Influence of self-disclosure of Internet celebrities on normative commitment: the mediating role of para-social interaction

Abstract

PurposeFor Internet celebrities, self-disclosure (SD) is a crucial step in building relationships with their followers who perceive this communication as para-social interaction (PSI), which facilitates socialization among followers. Normative commitment (NC) is critical for creating bonds among community members that are strengthened through socialization. However, research on the predictive relationships among SD, PSI and NC has been insufficient. This paper aims to investigate the effects of two facets of Internet celebrity SDs (i.e. private life and opinion) and two facets of PSI (i.e. companionship and following) on NC. The mediating role of PSI on the effects of SD on NC was also analyzed.Design/methodology/approachPeople who follow at least one Internet celebrity on a social networking site were recruited to participate in this study, and 494 valid questionnaires were collected for examination. The collected data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM).FindingsThe results revealed that both private-life and opinion SDs have positive effects on companionship and following PSI, which consequently influence NC. A mediation test revealed that companionship and following PSI mediate the effects of private-life and opinion SD on NC. This study's findings also revealed that NC is influenced more by following PSI than it is by companionship PSI. Furthermore, opinion SD was determined to be the more influential factor in following PSI, whereas private-life SD was the more influential factor in companionship PSI.Originality/valueThis paper is useful for understanding the influence mechanism of the SD of Internet celebrities on PSI and NC.

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“…Literature review and conceptual model Celebrity endorser effectiveness and impact on consumer behavioura brief overview The widespread use of celebrity endorsement has resulted in extensive research on the effects of employing well-known individuals to promote a product or brand (Knoll and Matthes, 2017;Schimmelpfennig and Hunt, 2020;Shukla and Dubey, 2021). Concurrently to the traditional endorsement approach remaining popular, the rise of social media has led to the prevalence of "ordinary" celebrities and influencersat times referred to as micro or internetcelebritiesas endorsers (Al-Emadi and Ben Yahia, 2020;Chen et al, 2021;Wang and Hu, 2021). Over the years, although research has enriched the endorsement literature from various perspectives, theory on the effectiveness of endorsers retains roots in traditional models (Schimmelpfennig and Hunt, 2020;Lee and Eastin, 2021).…”