Making nonsocial judgments through a social lens: How do mental images of others and social perceptions of products and companies influence consumer judgments?

Abstract

When consumers evaluate products or make purchase decisions, their judgments are constantly impacted by others’ attitudes or behaviors. Indeed, existing literature has suggested that such social influence is one of the most impactful factors in driving consumers’ nonsocial judgments. However, despite our current understanding of the topic, the potential to advance this research stream remains significant, especially with the emergence of new marketplace phenomena. Inspired by this notion, across three essays, this dissertation investigates how consumers’ nonsocial judgments are impacted and shaped by social influences in various consumption contexts that involve new marketplace developments—sharing economy, voice-enabled robots, and company automation. Specifically, focusing on sharing-based consumption contexts in which all product options are shared with other people, essay 1 explores whether and how social influence would occur through shared access to the same product option and subsequently impact consumers’ own choices. Building on the notion that nonsocial objects can also serve as a source of social influence, essays 2 and 3 study voice assistants and companies adopting automation practices, respectively, and examine whether and how these nonsocial entities could impact consumer perceptions and behavioral intentions through interactions. Taken together, findings from this dissertation add timely insights to the existing literature on social influence and nonsocial judgments, and also offer pertinent implications for marketers in related industries.