The Issue of Scales for Measuring Parasocial Interaction and Parasocial Relationship between Followers and Influencers on Social Media

Branka Bizjak Zabukovec () and Armand Faganel
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Branka Bizjak Zabukovec: Faculty of Management, University of Primorska, Izolska Vrata 2, 6101 Koper, Slovenia
Armand Faganel: Faculty of Management, University of Primorska, Izolska Vrata 2, 6101 Koper, Slovenia

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 17, 1-35

Abstract: Social media has introduced influencers and influencer marketing (IM), which is becoming increasingly popular among marketers. The effectiveness of IM is significantly influenced by parasocial interactions (PSI) and parasocial relationships (PSR) that develop between followers and influencers. Historically, a variety of scales have been used to measure PSI and PSR, raising concerns about the comparability of research results. Given the recent growth of IM and the importance of PSI and PSR within it, we aimed to examine how these constructs are measured in IM. We conducted a literature review, analyzing 72 studies focused on the empirical measurement of PSI and PSR. We found a significant heterogeneity in the measurement of PSI and PSR, identifying 26 scales for PSI and 29 scales for PSR, with two scales being used for measuring both PSI and PSR. This high degree of variability among scales that are supposed to measure the same constructs raises questions about the comparability of the results. We identified a critical need for clearer conceptual and empirical differentiation between PSI and PSR, which should be reflected in the development of measurement instruments. It is essential to develop reliable and valid scales that account for these differences and distinctly measure PSI and PSR in IM.

Keywords: parasocial interaction; parasocial relationship; influencer marketing; social media influencers; parasocial interaction scale; parasocial relationship scale; measures (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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