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Social commerce has brought about a significant transformation in consumer experience due to diverse factors. As a result, users often find themselves prone to impulsive buying behaviour when exposed to such an environment. Prior research was limited to demonstrating the expanding influence of celebrities on social media and the linkage between social engagement and impulse buying context. Furthermore, the impulse buying tendency of consumers on social media in the context of celebrity posts has yet to be validated. This paper aims to assess the influence of consumer awareness, consumer trust and observational learning on the latent state-trait (LST) theory regarding celebrity posts on impulse buying tendencies.

The empirical research builds on a sample survey involving 750 students from the “Big Four” economics universities in Hanoi. The proposed model was analysed using a partial least squares structural equation modelling technique.

The authors find that consumer trust and observational learning from celebrity’ posts positively affect impulse buying tendency. Yet celebrity influence awareness directly impacts trust in celebrity’ posts rather than directly impacting impulse buying tendency. Perceiving the importance of interactive and authentic posts by a celebrity in influencing consumers’ purchase behaviour on social media, this research offers valuable insights for stakeholders in the digital celebrity sphere of communication and marketing.

Perceiving the importance of interactive and authentic posts by a celebrity in influencing consumers’ purchase behaviour on social media, this research offers valuable insights for stakeholders in the digital celebrity sphere of communication and marketing.

From a theoretical perspective, this expands the applicability of the LST theory in social commerce to promote impulse buying tendencies. Second, this contributes to the literature on the emerging phenomenon of social media celebrities, as existing literature does not clarify their influence on impulse buying behaviour. Third, this research applies the concept of observational learning in online shopping through key features of social media platforms, namely, likes, shares and comments, to investigate their influence on the impulse buying tendency of consumers. Concerning managerial implications, the authors propose practical recommendations for practitioners, particularly those involved or interested in the commercial services industry and social media marketing (namely, celebrities and partner companies).

This study aims to investigate the role of social media in increasing trust, self-perceived creativity and millennial entrepreneurial satisfaction.

The empirical analysis was conducted using a sample of 385 millennial entrepreneurs that were recruited for online survey. After conducting reliability and validity tests, the data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling.

The results showed that the quality of social media information had a direct and indirect positive and significant effect on trust and satisfaction. Social media marketing activities had a direct and indirect positive and significant effect on trust and self-perceived creativity. System Quality of social media also has a significant direct influence on trust. However, there is no direct relationship to satisfaction. Finally, social media marketing activities have a significant direct effect on trust and satisfaction.

This research can contribute to marketing experts and millennial entrepreneurs in improving the quality of advertising information and the credibility of social media used to support creativity, trust and satisfaction. In addition, marketing experts and millennial entrepreneurs with online-based communities should optimize their marketing activities on social media.

This study has shown a more comprehensive model of the relationship between information quality, system quality, social media marketing activities, self-perceived creativity, trust and satisfaction. This study also reveals a significant direct and indirect effect of social media marketing activities on satisfaction.

This research aims to explore generation (Gen) Z's personal branding on social media when job seeking.

Gen Z students, in their final year of university, were interviewed about personal branding, as well as recruiters and career advisors to gain insights into the recruitment process and expectations of online personal brands. Before interviewing, Gen Z students' LinkedIn profiles were examined, and then fed into the interview process.

Using impression management theory, the findings show that Gen Z perceive online personal brands as a crucial tool to gain more advantage in job markets. A gap was found between desired and perceived selves in Gen Z's online personal brands. Strategies such as effective self-reflection, authentic communication, self-promotion processes, awareness of risks and constantly controlling digital footprints were suggested to build stronger and more coherent personal brands. Gen Z are in favour of a more dynamic, interactive, work-in-process of authentic personal brands.

This research demonstrates the importance of authentically building online personal branding strategies and tactics to bridge the divide between Gen Z's desired and perceived images in personal branding on social media when job seeking.

The purpose of this study is to identify the process of virtual influencer stickiness in the age of influencer marketing, which has received little attention in the literature. This is essential because the research creates a theoretical model of follower loyalty/stickiness to virtual influencer techniques from the standpoint of influencer marketing, which has a substantial effect on the evolution of the global marketing world.

In 2022, 302 people who currently follow an Instafamous virtual influencer took part in an Instagram self-administered online survey.

The findings show that both expertise and trustworthiness have a positive and significant influence on parasocial interaction, which in turn has a significant influence on virtual engagement and stickiness.

This research will specifically assist international readers in understanding how to harness and increase the efficiency and efficacy of interactive marketing strategies and methods to engage and retain followers of Instafamous virtual influencer. Moreover, the findings will be beneficial to opinion leaders, brand managers, company investors, entrepreneurs and service designers.

1. The study pioneers a holistic virtual follower stickiness mechanism that comprises the role of source credibility, parasocial interaction, informational influence and virtual follower’s engagement and their interrelationship to each other.

2. This study is based on parasocial interaction theory and source credibility theory to understand the relationship between virtual followers and influencers stickiness process at social media platforms.

3. In addition, the study examined the subsequent effects of sources of credibility components on parasocial interaction; as well as, on virtual follower engagement and stickiness.

4. This study also categorized and examined the moderating effects exerted by the genres of informative influence of virtual influencer.

The study pioneers a holistic virtual follower stickiness mechanism that comprises the role of source credibility, parasocial interaction, informational influence and virtual follower’s engagement and their interrelationship to each other.

This study is based on parasocial interaction theory and source credibility theory to understand the relationship between virtual followers and influencers stickiness process at social media platforms.

In addition, the study examined the subsequent effects of sources of credibility components on parasocial interaction; as well as, on virtual follower engagement and stickiness.

This study also categorized and examined the moderating effects exerted by the genres of informative influence of virtual influencer.

The authors argue that privacy is integral to the well-being of consumers and an essential component in not only corporate social responsibility (CSR) but what they term uniquely as social media responsibility (SMR). A conceptual framework is proposed that delineates the privacy issues companies should pay attention to in artificial intelligence (AI)-fueled social media environments.

The authors review literature on privacy issues in social media and AI in the academic and practitioner literatures. Based on the review, arguments focus on the need for an SMR framework, proposing responsible use of consumer data that is attentive to consumers' privacy concerns.

Implications from the framework are a path forward for social media companies to treat consumer data more fairly in this new environment. The framework has implications for companies to reduce potential harms to consumers and consider addressing their power and responsibility. With social media and AI transforming consumer behavior so profoundly, there are a variety of short- and long-term social implications.

Since AI tools are becoming integral to social media company activities, this research addresses the changing responsibilities social media companies have in securing consumers' data and enabling consumers the agency to protect their privacy effectively. The authors propose an SMR framework based on CSR research and AI tools employed by social media companies.

This study aims to reveal the knowledge structure of social media influencer marketing literature by performing science mapping analysis through a state-of-the-art bibliometric approach to determine the current and future trends. Social media influencer marketing is one of the most effective approaches to presenting a brand and offering value to consumers via social media.

This study evaluates the knowledge structure to uncover the emerging trends and future predictions in social media influencer marketing through bibliographic coupling and co-word analysis. In total, 917 journal publications were retrieved from the Web of Science database and analyzed using VOSviewer software.

The central theme in social media influencer marketing reflects digital engagement between influencers and followers and communication between influencers and followers. The theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.

This study unleashes the knowledge structure according to the fundamental literature of social media influencer marketing and the underlying themes related to the phenomenon.

The study seeks to contribute to a deeper understanding of the relationship between remediations and participation in new media. By lending some transparency, the analysis hopes to contribute toward generating a critical optics aware of the potentials and pitfalls of emergent media.

The methodology is visual semiotic analysis. The author make no claim for one, true interpretation or critical judgment about the images.

In demonstrating some shortfalls of Instagram affordances, the analysis shows how social media sites can develop tools that encourage users to engage in civic consciousness and respectful political debate. The study makes clear that new media tools can hamper or aid participatory logics.

To author’s knowledge, no other study that has analyzed remediated images related to the controversial confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. It is also important to place these images in the contexts of “iconicity” in emergent media (a concept increasingly being eroded in new media environment).

The use of augmented reality (AR) and experiential learning go hand in hand. Although AR learning opportunities have been well discussed, there is limited empirical research on the use of AR within higher education settings. Drawing from the uses and gratifications theory (U&GT), this study aims to explore the use of AR for learning satisfaction and student engagement, while also examining differences in learning styles.

This study used experiments with higher education students in the UK to explore the use of AR as part of the learning experience. Data from 173 students who experienced AR as part of their learning experience were analysed using partial least square analysis.

The authors found that hedonic, utilitarian, sensual and modality gratifications influence AR learning satisfaction and student engagement. Furthermore, the authors found differences between active and passive learners with regards to utilitarian (information seeking, personalisation) and sensual gratifications (immersion, presence) and effects on learning satisfaction.

This study developed and validated a U&GT framework incorporating different learning styles rooted in Kolb’s learning cycle. Findings provide important implications for the use of commercial AR applications as part of the learning experience within higher education settings.

This study examines three significant collaborative journalism projects in the Americas: The Panama Papers, from the United States-based International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ); “América Latina, Región de Carteles,” by Colombian-based Connectas; and the first phase of the Brazilian-based project, Comprova, supported by Brazilian Association of Investigative Journalists (Abraji) and First Draft. The work investigates what encompasses collaborative journalism; and explores whether it is a recent phenomenon of the news ecosystem, a consequence of the institutional crisis of journalism, and if it is influenced by a network-based and platformed society. A mixed-method approach is applied in a three-stage analysis: (1) desk research; (2) quantitative content analysis; and (3) qualitative semi-structured in-depth interviews. To gain a broader picture of the organizations and their respective projects, documental and bibliographical research was carried out with a focus on data from press releases, corporate reports, and articles published on the websites of the organizations coordinating the projects. Furthermore, a quantitative content analysis of 10 news articles published by each of these collaboration partnerships was completed. Finally, qualitative semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with the directors, managers, and professional journalists’ part of the organizations and project. This study emphasizes the importance of collaborative practices, demonstrates how collaborative practices contribute to a new modus operandi of the news ecosystem; and considers why journalists and media organizations have turned to collaborative journalism as a model of production, circulation, and distribution of journalistic investigations.

The purpose of this study is to propose and test an extended theory of planned behavior model to explain the significance of social media influencers’ credibility, social media usage (SMU) and social media marketing while simultaneously examining females’ intentions to purchase cosmetics online.

An online questionnaire was used to collect data from 386 female consumers of cosmetics, and the data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) with the help of SmartPLS version 4.

First, the results indicated that SMU, social media influencers’ credibility and social media marketing significantly and positively impact the theory of planned behavior components, namely, attitude, subjective norms (SNs) and perceived behavioral control (PBC). Second, results confirmed that attitude, SNs and PBC significantly and positively influenced female consumers’ online purchase intentions (OPIs).

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is one of the first to examine an integrated model that consisted of SMU, social media marketing and social media influencers along with the theory of planned behavior constructs in their proposed research model in the context of cosmetics in India. The study also enriched the body of knowledge about using the PLS-SEM approach to predict OPI for cosmetics.