نوع مقاله : مقاله علمی پژوهشی
نویسندگان
1 گروه مدیریت رسانه و ارتباطات کسب و کار، دانشکده مدیریت کسب و کار، دانشگاه تهران، تهران، ایران
2 گروه مدیریت رسانه، پردیس البرز، دانشگاه تهران، تهران، ایران
3 گروه مدیریت و علوم اداری، دانشگاه سمنان، سمنان، ایران
چکیده
کلیدواژهها
موضوعات
عنوان مقاله [English]
نویسندگان [English]
Objective.
The widespread presence of influencers in marketing campaigns and their substantial impact on consumers’ attitudes and behaviors have positioned them as strategic allies of businesses in their communication efforts. Consequently, consumers’ interactions with influencers—both in real-world contexts and within social media environments—play a critical role in shaping the effectiveness and overall performance of marketing campaigns. In this regard, one particularly significant behavior that consumers may exhibit toward influencers on social media platforms is unfollowing. The purpose of the present study was to develop a model of unfollowing influencers on social media platforms. In addition to explaining the underlying reasons for users’ unfollowing behavior, the study proposes strategies for managing audience experience, improving content quality, enhancing transparency, and promoting more ethically regulated advertising practices. From a digital marketing perspective, a scientific understanding of unfollowing behavior enables advertising investments to become more targeted, sustainable, and grounded in users’ actual behavioral patterns.
Method.
This study employed a qualitative approach based on grounded theory. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 15 individuals who had prior experience of unfollowing social media influencers. Participants were selected using purposive sampling. Data analysis followed the methodological procedures proposed by Strauss and Corbin (1990), including open, axial, and selective coding. A total of 188 open codes, 18 categories, and 6 overarching dimensions related to unfollowing social media influencers were extracted from the interviews and integrated into a grounded theoretical model.
Findings.
Based on grounded theory methodology, the components of the core phenomenon (unfollowing social media influencers), causal conditions (poor content quality and media experience, crisis of trust and credibility, excessive advertising and commercialization, cultural–value incongruence, and negative, controversial, or distressing content), contextual conditions (platform structures and the structure of the influencer industry), and intervening conditions (individual psychological factors, social and interpersonal factors, technical–media factors, and demographic characteristics) were identified. In addition, several strategies were identified, including individual content management strategies, psycho-social strategies, and media substitution strategies. Finally, both individual consequences—positive and negative—and social consequences of unfollowing social media influencers were explicated.
Conclusion.
Based on the findings, it can be argued that unfollowing social media influencers is the outcome of a complex interplay of content-related, psychological, social, and structural factors. Poor content quality, crises of trust, excessive advertising, and cultural–value incongruence constitute the primary reasons audiences distance themselves from influencers. Alongside these factors, platform structures, characteristics of the influencer industry, and users’ demographic attributes also influence unfollowing decisions. Intervening factors such as individual psychological traits, social norms, and technical–media experiences indicate that unfollowing is not a simple or instantaneous reaction; rather, it emerges gradually through cognitive evaluations. The results demonstrate that prior to final disengagement, users employ strategies such as content management, psycho-social regulation, and media substitution to control their media experiences. Ultimately, the proposed model suggests that unfollowing entails positive individual consequences, such as reduced psychological pressure, as well as negative outcomes, including the loss of certain information. Moreover, it may generate broader social consequences, such as diminished influencer power and shifts in patterns of media consumption. This study employs the grounded theory method to develop an integrated model of the factors influencing the unfollowing of influencers, in which the theories of social saturation, impression management, social identity, and audience power are synthesized into a unified framework. The explanatory power of these theories is further substantiated within this model. The findings indicate that unfollowing is not merely a passive reaction, but rather a symbolic manifestation of the audience’s soft power in response to various factors such as undesirable content or inauthentic behavior on the part of influencers.
کلیدواژهها [English]
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