E‐formity: consumer conformity behaviour in virtual communities

Purpose – The paper aims to explore the structure of both normative and informational consumer conformity in an online virtual community. The purpose of this paper is to develop and test a conceptual model of e‐formity in virtual communities. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected online from consumers who belonged to at least one virtual community. A total of 2,000 customers were drawn from a list of online consumer panels maintained by an online research company. Overall, 14.8 percent of those invited replied to the survey and were analyzed with structure equation modelling. Findings – The results from the analysis indicate that both dimensions of conformity are distinct and have separate antecedents. Normative consumer conformity is influenced by internal consumer characteristics, whereas informational consumer conformity is related to external virtual community characteristics. Research limitations/implications – Although this paper found evidence for e‐formity, the full nature and scope of e‐formity must be held to the classic findings of experimental versions of conformity research. There are broad implications for e‐formity in consumer behaviour and retailing. Retailers or manufacturers must realize that virtual communities and consumers' e‐formity behaviour are a valuable source of helping or hurting the sale and promotion of their products. Practical implications – At the very least, the influence of e‐formity suggests that it is crucial for them to monitor closely the purposeful and nonpurposeful influences these virtual communications may have. Originality/value – Given the scarcity of literature in the online conformity research area, this paper shows conformity in virtual communities does not change its influences on consumers' behaviour. As in the studies of traditional communities, e‐formity has found influence on virtual communities within two aspects. Virtual communities not only have inherited the social functions of traditional communities, but also have differences in antecedents.