THE IMPACT OF SHORT VIDEO PLATFORM DISSEMINATION ON THE COGNITIVE VALIDITY AMONG YOUNG AUDIENCES OF HUNAN HUAGU OPERA

Abstract

This study takes the young audience of the short video platform Douyin (TikTok in overseas markets) as the research object to explore the influence of short video content on the cognition of Hunan Huagu Opera among young audiences. By merging content analysis and questionnaire surveys, this study through SEM examines how short video content characteristics (content form, degree of knowledge embedding) influence young audiences’ cognitive validity (awareness, understanding, reputation). It is found that short video content can effectively increase the popularity of some repertoires and performers, and has a significant positive impact on audience awareness (path coefficient = 0.68, p < 0.001). However, the “fragmented” and “entertainment-oriented” characteristics of the content restrict the depth of understanding, and the conversion rate from awareness to understanding is only 35 percent of those who can describe the basic artistic features. The study confirmed that platform algorithm logic (interest recommendation vs. trending recommendation) had a moderating effect: interest recommendation enhanced the positive impact of knowledge-embedded content on comprehension (interaction coefficient = 0.32, p < 0.01), and trending recommendation intensified the entertainment-driven cognitive bias. To address the “imbalance between cognitive breadth and depth,” this research proposes a targeted content optimization strategy combining popularity and knowledge interpretation, aiming to improve the cognitive validity of short video dissemination.