this impact turns positive in the long term. Furthermore, a hospital's organizational capital enhances the impact of live-streamed content activity, while the hospital's reputation strengthens the long-term positive impact of published content activity. This study offers a novel perspective for understanding knowledge sharing within OHCs, providing practical insights for OHCs and hospitals.