Graduation Year

2020

Document Type

Thesis

Degree

M.A.

Degree Name

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Degree Granting Department

Mass Communications

Major Professor

Artemio Ramirez, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Yongwoog Jeon, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Yao Sun, Ph.D.

Keywords

consumer brand engagement, Influencer endorsement, parasocial interaction, personal identity, social identity, the match-up hypothesis, Sina Weibo

Abstract

The strength and effectiveness of influencer advertising and influencer marketing make them becoming more and more popular on social media. Consumer online brand engagement, including consuming, contributing, and creating brand-related content, is closely related to a brand’s reputation and image. This study aims to determine how the two aspects related to influencer endorsement – influencer-follower parasocial interaction (PSI) and influencer-brand congruence -- affect three levels of consumer online brand-related activities (COBRAs) on Sina Weibo. Another purpose of the current study is to examine the mediation effect of personal identity (PI) and social identity (SI) in the relationship between influencer-follower parasocial interaction and influencer-brand congruence. The data were collected from 390 Weibo users in China, and valid data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results show influencer-follower parasocial relationship and influencer-brand congruence have a direct positive relationship with consuming brand-related content; PSI has an indirect influence on consuming brand-related content through social identity’s mediation effect; and both PSI and influencer-brand match-up related to creating brand-related content, with the mediating role of personal identity and social identity. This study extends the motivation of consumer online brand engagement, and discussed the roles of personal identity and social identity in influencer marketing, filling the gap in current literature and bring new perspectives for brands and corporates.

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