The Effects of Consumer Preference and Peer Influence on Trial of an Experience Good
研究了消费者与同伴的偏好相似度以及体验品与消费者偏好的匹配度如何交互影响社会传染，发现偏好匹配度低时更受相似同伴影响，匹配度高时更受不同同伴影响。
This research examines the interaction effect of two dimensions of preference on social contagion: preference similarity between a consumer (i.e., who seeks recommendation) and a peer (i.e., who potentially provides recommendation) and the fit of an experience good with the consumer's preference. For empirical analyses, the authors collected rich information from Last.fm, a music social networking website, including individual users’ music play histories, friendship information, social tags (i.e., user-generated keywords associated with artists and songs), and new song profiles. The results show that consumers’ trial of a song that fits less with their preference is influenced more by peers with similar preferences. By contrast, consumers’ trial of a song that fits more with their preference is influenced more by peers with dissimilar preferences. This research enriches the understanding of the nuanced role of preference in social contagion and offers managerial implications to better leverage social dynamics.