Rights statement: This is a pre-copy-editing, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in Journal of Consumer Research following peer review. The definitive publisher-authenticated version Rebecca Mardon, Hayley Cocker, Kate Daunt, How Social Media Influencers Impact Consumer Collectives: An Embeddedness Perspective, Journal of Consumer Research, 2023;, ucad003, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucad003 is available online at: URL
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Final published version
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - How Social Media Influencers Impact Consumer Collectives
T2 - An Embeddedness Perspective
AU - Mardon, Rebecca
AU - Cocker, Hayley
AU - Daunt, Kate
N1 - This is a pre-copy-editing, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in Journal of Consumer Research following peer review. The definitive publisher-authenticated version Rebecca Mardon, Hayley Cocker, Kate Daunt, How Social Media Influencers Impact Consumer Collectives: An Embeddedness Perspective, Journal of Consumer Research, Volume 50, Issue 3, October 2023, Pages 617–644, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucad003 is available online at: https://academic.oup.com/jcr/article-abstract/50/3/617/6978199
PY - 2023/10/31
Y1 - 2023/10/31
N2 - Research has documented the emergence of embedded entrepreneurs within consumer collectives. This phenomenon is increasingly prevalent as social media enables ordinary consumers to become social media influencers (SMIs), a distinct form of embedded entrepreneur. Whilst research has considered the implications of embeddedness for embedded entrepreneurs themselves, we lack insight into embedded entrepreneurship’s impact on consumer collectives. To address this gap, we draw from a longitudinal, qualitative study of the YouTube beauty community, where SMIs are pervasive. Informed by interactionist role theory, we document the Polanyian “double movement” prompted by the emergence of SMIs within the community. We demonstrate that the economy within the community was initially highly embedded, constrained by behavioral norms linked to established social roles. SMIs’ attempts to disembed the economy created dysfunctional role dynamics that reduced the benefits of participation for non-entrepreneurial community members. This prompted a countermovement whereby SMIs and their followers attempted to re-embed SMIs’ economic activity via role negotiation strategies. Our analysis sheds new light on the negative implications of embedded entrepreneurship for non-entrepreneurial members of consumer collectives, highlights the role of social media platforms in negotiations of embeddedness, and advances wider conversations surrounding the evolution of consumer collectives and the impact of SMIs.
AB - Research has documented the emergence of embedded entrepreneurs within consumer collectives. This phenomenon is increasingly prevalent as social media enables ordinary consumers to become social media influencers (SMIs), a distinct form of embedded entrepreneur. Whilst research has considered the implications of embeddedness for embedded entrepreneurs themselves, we lack insight into embedded entrepreneurship’s impact on consumer collectives. To address this gap, we draw from a longitudinal, qualitative study of the YouTube beauty community, where SMIs are pervasive. Informed by interactionist role theory, we document the Polanyian “double movement” prompted by the emergence of SMIs within the community. We demonstrate that the economy within the community was initially highly embedded, constrained by behavioral norms linked to established social roles. SMIs’ attempts to disembed the economy created dysfunctional role dynamics that reduced the benefits of participation for non-entrepreneurial community members. This prompted a countermovement whereby SMIs and their followers attempted to re-embed SMIs’ economic activity via role negotiation strategies. Our analysis sheds new light on the negative implications of embedded entrepreneurship for non-entrepreneurial members of consumer collectives, highlights the role of social media platforms in negotiations of embeddedness, and advances wider conversations surrounding the evolution of consumer collectives and the impact of SMIs.
KW - embedded entrepreneurship
KW - consumer collectives
KW - social media influencers
KW - embeddedness
KW - double movement
KW - interactionist role theory
U2 - 10.1093/jcr/ucad003
DO - 10.1093/jcr/ucad003
M3 - Journal article
VL - 50
SP - 617
EP - 644
JO - Journal of Consumer Research
JF - Journal of Consumer Research
SN - 0093-5301
IS - 3
ER -