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Groupthink 2.0: An empirical analysis of customers' conformity-seeking in online communities

Breitsohl, J., Wilcox-Jones, James Peter, Harris, Ian (2015) Groupthink 2.0: An empirical analysis of customers' conformity-seeking in online communities. Journal of Customer Behaviour, 14 (2). pp. 87-106. (doi:10.1362/147539215X14373846805662) (The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:62076)

The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided.
Official URL:
https://dx.doi.org/10.1362/147539215X1437384680566...

Abstract

Online communities have witnessed an ongoing interest from both digital practitioners and scholars alike. Whilst the motives for and outcomes of customers' participation have been convincingly evidenced, there is a lack of conceptual and empirical understanding on the decision-making processes within virtual groups. This study employs Janis' (1972) Groupthink theory to investigate customers' tendency to conform when making decisions in a financial online community. Based on a sample of 343 respondents and multiple regression analysis, it is shown that perceived stress and group insulation have a positive influence upon Groupthink, whilst group cohesion has a negative effect. The findings support the applicability of Groupthink theory in an online context and emphasise defective social decision-making processes in online communities as a key priority for future research. Digital marketers gain insight on strategies to manage their customers' conformity-seeking tendencies and to prevent dysfunctional decision-making processes.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1362/147539215X14373846805662
Uncontrolled keywords: CONFORMITY; FINANCIAL SERVICES; GROUP PSYCHOLOGY; GROUPTHINK; ONLINE COMMUNITY; VIRTUAL GROUPS
Subjects: H Social Sciences
H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General)
Divisions: Divisions > Kent Business School - Division > Kent Business School (do not use)
Depositing User: Jan Breitsohl
Date Deposited: 14 Jun 2017 14:00 UTC
Last Modified: 17 Aug 2022 11:01 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/62076 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

University of Kent Author Information

Breitsohl, J..

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