Abstract
PURPOSE: In contemporary society, the effective dissemination of medical knowledge and the sustained improvement of health literacy have become paramount priorities for public health. Fortunately, short video platforms have paved new avenues for doctors to teach medical information and communicate health concepts to the public. Despite their substantial significance, short videos still fall short in eliciting viewer engagement, thereby limiting their meaning. In response, this study aims to assist doctors in leveraging teaching styles to refine the design and creation of short videos. METHODS: Based on data from Douyin (Chinese TikTok), this study employs econometric analyses to examine the influences of two prevalent teaching styles-monologue vs. dialogue-on viewer engagement in short videos, including likes, comments, collections, and shares. Furthermore, our study empirically examines the moderating roles of teaching content characteristics, including knowledge professionalism and knowledge generality, in these influences. RESULTS: The results demonstrate that monologue significantly outperforms dialogue in terms of viewer engagement, spanning from likes to shares. Moreover, the decrease in knowledge professionalism and the increase in knowledge generality can enhance the advantages of monologue over dialogue. CONCLUSIONS: This study contributes to the understanding of viewer engagement in short videos and guides doctors to generate high-impact short videos, advancing the public's health self-management and medical knowledge dissemination.