What kind of customers, commodity and context matching produces high consumer loyalty? – fsQCA research based on social cognitive theory

Although there are several recent studies regarding the role that online social networks (SNs) bloggers can play in the success or failure of today’s businesses, the ways by which they can actively influence their follower’s purchase behavior still needs further investigation. Thus, this study aims to examine how bloggers’ interactive practices (BIPs) have a positive effect on their followers’ intentions to purchase the products promoted by them by the mediating roles of bloggers’ credibility and followers’ para-social interactions. This study drew on three well-formulated theories (i.e. social cognitive theory, theory of reasoned action, and social learning theory) to design its conceptual framework. To this end, this study surveyed 548 female followers of 12 female bloggers on Instagram, operating in Iran. This research has used the PLS-based structural equations modeling to evaluate the validity of its measurement and structural models. The results of this research show that BIPs improve followers’ attitudes toward bloggers’ credibility in two dimensions of “expertise” and “reliability”. Followers’ attitudes toward bloggers’ credibility play an important role in reinforcing their para-social interactions with bloggers. Followers’ para-social interactions play a role in fortifying their intentions to purchase the products promoted by bloggers. The most significant empirical contribution of this study is that it explains the interactive practices taken by bloggers into account strengthen the purchase demands of their followers. Therefore, bloggers due to their ability to influence people’s purchase intentions are a challenge for today’s businesses, which must be transformed from a potential threat to an actual opportunity.

The role of wishful identification, emotional engagement, and parasocial relationships in repeated viewing of live-streaming games: A social cognitive theory perspective

The Career Development QuarterlyVolume 44, Issue 4 p. 307-309 Applying Social Cognitive Theory to Career Counseling: An Introduction Robert W. Lent, Robert W. Lent Guest Editor, Special SectionSearch for more papers by this authorSteven D. Brown, Steven D. Brown Guest Editor, Special SectionSearch for more papers by this author Robert W. Lent, Robert W. Lent Guest Editor, Special SectionSearch for more papers by this authorSteven D. Brown, Steven D. Brown Guest Editor, Special SectionSearch for more papers by this author First published: June 1996 https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-0045.1996.tb00447.xCitations: 13AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume44, Issue4June 1996Pages 307-309 RelatedInformation

In the digital media era, video blogs (vlogs) have become a crucial news platform, gaining attention for their personalized and interactive features. However, research has yet to fully explore the factors influencing sustained audience engagement with vlog news. Grounded in Media-system Dependency (MSD) Theory and Parasocial Interaction (PSI) Theory, this study examines key drivers of continuous user engagement, including vlogger attributes, content quality, and platform technicalities. A survey of 553 users, analyzed with Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) and Fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA), reveals significant effects of vlogger attractiveness and expertise, content’s entertainment and information quality, and the platform’s interactivity and fluency on PSI and ongoing viewing intentions. Additionally, the emotional bond between users and vlog news moderates the PSI and sustained viewing relationship. These findings enrich the media consumption framework and offer practical insights. Notably, the role of algorithmic content curation, enhancing media dependency and PSI through personalized content recommendations, is acknowledged.

PurposeThe emergence of social media has brought the influencer marketing landscape to an unprecedented level, where many ordinary people are turning into social media influencers. The study aims to construct and validate a model to yield strategic insights on the relevance of content curation, influencer–fans interaction and parasocial relationships development in fostering favorable endorsement outcomes (i.e. purchase intention).Design/methodology/approachThe present study analyzes data from a survey of 411 consumers using partial least squares-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to understand the net and combined effects of content attributes, interaction strategies and parasocial relationships on purchase intention.FindingsPLS-SEM results reveal that content attributes (i.e. prestige and expertise) and interaction strategies (i.e. interactivity and self-disclosure) positively influence parasocial relationships, and in turn, lead to high purchase intention. Findings from fsQCA indicate six solutions with different combinations of content attributes, interaction strategies and parasocial relationships that sufficiently explain high purchase intention.Originality/valueThe present study demonstrates the roles of content attributes and interaction strategies in engendering parasocial relationship and the endorsement outcome (i.e. purchase intention) from both linear and non-linear (complexity) perspectives.

In the past few years, internet celebrities have become a new and important way to get people to buy energy-saving products. Their psychological mechanisms for promoting fans’ intention to purchase have become the focus of academic attention, but a unified conclusion has yet to be reached. This study uses online communities as a scenario, with the characteristics of influencers’ expertise, social attraction, and task attraction as antecedent variables and social cognitive theory and parasocial interaction theory as the theoretical basis to explore their influence on fans’ intention to purchase household energy-saving products. The study investigates the mediating role of parasocial relationships and the moderating role of fans’ green self-efficacy in influencing internet celebrities’ expertise and attraction of fans’ parasocial relationships. The results showed that the parasocial relationships formed between fans and influencers mediated the relationship between the expertise and attraction of influencers and fans’ intention to purchase energy-saving products and that “green self-efficacy” positively moderated the parasocial relationships formed between fans and internet celebrities in terms of their expertise and task attraction. The moderating effect of “green self-efficacy” on the parasocial relationships between fans and internet celebrities was insignificant.

Exposure to highly sexualized television programs has been correlated with emerging adults' sexual attitudes and behaviors. However, little is known about the variables that may mediate these relationships. The studies presented here investigated wishful identification and parasocial relationships withJersey Shore cast members as mediators in the relationship between exposure to Jersey Shore and permissive sexual attitudes. In Study 1, a secondary examination of content analysis data suggested that sex was pervasive on Jersey Shore. Analyses revealed that, on average, one sexual instance occurred every minute on Jersey Shore. The frequency of sexual instances on Jersey Shore was significantly higher than the frequency of sexual instances in other popular primetime television programs. In Study 2, data collected from a sample of emerging adults revealed a positive relationship between Jersey Shore exposure and permissive sexual attitudes mediated by participants' wishful identification and parasocial relationships with Jersey Shore cast members. Permissive sexual attitudes were positively correlated with sexual activity. Results are consistent with predictions made by cultivation and social cognitive theory. The relationships between television exposure, wishful identification, parasocial relationships, and emerging adults' sexual attitudes and behaviors are the focus of the discussion.

With the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence technology, the role of Artificial Intelligence Generated Content (AIGC) applications within digital learning communities has become increasingly significant. Enhancing the level of knowledge innovation through the integration of human and artificial intelligence has emerged as a critical issue. Grounded in social cognitive theory, this study utilizes a sample of 407 Super Star Learn community learners as a case study. It applies the Fuzzy Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) method to investigate the synergistic effects of technological environment, cultural context, and individual cognitive factors in promoting learners’ knowledge innovation capabilities. The results show the following: (1) No single condition constitutes a prerequisite for learners to achieve high-level knowledge innovation when acting in isolation. However, enhancing technical capabilities has a relatively universal impact on promoting learners to achieve these results. (2) The multiple concurrency of the technological environment, cultural environment, and individual cognitive conditions has generated multiple configuration patterns that promote knowledge innovation, indicating that the paths leading to learners’ high-level innovation exhibit the characteristic of numerous concurrency. Therefore, it is suggested that digital learning communities actively explore new paths for sustainable knowledge innovation and development driven by generative artificial intelligence technology, thereby injecting sustainable impetus into the development and innovation process of learners, contributing to the goals of sustainable education.

Exploring the Influence Mechanism of Chinese Young Researchers' Academic Information Avoidance Behavior

PurposeThe recent livestreaming commerce has magnified the role of influencer marketing, where the influencers are partnering with brands for product promotion. This study examines the impact of influencer attributes, interaction strategies and parasocial relationships on impulsive buying in livestreaming commerce.Design/methodology/approachA survey with 368 livestreaming commerce users was analyzed using the symmetric-thinking approach – partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) and asymmetric thinking approach – fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA).FindingsThe results of PLS-SEM indicate that influencer trustworthiness, influencer interactivity and self-disclosure determine parasocial relationships, which in turn influence impulsive buying. The fsQCA finding returned three configurations with various combinations of the causal conditions (i.e. influencer attributes, interaction strategies, parasocial relationships, perceived fit uncertainty and perceived quality uncertainty) explaining the formation of impulsive buying.Originality/valueThese findings provide unique linear and nonlinear insights to explain the combinatory effects of influencer attributes, interaction strategies, parasocial relationships, perceived fit uncertainty and perceived quality uncertainty on impulsive buying in livestreaming commerce.

In recent years, social media influencers (SMIs) have become independent entities capable of influencing their audiences. Businesses look towards SMIs on Instagram as a marketing communication tool due to their popularity and effectiveness. In tourism, few studies investigate the role of SMI in influencing travel behaviors. The study examines how SMI can influence Instagram followers' travel behaviors. This study determined SMI based on attractiveness, similarity, and expertise. SMI can generate parasocial interactions with followers and build trust by promoting destinations based on these three dimensions. This study tested the research hypothesis on 364 respondents using a dual-approach analysis of structural equation modeling and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis. The results of the SEM analysis confirm that consumers were more likely to trust SMI based on their expertise and similarity. Also, this study demonstrated that highly attractive SMI and similarity with followers can lead to parasocial interactions. When consumers trust and feel parasocial interaction with SMI, they are more likely to consider traveling. FsQCA results confirm the presence of two configurations with high travel intention. The causal conditions configuration presented in this study demonstrated the interdimensional relationship between SMIs (attractiveness, similarity, and expertise), trust, and parasocial interaction in terms of travel intention. This study also achieved theoretical contributions and managerial implications on how scholars and tourism managers leverage SMIs to create high travel intentions. Doi: 10.28991/ESJ-2023-07-01-02 Full Text: PDF

This study examined the antecedents of viewer relationships experienced with television characters. Based on social cognitive theory, we considered how trait aggression helped explain identification, hornophily, and parasocial interaction with aggressive characters. Two hundred nineteen participants completed questionnaires measuring trait aggression and relationships with one of eight characters. We content analyzed portrayals of these characters to determine their levels of aggression. Results suggested viewer aggression predicted identification with aggressive characters, but did not predict hornophily and parasocial interaction beyond the variance explained by gender. We also observed relationships among the dependent variables and differences between physical and verbal aggression.

Culinary Practices and Eating Habits of full-time undergraduate students of Winneba campuses of University of Education, Winneba, Ghana

The emergence of the video blog (vlog) and the success of so-called “YouTube celebrities” have provided luxury brands with a new marketing tool to connect with consumers. In particular, the video-sharing site YouTube, allows anyone from an amateur to a professional the opportunity to create and upload a video, which can possibly be shared by hundreds of millions of viewers instantaneously and inexpensively (Freeman & Chapman, 2007).The present study examines how video blog (vlog) influences luxury brand perceptions based on parasocial interaction (PSI) framework. PSI has been studied extensively in communication research and provides a foundational understanding for the one-way relationship experienced between a media personality and media users. PSI is often referred to as a “friendship” with a media personality (Perse & Rubin, 1989; Rubin et al., 2003; Eyal & Rubin, 2003) and media users often seek advice from media personalities as if they were friends (Rubin et al., 1985). In addition, social comparison theory (Festinger, 1954) is used to explain the effect of PSI on customers’ luxury brand perceptions. According to the social comparison theory, individuals evaluate themselves by comparing what they possess and consume to that of others. Since individuals are likely to compare themselves with significant others and peers who share a similar outlook and common values, they would compare their luxury possessions and consumption to that of vloggers as PSI increases. Therefore, this study proposes influences of physical attractiveness, social attractiveness and attitude homophily of video blogger (vlogger) on PSI; and PSI effects on luxury brand perceptions (i.e., brand luxury, luxury brand value, and brand-user-imagery fit) followed by luxury brand purchase intentions.Study 1 tested the hypothesized model using structural equation modeling, and the results support the proposed model. Additionally, Study 2 investigated vlog effects on luxury brand perceptions and purchase intentions using ANOVA. The result showed luxury brand perceptions and purchase intentions for the experimental groups, who watched vlogs about review of luxury products, were higher than control group, who did not watch vlog. Overall, results of this study found general support for PSI as a brand management tool as well as the use of social media to lead to positive luxury brand perceptions.

Determinants of open government data usage: Integrating trust theory and social cognitive theory