新产品扩散视域下的同侪影响:维度厘定与量表开发——基于社交网络情境

Peer influence from the perspective of new product diffusion:Dimension determination and scale development based on the context of social networks

运用社会心理学中的同侪影响理论探索社交网络情景下的新产品扩散是对创新扩散理论发展的一大突破,但目前尚缺乏准确的同侪影响测量方法和量表。本文从新产品扩散视域出发,结合社交网络情境和同侪影响理论,对同侪影响的维度进行划分,进而运用演绎法、归纳法相结合的方法开发出一套新产品扩散视域下的同侪影响量表。研究结果表明,新产品扩散视域下的同侪影响由信息影响、规范影响、比较影响和情绪传染四个维度构成,所开发的同侪影响测度量表通过了信度和效度检验。本文为同侪影响理论的发展做出了贡献,为未来的实证研究奠定了工具基础,为其他研究视域的同侪影响测量提供了参考,也为发展嵌入同侪影响理论的新产品营销模式提供了实践启示。

As Web 2.0 develops,and social networks are extensively applied,interpersonal communication methods and interaction scope have been revolutionized.In the context of social networks,peers refer to similar individuals who interact with each other on social networks across the world instead of only companions around;with relatively low overall degree of similarity among peers in the new context,the scope that individuals are changed under peer influence is relatively large.Therefore,peers exert wide and deep influences in the context of social networks.With regard to the diffusion of new products,there is increasing evidence that peer influence has been an important factor in influencing users′decisions on adopting new products,and that peer influence is playing a stronger role than traditional advertising.In consideration of the uncertainties and potential losses of new products,peers provide consulting and reference for users,and users′behavior of adopting new products is increasingly influenced by peers.In other words,peer influence is playing an increasingly important role during the diffusion of new products.Although the researches on the theory of peer influence in the context of social networks from the perspective of new product diffusion are of great significance,the dimension classification and measurement of peer influence are controversial and deficient in academia.For example,while measuring peer influence with experimental method,it is difficult to avoid the interference of correlation effects;while measuring peer influence with econometric models,peer influence is not easily observed and changes in real time because it is endogenous by individual interaction;while measuring peer influence with social influence scale or reference group influence scale,the differences and irreplaceability with peer influence are ignored,and unprecise scales will inevitably result in biased measurement results,which affects the overall research results.Besides,current researches on peer influence scales ignore the context of social networks,an important factor,which further displays the theoretical value of developing peer influence scales.Because dimension determination is a prerequisite for scale development,the process of generating peer influence shows important guiding significance for its dimension determination.Therefore,from the perspective of new product diffusion and based on the theoretical framework of peer influence generation mechanism,this paper divides peer influence into information influence,comparison influence and normative influence according to the path of controlled thinking processing;peer influence is divided into information influence and emotional contagion according to the path of automatic thinking processing.Generally,the final dimensions of peer influence are information influence,normative influence,comparative influence,and emotional contagion.Among them,1)Information influence represents either a process in which individuals change their own attitudes or behaviors after consciously and purposefully obtaining the information about new products from their peers,or a process in which individuals generate intuitive information about new products and change their attitudes or behaviors after being unconsciously and purposefully exposed to new products during the interaction with their peers.2)Normative influence stands for a process in which individuals consciously and purposefully change their attitudes or behaviors,so as to be accepted and identified by their peers.3)Comparative influence refers to a psychosocial process in which users define and evaluate themselves and satisfy the actual self and achieve the ideal self by consciously and purposefully comparing themselves with their peers.4)Emotional contagion means user′s instinctive empathy for peers′emotions during direct or indirect interaction with peers.Besides,for comprehensive and accurate scale items,this paper developed the preliminary scale based on four dimensions of peer influence and using literature method,interview method,expert screening method and other research methods commonly used in international and domestic academia.In the meantime,SPSS 22.0 software was used to make correlation test,exploratory silver analysis,and principal component analysis of the preliminary scale,so as to eliminate the items with insignificant correlation and obtain a peer influence scale covering 15 items with good reliability and validity.This paper makes contributions to the development of peer influence theory,lays a foundation for future empirical researches,and provides a reference for peer influence measurement in other research fields.Moreover,while providing a theoretical basis for guiding the innovation practices of corporate marketing models,it shows important significance for guiding enterprises to promote the fission marketing,precision marketing,word-of-mouth marketing and other strategies of new products with social networks.