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PurposeThis study explores the influence of parasocial interaction (PSI), brand credibility and product involvement on celebrity endorsement, and how PSI interacts with brand and product factors and affects celebrity endorsement synthetically.Design/methodology/approachThis study employs a 2 (high/low product involvement) by 2 (high/low brand credibility) between-subjects factorial design experiment to test the hypotheses.FindingsBrand credibility has a positive effect on followers' attitudes toward advertising and products, and product involvement influences its moderation. PSI has salient positive effects on followers' attitudes and behavioral intention, regardless of high/low product involvement. Brand credibility mediates PSI's influence on celebrity endorsement.Research limitations/implicationsThe results reinforce the significant effect of PSI on endorsement effectiveness and brand credibility, show the influence of brand credibility and product involvement and show how their influence conditionally interacts with others.Practical implicationsThe corporate advertiser should prefer a high PSI celebrity as their endorser. The advertising message design on the microblog also deserves the attention of advertisers.Originality/valueThis study is the primary attempt to construct an integral model to demonstrate the synthetic effect and interaction process of consumers' perception of the endorser, brand and product category factors on celebrity endorsement within the social media context.

Digitally created online celebrities (so-called virtual influencers) have appeared on various social media and video streaming platforms. While the scientific community has recently started to take an interest in this new phenomenon, it still remains mostly unclear how online audiences engage with—and relate to—these artificial digital creations. To address the identified research gap, we conducted a preregistered experiment ( N = 179), comparing viewers' parasocial interactions (PSIs) with either a human or a virtual influencer. Based on natural stimuli, we find that viewers' parasocial response does not differ significantly between the two groups. However, by focusing on several theoretically relevant mediator variables, we uncover two opposing effects at play: While a significant direct effect signifies stronger PSIs with the virtual influencer, participants also attribute this persona with less mental human-likeness and similarity to themselves—which ultimately suppresses the observed advantage. Potential explanations for our results are discussed.

As one of the first empirical analyses focusing on corporate executive officers' (CEOs) communication style on social media and its impacts, the study aims to advance the theoretical understanding of CEO sociability and the mechanism underneath its effects on the broader public relations outcome of organization–public relationship and public advocacy. Through a quantitative survey with 332 social media users who have followed corporate CEOs on social media, this study illuminated how CEOs' responsive and assertive communications induce the CEOs' followers to perceive the corporate leaders as amicable role models and caring friends, which in turn improve their trust of, satisfaction with, and advocacy for the company. Hence, the findings highlight the pivotal role of CEOs as chief engagement officer in developing meaningful interpersonal interactions and relationships with today's digital savvy publics.

Free-to-play has become a common business strategy in the game market, the associated microtransactions of which have attracted academic attention. In recent years, gacha games have gathered a considerable consumer base in the mobile gaming market, and these players have demonstrated strong purchasing power with regard to additional game resources. Within the framework of parasocial interaction and the investment model, this study explored factors influencing players' game commitment and purchase intentions. This study used structural equation modeling and moderation analysis to examine data collected from 2,045 Chinese mobile game players. Satisfaction and investment size were positively correlated with game commitment and in-game purchase intention. Perceived alternatives were negatively correlated with game commitment. Furthermore, parasocial interaction was positively correlated with satisfaction, investment size, and game commitment and negatively correlated with perceived alternatives. The results indicate that these correlations were moderated by game genre.

"Many media users feel as if they are engaging in an interaction or have a personal relationship with people they see in the media. These psychological experiences, that are collectively referred to as parasocial experiences (PSEs). This Handbook offers a thorough synthesis of the fast-growing, international, and multi-disciplinary research of PSEs, celebrating the field's accomplishments to date but also outlining a blueprint for future growth. The book is organized in six sections covering: (1) theoretical, conceptual, and operational definitions of PSEs; (2) theoretical models and state-of-the-art review of research on PSEs across the lifespan; (3) the effects of PSEs on media users' self and their social life (e.g., intergroup relationships, marginalized sexual groups); (3) the effects of PSEs in various contexts such as health, politics, and marketing; and (4) identifying understudied areas of research that call for further investigation (comparative cross-cultural research, marginalized racial/ethnic identities, non-amicable PSRs). In addition to a thorough synthesis of the literature, the handbook identifies several critical theoretical questions that the PSEs research faces today. Across the thematic chapters, the authors debate several overarching critical theoretical issues in PSEs research, such as the boundaries between parasocial and social phenomena and the distinctions between PSEs and other forms of involvement with media. The book also includes a hands-on methodological chapter that provides detailed information about measurement and manipulation of PSEs"--

PurposeThe current study has drawn attention to investigating the impact of social media influencers' (SMIs) authenticity on followers buying behavior by using followers who have an ongoing relationship with an influencer and are knowledgeable about the influencer. The study further intends to reveal the mediating effect of parasocial interaction on the relationship between SMI's authenticity and followers' purchase behavior.Design/methodology/approachThe study has analyzed data from an online survey of 458 participants (Instagram followers) using structured equation modeling (CB-SEM) to investigate the relationship among authenticity attributes, parasocial interaction and followers' purchase behavior.FindingsCB-SEM results reveal that authenticity attributes positively influence followers' buying behavior. The findings from mediation analysis specify that parasocial interaction mediates the relationship between authenticity attributes (sincerity, truthful endorsement and visibility) and buying behavior excluding expertise, uniqueness attributes.Practical implicationsThe findings of the study reinforce the need to use authentic influencers by the marketers for the brand endorsements. Further, the findings of the study can benefit marketers in implementing strategic practice of social media influencer marketing.Originality/valueThe study overcomes the limitations of preceding studies by using Instagram followers who are well-informed about SMIs and have an ongoing relationship with them. This study has uniquely combined the behavioral data from real influencer campaigns with followers' assessment of an influencer's authenticity.