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Article

A Study on Conformity Appeal Attributes and Social Contagion of Beauty-Focused One-Person Media in Sustainable E-Commerce

by
Sungmin Kang
1 and
Younkue Na
2,*
1
College of Business and Economics, Chung-Ang University, 84 Heukseok-ro, Dongjak-gu, Seoul 06974, Korea
2
Department of Art & Culture Research Institute, Chung-Ang University, 84 Heukseok-ro, Dongjak-gu, Seoul 06974, Korea
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Sustainability 2022, 14(10), 6226; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14106226
Submission received: 11 April 2022 / Revised: 16 May 2022 / Accepted: 18 May 2022 / Published: 20 May 2022
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Consumer Behavior and Sustainability in the Electronic Commerce)
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Versions Notes

Abstract

:
In the beauty industry, the use of one-person media is making new, more active relationships that differ from those of past online services and information sharing. Therefore, in this study, we developed conformity appeal attributes in one-person media, identifying their effects on information diffusion behavior through social conformity and collaborative innovation networks, to investigate the social contagion effect of information in beauty-focused one-person media and develop a model by connecting them to the conformity threshold of individuals influenced by others. In this study, a total of 694 complete samples of experienced consumers in the beauty-focused one-person media category were selected, and research questions were verified through reliability and validity tests, path analysis, and measurement model analysis. The research results are as follows. First, conformity appeal attributes of beauty-focused one-person media in terms of information cascade, utility value efficiency, reference group influence, and subnetwork structure significantly affected social imitation conformity. However, only subnetwork structure significantly affected social connection conformity. Similarly, only reference group influence and subnetwork structure significantly affected social comparative conformity. Second, social imitation conformity, social connection conformity, and social comparative conformity in beauty-focused one-person media significantly affected cocreation. Third, cocreation in beauty-focused one-person media significantly affected information diffusion behavior. The detailed use of the conformity appeal attribute factors shown in the above results will be combined with functional changes for online and mobile services of beauty companies, and it will be a driving force to create new value for the network. Moreover, the results of this study not only enable social connection among members within the reference group of beauty-focused one-person media but are also applied as an effective phenomenon to explain the continuous maintenance, reinforcement, and expansion of these relationships, thereby enabling researchers to achieve theoretical expansion and evaluation of relevant variables.

1. Introduction

Users of beauty-focused one-person media are as actively engaged in social relations online as they are offline. Social conformity in particular, a social atmosphere created by the rapid information diffusion of one-person media, is emerging as an important factor. Conformity is a critical element through which others influence an individual’s behavior, and it has been included as a factor of social influence in models used to explain sustainable consumer behavior in e-commerce. Accordingly, fulfilling users’ needs for conformity in the beauty-focused one-person media environment will make it more likely for users to feel a strong solidarity toward the media community. As such, many social psychologists consider conformity an important attribute that changes individuals’ beliefs or behaviors because of real or imagined pressures or group standards and alters their product evaluation or purchase attitude as a result of referencing others’ evaluations or purchase behaviors [1,2,3].
Furthermore, recent studies have investigated the social contagion of information linked on one-person media and social networking service (SNS), determining the influencing factors. Cha et al. [4] used data gathered from Flickr, a leading SNS in the USA, and proved that there is a social cascade, which is a catalyst of information diffusion on social networks. Sastry et al. [5] also studied the element of social contagion in the context of diffusion of user-generated content on SNS. In particular, earlier studies on information cascades with respect to information diffusion proved that each phenomenon of information contagion is caused by certainty [6]. Moreover, in one-person media, combinations of different kinds of information can be expanded to co-operative relations based on external collective intelligence by using associated content, such as consumer reviews, multimedia content, blogs, and mashup services, which can be represented through cocreation activities by collective contribution in which communities or individuals participate non-simultaneously [7,8]. Above all, individuals perceive the decisions made by others as better than the information they obtain during the decision-making process and therefore follow those decisions; this information-collection process leads to continuous diffusion of information [3].
Recently, with people more actively forming relationships with others through one-person media, various approaches have been adopted in the relational aspect through network theories. In particular, in terms of social conformity and collaborative innovation, networks have emerged as a key variable in the one-person media environment. Accordingly, different approaches must be taken at various levels to determine the effect of conformity appeal attributes in terms of relationships on one-person media, which may include network composition, network size, network scope, tie strength, network history, network density, characteristics of members, and viable resources in the network [9]. Moreover, for smartphone users on one-person media, collaborative innovation networks that link SNS for smoother communication with other users promote conformity for information acceptance, which results in herd behavior [1].
However, there have been no attempts to take a psychosocial approach to conformity appeal in terms of information diffusion and collaborative innovation networks that affect the actions of other users in beauty-focused one-person media. As such, an integrative study on the development of conformity appeal attributes and their relations is essential because conformity appeal attributes are effective means of continuously maintaining and strengthening information contagion through social conformity and collaborative innovation networks of users. even in the beauty-focused one-person media environment.
Therefore, in order to investigate the factors affecting the social contagion of information on beauty-focused one-person media and develop a model by connecting them to conformity thresholds of individuals accepting information through the influence of others during the process of information diffusion, in this study we develop conformity appeal attributes for one-person media and identify their effects on information diffusion behavior through social conformity and collaborative innovation networks. This study will be relevant for the assessment of the integrative and fundamental role of conformity appeal for continuity of social relational information shopping and diffusion in beauty-focused one-person media in e-commerce.

2. Theoretical Background and Hypotheses

2.1. One-Person Media

As communication opportunities increased after the universalization of the Internet, the communication and media environments changed significantly, and the emergence of one-person media ushered in an era of another communication revolution [10]. With increased media accessibility in particular, anyone can now access basic communication technology, enjoy the diversity of the Internet, and contribute to this diversity [11]. The influence of one-person media is rapidly growing, as it serves as a full-scale media platform beyond merely uploading video clips for pleasure. Furthermore, this form of one-person media is considered an innovative marketing tool because as a new communication platform with the capability of disseminating massive amounts of information [12], it provides companies and individuals with opportunities to collect, process, produce, and diffuse multifarious information. Comprehending the information diffusion behavior of users in one-person media is necessary for organizational growth and development, as it affects the purchase decisions of users.
However, there are no in-depth user surveys on the status of one-person media market introduction, directivity, or content. In particular, although beauty is one of the most active fields in one-person media [13], explorative studies on the development direction of beauty creators [14], the K-beauty industry in the era of one-person media [15], user behavior in beauty-focused one-person media [16], and motivations for using YouTube beauty channels [17] are in an incipient stage. The use of one-person media in beauty has resulted in a change in the trend toward consumers and users with a new culture in which users create and share beauty-focused content and information instead of brands or professional media [13]. Nonetheless, there are no in-depth empirical studies or analyses on the psychological motives of users to become consumers, the process and effect, and specific product-focused content related to beauty. Thus, it is necessary to expand the scope of academic and practical research by studying various types of beauty content, consumption categories, and psychosocial theories.

2.2. Conformity Appeal Attributes of Beauty-Focused One-Person Media

Conformity appeal attributes in the social contagion process of information play a key role in producing new information communicators in the network who participate in information reproduction activities. Consequently, beauty information voluntarily created by consumers of beauty-focused one-person media is likely to be accepted or reproduced among consumers with high social conformity. Previous studies have approached the reasons for conformity in terms of three dimensions: the goal of accuracy, the goal of affiliation, and the goal of sustaining a positive self-concept [8]. Accordingly, in this study we specifically extract conformity appeal attributes in terms of the herd effect, bandwagon effect, and network structure based on these goals of conformity. Kauffman and Li [18] stated that information cascades or word of mouth of experienced users affect decision-making and cause users to adopt flocking behavior, whereby they imitate the choices of others. This can be regarded as the act of imitating the actions of initial users by considering their actions as important information because of the uncertainty caused in the decision-making process about accepting new information [6]. Moreover, Huang and Chen [19] pointed out the effect of consumers’ opinions, which can be obtained on the Internet in the form of product reviews on websites or communities (Internet cafes and blogs), as a factor affecting online flocking behavior. Moreover, because the direct environment/effect of information diffusion is ambiguous, decision making related to information diffusion is controlled by institutional bandwagon pressures, which are fundamentally caused by imitation. This bandwagon effect is a decision made with innovation based on imitation. Because one-person media users generally use SNS on their smartphones for smoother communication with other users, social pressure promotes the bandwagon effect on acceptance and generates herd behavior. This social pressure is generally more powerful in the context of strong ties rather than weak ties between network clusters [1]. Furthermore, Barringer and Milkovich [20] presented expected efficiency gains, along with institutional pressures, as a key factor for implementation and diffusion of flexible benefit plans, which is a human resource management technique.
Moreover, the structural characteristics of a network explaining the information flow in the community based on previous studies are connectivity, activity, and power. Centrality in a network structure controls information flow in the network and increases access to important information and significantly affects the decision making of other members [21,22]. Bampo et al. [23] revealed that there was a significant difference in information diffusion depending on the structural form of social network ties, and the performance of information diffusion was affected more by other word-of-mouth communicators than the initial word-of-mouth information. As such, increased connectivity in the network structure leads to better performance of information diffusion. Kim and Kim [24] conducted an investigation on the relationship between power and market performance and discovered that power is closely related to constraints, as well as solidarity, and serves as an information broker in the network and therefore a key factor in networks with weak ties. Low power is due to the relatively low influence of connection with key members. In order to obtain more high-quality information, it is vital to conduct more active information activities by forming more diverse relationships with other members of the network.

2.3. Relationship between Conformity Appeal Attributes and Social Conformity of Beauty-Focused One-Person Media

User behavior in beauty-focused one-person media can also be approached in terms of online social conformity. In particular, conformity formed by informational influence tends to involve acceptance of the majority’s opinions and judgments as objective information, as other people’s behaviors provide useful information in uncertain situations [25]. Conformity in consumption behavior attaches meaning to the decision making of members in order to sustain a self-emotional relationship with those members an individual finds attractive in order to achieve a sense of unity with the group [26]. Moreover, Kim and Yoon [27] classified the roles of social conformity into two types: providing the grounds for individuals to rationalize their judgment about certain information in terms of motivational and cognitive views and social influence as a member of the community. Accordingly, in this study, we classify social conformity affected by conformity appeal attributes from the cognitive and motivational views into social imitation conformity, social connection conformity, and social comparative conformity and measure them as mediating variables. These properties are important in a social environment related to interpersonal influence [28]. In particular, because conformity behavior of consumers in imitation, connection, and comparison of information the individual actually experienced in one-person media contains information recommended to others, information characteristics of one-person media through consumer experience may have an impact on other users connected through the social network. Moreover, social conformity induces behavioral intention for that conformity [29], which is why studies on social conformity characteristics in beauty-focused one-person media from the point of social connectivity are consequential in understanding the successful process of information diffusion.
The role of social conformity has been addressed in previous studies as follows. David and Turner [30] claimed that people classify themselves according to the situation and their position in the group to which they belong and use social identity to reduce uncertainty. Crandall et al. [31] also stated that people tend to perceive the opinions agreed upon by the group to which they belong as better and assimilate their own opinions with those of the group. Wood [32] argued that group conformity has a more critical effect on changes in opinions or attitudes than an individual’s attitude toward issues. Jeong and Kim [33] claimed that social conformity is frequently found on the Internet. Sunstein [34] explained social conformity with conformity cascades and claimed that when conformity of members of the group to which one belongs becomes the mainstream, individuals tend to hide their opinions or agree implicitly with other people’s opinions. Based on the above, Hypothesis 1 is set up as follows.
Hypothesis 1 (H1).
Conformity appeal attributes of beauty-focused one-person media significantly affect social conformity.

2.4. Relationship between Social Conformity, Collaborative Innovation Networks, and Information Diffusion of Beauty-Focused One-Person Media

The perspective of open innovation in one-person media information can be viewed as the concept of disclosing internal resources to external users and performing joint production, which can be regarded as cocreation by collective contribution whereby virtual communities or individuals participate non-simultaneously as co-operative relations based on external collective intelligence [7,35]. Most cocreation activities are conducted in the form of mediating individual contributions of voluntary participants to achieve ultimate goals without a direct hierarchical structure or role allocation; this concept is referred to as a collaborative innovation network [36]. Moon [37] stated that when another person discloses intimate information, individuals tend to disclose more intimate information to them because of the reciprocity effect; the more users imitate, connect, and compare on SNS, the more likely they are to exhibit emotional solidarity and collaboration on SNS. Park et al. [38] also claimed that if an SNS fulfills users’ needs for conformity, they are likely to feel a strong solidarity toward that SNS, which can be achieved frequently with acts of self-disclosure. Moreover, Gronroos [39] stated that regarding the preconditions of cocreation, all resources and business processes are the distribution mechanism for supply, which does not include values, as values are integrated only when used by consumers. This implies that consumers fundamentally play the role of creating values, and companies merely serve as facilitators of value creation.
Because beauty-focused one-person media services are used by networking with other users, information diffusion is likely to occur in users with high social conformity through the process of externally sharing and reinventing information. With information spreading rapidly on the Internet, consumers serve as producers of information, actively sharing their experiences, in addition to searching for information [40]. This creates new information communicators participating in information reproduction activities in the diffusion process, which ultimately increases the information value and results in the social contagion of information. Based on the above, we set up Hypotheses 2 and 3 as follows.
Hypothesis 2 (H2).
Social conformity of beauty-focused one-person media significantly affects collaborative innovation networks (cocreation).
Hypothesis 3 (H3).
Collaborative innovation networks (cocreation) of beauty-focused one-person media significantly affect information diffusion behavior.

3. Research Method and Procedure

3.1. Research Model and Hypotheses

Based on the research hypotheses rationalized in the prior section with further examination, we suggest the research model for this study as follows. The causal relationships involving four key factors of this study are reflected in the research model shown in Figure 1.

3.2. Measurement Tools

The measurement tools for this study included conformity appeal attributes, social conformity, collaborative innovation networks, and information diffusion behavior of beauty-focused one-person media. Conformity appeal attributes include cascades of shared information, which represent reputation and clustering related to the imitation of shared information in beauty-focused one-person media; utility value efficiency, which represents the significance of the utility value of beauty-focused one-person media in information access and decision making; reference group influence related to the opinions of reference groups on beauty-focused one-person media, such as utilitarian influence, value-expressive influence, and informational influence; and subnetwork structure, which represents activity, connectivity, and power related to information flow in the community. A total of 12 items were measured based on research by Barringer and Milkovich [20], Culotta [6], Hanneman and Riddle [21], Huang and Chen [19], Jun and Rhee [25], Lakhani et al. [8], Lee et al. [22], Pihlstrom and Brush [28], Goldenberg et al. [1], and Wellman and Frank [9]. Social conformity includes social imitation conformity, which is formed by informational influence in beauty-focused one-person media and represents the tendency to accept others’ behaviors as information about objective reality; social connection conformity, which is formed by normative influence in beauty-focused one-person media and represents the tendency to meet the expectations of the majority for social approval; and social comparative conformity, which is formed by identification influence in beauty-focused one-person media and represents the tendency to form a positive self-concept by comparing with others. A total of nine items were measured based on research by Goldenberg et al. [1], Heal and Kunreuther [2], Hung and Plott [3], Lawler [29], Lee and Ahn [7], Lim and Lee [40], and Pisano and Verganti [35]. A collaborative innovation network is the concept of expanding internal information of beauty-focused one-person media to the outside world to perform joint production, which is defined as cocreation of information through collaboration based on external collective intelligence. A total of three items were measured based on research by Heal and Kunreuther [2], Holstein [36], and Gloor [41]. Information diffusion behavior is defined as the extent to which consumers deliver reprocess information after obtaining word-of-mouth information from beauty-focused one-person media and repost it. A total three items were measured based on research by Holstein [36], Hung and Plott [3], Gloor [41], Lakhani et al. [8], and Pisano and Verganti [35].

3.3. Data Collection and Analysis

Data collection and analysis were conducted according to the following procedures. First, primary subfactors of measured variables were extracted through a literature review on value attributes and network frameworks related to the formation of conformity in one-person media, as well as a case analysis of beauty information activities in one-person media. Secondly, the measure for conformity appeal attributes was concretized using the Delphi method with respect to Korean one-person media experts (beauty creators with at least 100,000 subscribers) with the results of the primary study. Then, as a secondary study, critical incident technique (CIT) analysis (50 subjects) was conducted among one-person media users (members of the media network of beauty creators with at least 100,000 subscribers) using open-ended questions about value relations they had actually experienced in beauty-focused one-person media. Measurement was conducted by extracting and supplementing specific content about the variables affecting social conformity, collaborative innovation networks, and information diffusion behavior. Thirdly, convenience sampling was used to conduct a survey for precise assessment of the measurement tool and collection of data with reliability and validity. Regarding social cascades, Cha et al. [4] claimed that if there is at least one neighbor who clipped the contents possessed by the subjects among those connected to the subjects on social network, this must be conceived as an acceptance by the social contagion and thus covered in the social cascade. Accordingly, data were collected by conducting a preliminary study (50 subjects, 1–15 July 2021) and the main large-scale study (1–31 August 2021) on consumers subscribed to one-person media (YouTube, Ustream, AfreecaTV, Naver TVcast, etc.) and created beauty-focused content and offered online streaming services within the last three months and who had been exposed to personal beauty content information and had neighbors clipping or commenting on this information. A total of 694 samples without missing values were ultimately selected. Because a self-report survey method was used in this study, common method bias may have incurred because all the measurements of the variables were based on the same respondents. The common method bias can also be induced by the convenience of the measurement method applied (such as surveys) or the measurement circumstances rather than the respondents [42,43]. Means for resolving the common method bias include the preliminary method (research design/survey composition) and posterior method (statistical analysis) [44]. To control the recall cues and coherence motivation used by the respondents in the research design stage, we divided the survey into two stages. The first-stage survey excluded the dependent variables, and the second-stage survey included the dependent variables with time distinction. In the survey preparation stage, we established the items’ clarity, objectivity, and simplicity by examining the opinions of experts at friends-based SNS companies. We also conducted a preliminary survey among the sample population to increase its specificity and relevance. Fourth, in this study, we used SPSS 23.0 in order to perform frequency analysis on the general characteristics of samples, as well as reliability and validity testing for internal consistency, and the AMOS 23.0 statistical package for model and path analyses. The research hypotheses were verified by examining the difference in the results of each structural model in terms of factors affecting conformity appeal attributes and information diffusion behavior in one-person media.

4. Research Findings and Discussions

4.1. Demographic Characteristics of the Research Sample

The demographic characteristics of the research sample are described below (Table 1). There were 604 female subjects (87.03%) and 90 male subjects (12.97%), with a much higher ratio of women. A total of 424 subjects were in their 20s (61.1%), 221 were in their 30s (31.8%), and 49 were in their 40s or older (7.1%). More than half of the participants resided in Seoul (219 subjects, 31.6%) and Gyeonggi (187, 26.9%), and with the rest residing in other areas (288, 41.5%). A total of 511 subjects were single (73.6%), and 183 were married (26.4%); most subjects were university students/graduates (461, 66.4%), followed by high school graduates (119, 17.1%), junior college students/graduates (60, 8.6%), and graduate students or higher (54, 7.8%). The sample group comprised 241 office workers (34.7%), 227 students (32.7%), 103 homemakers (14.9%), 84 with other occupations (12.1%), and 39 unemployed subjects (5.6%). Among the sample population, 267 participants had an average monthly household income of 3 million ≤ KRW < 5 million (38.5%), followed by 1 million ≤ KRW < 3 million (257, 37.0%), 5 million ≤ KRW < 7 million (121, 17.4%), and KRW ≥ 7 million (49, 7.1%).

4.2. Reliability and Validity Tests

Before assessing the measurement model, we determined the Cronbach’s α to test the internal consistency of each construct and examine the reliability. First, as a result of performing a factor analysis applying the varimax rotation on twelve items of conformity appeal attributes of beauty-focused one-person media, four factors with an eigenvalue of 1.000 or higher, i.e., “information cascade” (three items), “utility value efficiency” (three items), “reference group influence” (three items), and “subnetwork structure” (three items) were extracted, as shown in Table 2. The total variance elucidated by these four factors was 67.350%, and the Cronbach’s α coefficients were all above 0.725, indicating high reliability of the items. Moreover, as a result of performing a factor analysis applying the varimax rotation on nine items describing the characteristics of social conformity, three factors with an eigenvalue of 1.000 or higher, i.e., “social imitation conformity” (three items), “social connection conformity” (three items), and “social comparative conformity” (three items) were extracted, as shown in Table 3. The total variance elucidated by these three factors was 70.993%, and the Cronbach’s α coefficients were all above 0.780, indicating high reliability of the items. As a result of performing a single-factor test on research variables explaining collaborative innovation networks and information diffusion behavior, single factors were extracted from each of the factors, i.e., “cocreation” (three items) and “information diffusion behavior” (three items), as shown in Table 4; the factor loadings of these single factors were all above 0.726, with a reliability above 0.725.
We also conducted a non-rotation factor analysis based on the principal component method. A single-factor test indicated that the variance among the factors with the largest explanatory power among the items with eigenvalues greater than 1 was 44.358%. Hence, the common method bias problem did not exist in this study [45]. The results of a confirmatory factor analysis verified the construct validity of all the study’s estimation variables.

4.3. Confirmatory Factor Analysis

Table 5 presents the results of the confirmatory factor analysis. Based on the results of measurement of unstandardized coefficients, standardized coefficients, SE, CR, construct reliability, and average variance extracted (AVE), it was determined that the standardized coefficients were all above 0.6, thereby proving construct validity. AVE values were all above 0.5, thereby proving convergent validity. Construct reliability values were all above 0.7, thereby proving internal consistency.

4.4. Research Hypothesis Testing

In this study, we approximated the fit and parameters for path analysis using the maximum likelihood estimation. First, the fit indices of the path analysis for the integrated model were X2 = 183.403 (df = 2, p = 0.000), GFI = 0.948, AGFI = 0.919, RMR = 0.046, NFI = 0.939, CFI = 0.954, and RMSEA = 0.062, which were satisfactory and cohesively explained the relations among research constructs within the suggested model (Table 6).
Furthermore, results of tests verifying the hypotheses of the structural model with regard to the relationships between conformity appeal attributes, social conformity, cocreation, and information diffusion behavior of beauty-focused one-person media are as follows (Figure 2, Table 7).
The results of this study are as follows. First, as a result of the path analysis between conformity appeal attributes and social conformity of beauty-focused one-person media, it was determined that information cascade significantly affected social imitation conformity (β = 0.286, CR = 11.598, p = 0.000), utility value efficiency significantly affected social imitation conformity (β = 0.122, CR = 5.588, p = 0.000), reference group influence significantly affected social imitation conformity (β = 0.085, CR = 3.836, p = 0.000), and subnetwork structure significantly affected social imitation conformity (β = 0.135, CR = 6.106, p = 0.000). Subnetwork structure significantly affected social connection conformity (β = 0.085, CR = 3.265, p = 0.011), but information cascade did not significantly affect social connection conformity (β = 0.005, CR = 0.170, p = 0.865), utility value efficiency did not significantly affect social connection conformity (β = 0.003, CR = 0.114, p = 0.909), and reference group influence did not significantly affect social connection conformity (β = 0.036, CR = 1.377, p = 0.169). Moreover, reference group influence significantly affected social comparative conformity (β = 0.101, CR = 3.732, p = 0.000), and subnetwork structure also significantly affected social comparative conformity (β = 0.060, CR = 2.210, p = 0.027), whereas information cascade did not significantly affect social comparative conformity (β = 0.054, CR = 1.768, p = 0.098), and utility value efficiency also did not significantly affect social comparative conformity (β = 0.004, CR = 0.151, p = 0.880). Second, as a result of the path analysis between social conformity and cocreation in beauty-focused one-person media, it was determined that social imitation conformity significantly affected cocreation (β = 0.133, CR = 2.863, p = 0.004), social connection conformity significantly affected cocreation (β = 0.205, CR = 4.584, p = 0.000), and social comparative conformity significantly affected cocreation (β = 0.393, CR = 9.665, p = 0.000). Third, as a result of the path analysis between cocreation and information diffusion behavior in beauty-focused one-person media, it was determined that cocreation significantly affected information diffusion behavior (β = 0.693, CR = 25.313, p = 0.000).
The results of this study can be compared to those of previous studies. First, regarding the relationship between conformity appeal attributes and social conformity of beauty-focused one-person media, the results of research hypothesis H1-1-1, representing the significant relationship between information cascades and social imitation conformity are consistent with a study that showed that information cascade or information of existing users induces imitation and flocking behavior from other users [18]. However, because reputation, clustering, and expressiveness of shared information are not important factors for active exposure and response of participants and their use as a function and tool to express personal identity, the results of hypotheses H1-2-1 and H1-3-1 indicated no significant effect. In addition, hypothesis H1-1-2, representing the significant relationship between utility value efficiency and social imitation conformity, is supported by a study showing that people consider experienced users’ actions important information because of the uncertainty in accepting new information [6]. However, hypotheses H1-2-2 and H1-3-2 are not supported because accuracy and situational timeliness of information utilization are insufficiently utilized as a tool to actively respond to the needs of participants and express personal values. Moreover, research hypotheses H1-1-3, representing the significant relationship between reference group influence and social imitation conformity, and H1-3-3, representing the relationship between reference group influence and social comparative conformity, are promoted by studies showing that centrality in a network structure controls information flow in the network, improves access to important information, and significantly affects other members’ decisions [21,22]. However, hypothesis H1-2-3 is not supported because the useful and informational influence of the reference group was insufficiently utilized as a tool to express individuality, values, and identity. Furthermore, research hypotheses H1-1-4, H1-2-4, and H1-3-4 are supported by a study showing that spreading perceptions on social networks contributes positively to the process of accumulating and sharing information about an organization’s problem-solving mechanism [46]; as well as a study showing that shared attitudes, values, or cultural backgrounds among group members are closely tied to group cohesiveness, which may affect the organization’s productivity [47]; and a study showing that members of a highly cohesive group socially identify with the members of the organization, which is an important factor in prosocial behavior [48]. Similar results explain the significant relationships between the subnetwork structure and subfactors of social conformity consisting of social imitation conformity, social connection conformity, and social comparative conformity. Second, with respect to the relationship between social conformity and cocreation in beauty-focused one-person media, research hypotheses H2-1, H2-2, and H2-3 are supported by a study showing that social intelligence of a group is enhanced when members perceive the group goal and complete valuable tasks by interacting among themselves in communication links [49]; as well as a study showing that individual knowledge can be expanded into organizational-level competitiveness and induce individual and organizational performance by promoting exchange through interactions among members and promoting cooperation and exchange within the social network [50]; a study showing that reliable information was found without any difference in the effect among individual information processing tendencies when there was social conformity [51]; and a study showing that the practical value of collective intelligence is a mutual economic value whereby members replicate new knowledge and produce empathic energy by collaborating within the community, making it important to sustain and develop this value to create enriching empathy and information exchange in the fulfillment process [52]. Third, regarding the relationship between cocreation and information diffusion behavior in beauty-focused one-person media, research hypothesis H3 is supported by a study showing that people in social network relations conform to norms or information to become similar to or accepted by the group, and higher conformity leads to higher acceptance by the group [53]; as well as study showing that when providers in the network recommend attractive products, people with similar needs, interests, or dispositions are more likely to purchase comparable products under within a similar environment [54]; and a study showing that groups have preference similarities and therefore individual acceptance in the social network is affected by the compliance of other people connected around them [55].

5. Conclusions

The use of one-person media in e-commerce promotes new relationships or information sharing that differ from those of online services of the past. Thus, the detailed examination of conformity appeal attributes presented in this study can be a driving force to create new network values in combination with functional changes in the online and mobile services of beauty companies. Accordingly, in this study, we developed conformity appeal attributes in one-person media and determined how these attributes affect information diffusion behavior through social conformity and collaborative innovation networks with sustainable values.
Therefore, in this study, the conformity appeal attribute factors that affect the behavior of other users in one-person media, where users’ social interaction based on preference and conformity increases, were subdivided, and a research direction that can be approached as social–psychological factors from the social network level was presented. In particular, because the conformity appeal attributes of beauty-focused one-person media used in this study were intrinsically focused on the scope of using beauty products (services) and information shopping, they were expected to evaluate the role of one-person media with more focus regarding the relational performance of beauty consumers. In addition, social conformity from the motivational and cognitive perspectives, collaborative innovation networks (cocreation), and information diffusion behavior (social cascade) were regarded as a series of behavioral factors whereby a structural transformation occurs through continuous conformity, which affects other people. This not only enables social connections among members of the reference group of beauty-focused one-person media but can also be applied as an effective phenomenon to explain the continuous maintenance, reinforcement, and expansion of these relations, leading to theoretical expansion and assessment of variables.
The marketing implications of the findings of this study are as follows. First, in order to increase social imitation conformity, which is formed by informational influence in beauty-focused one-person media and represents the tendency to accept others’ behaviors as information about objective reality, it is necessary to secure reputation through the objectivity and reliability of shared information in beauty-focused one-person media and increase information cascades by forming clusters of shared information and enabling the use of various expressive elements to increase the level of understanding. It is also necessary to improve the completeness of value information utilization and timeliness of situational information utilization while also enhancing the utility value efficiency for accurate use of information. Furthermore, the utilitarian reference group influence and value-expressive influence must be increased, and the reference group influence must be increased through informational influence. It is also necessary to increase subnetwork activity and interaction and strategically build a subnetwork structure to actively express connectivity and preference similarity, which enable members to achieve consciousness of kind. Moreover, in order to increase the social connection conformity, which is formed by normative influence in beauty-focused one-person media and represents the tendency to meet the expectations of the majority for social approval, as well as social comparative conformity, which formed by identification influence in beauty-focused one-person media and represents the tendency to form a positive self-concept by comparing with others, it is necessary to focus on the strategic approach of the subnetwork structure related to the aforementioned subnetwork activity (interaction), subnetwork connectivity (consciousness of kind), and subnetwork preference similarity. In particular, social comparative conformity requires a strategic approach through utilitarian reference group influence, value-expressive reference group influence, and informational reference group influence.
Second, in order to increase cocreation of information through collaboration based on external collective intelligence to externally expand internal information of beauty-focused one-person media and perform joint production, it is necessary to increase the personal need for use of surroundings, personal utility for social information participation, and social imitation conformity to enable personal use because of social issues. There must also be a strategy to increase sharing with participants as a routine and social connection conformity by actively exposing personal thoughts (experiences) and actively meeting participant needs. Furthermore, various strategic tools must be developed to enable individuals to express their personal identities and values, as well as to increase social comparative conformity that facilities expression of individuality.
Third, for consumers to deliver and reprocess information after obtaining word-of-mouth information in beauty-focused one-person media and increase information diffusion behavior to form willingness to recommend, word-of-mouth intention, and intention to share, it is necessary to show a synergy of collaboration through interaction and increase cocreation through responsibility toward group contribution and openness in presenting personal opinions.
Based on the results presented above, this study provides beauty-focused one-person media community operators and marketers with the motives of consumers continuously using one-person media, as well as attributes affecting these motives in e-commerce. However, because this study focuses on information diffusion of beauty-focused one-person media services, it not possible to generalize the information use of beauty-focused one-person media. Thus, it is necessary to identify various factors that can further subdivide conformity dimension according to the value of beauty use and specify those factors according to the characteristics and scope of beauty services. Furthermore, in order to extensively develop beauty-focused one-person media that still requires additional content compared to other fields, there is a need to further discuss ways to provide all kinds of information, such as beauty product information search or results of action. Thus, it is essential to review the suitability and validity of assessment factors and expand the application scope by conducting a practical survey about social characteristics and traits of beauty-focused one-person media among beauty consumers who actually use one-person media.

Author Contributions

S.K. and Y.N. formulated the survey and wrote the initial draft of the paper. S.K. provided research ideas and was responsible for the majority of writing and editing. Y.N. administered the survey, performed statistical analysis, and contributed to the writing of the paper. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

This work was supported by the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea and the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF-2020S1A5A2A03042345).

Institutional Review Board Statement

Ethical review and approval were waived for this study because the level of risk involved in methodology-based research is minimal.

Informed Consent Statement

Informed consent was attained from all subjects who participated in the study.

Data Availability Statement

Data is not publicly available. However, the data may be provided by the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Sustainability 14 06226 g001 550
Figure 1. Research model.
Figure 1. Research model.
Sustainability 14 06226 g001
Sustainability 14 06226 g002 550
Figure 2. Research results model (* p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001).
Figure 2. Research results model (* p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001).
Sustainability 14 06226 g002
Table
Table 1. Demographic characteristics of research subjects.
Table 1. Demographic characteristics of research subjects.
CategoryPerson (%)CategoryPerson (%)
GenderFemale604 (87.3)OccupationOffice worker241 (34.7)
Male90 (12.97)Student227 (32.7)
Age20s424 (61.1)Homemaker103 (14.9)
30s221 (31.8)Other84 (12.1)
40s and older49 (7.1)Unemployed39 (5.6)
EducationUniversity student/graduate461 (66.4)Average Monthly
Income		3 million ≤ KRW < 5 million267 (38.5)
High school graduate119 (17.1)1 million ≤ KRW < 3 million257 (37.0)
Junior college student/graduate60 (8.6)5 million ≤ KRW < 7 million121 (17.4)
Graduate student or higher54 (7.8)KRW ≥ 7 million49 (7.1)
Marital StatusSingle511 (73.6)Place of ResidenceSeoul219 (31.6)
Married183 (26.4)Gyeonggi187 (26.9)
Other288 (41.5)
Table
Table 2. Reliability and validity analysis of conformity appeal attributes of beauty-focused one-person media.
Table 2. Reliability and validity analysis of conformity appeal attributes of beauty-focused one-person media.
VariableItemEigenvalueComponentVarianceCronbach’s α
Information
cascade		‣ Reputation of shared information (objectivity and reliability)2.2100.84618.4170.786
‣ Clustering of shared information0.838
‣ Expressivity of shared information (level of understanding)0.828
Utility value
efficiency		‣ Value completeness of information utilization2.1520.84217.9360.735
‣ Situational timeliness of information utilization0.825
‣ Accuracy of information utilization0.758
Reference group influence‣ Utilitarian reference group influence1.8800.81015.6660.777
‣ Value-expressive reference group influence0.805
‣ Informational reference group influence0.725
Subnetwork
structure		‣ Subnetwork activity (interaction)1.8400.82115.3310.794
‣ Subnetwork connectivity (consciousness of kind)0.812
‣ Subnetwork preference similarity0.754
Table
Table 3. Reliability and validity analysis of social conformity factors.
Table 3. Reliability and validity analysis of social conformity factors.
VariableItemEigenvalueComponentVarianceCronbach’s α
Social imitation
conformity		‣ Personal need for use of surroundings2.7520.87730.5760.799
‣ Personal utility for social information participation0.875
‣ Personal use due to social issues0.780
Social connection
conformity		‣ Sharing with participants as a routine1.8410.83220.4510.760
‣ Actively exposing personal thoughts (experiences)0.823
‣ Actively meeting participant needs0.813
Social comparative
conformity		‣ Can express personal identity1.7970.85219.9660.759
‣ A tool for expressing personal values0.828
‣ Ease of expressing individuality0.782
Table
Table 4. Reliability and validity analysis on single factors.
Table 4. Reliability and validity analysis on single factors.
VariableItemEigenvalueComponentVarianceCronbach’s α
Cocreation‣ Synergy of interaction (collaboration)2.6610.86044.3580.725
‣ Responsibility toward group contribution0.818
‣ Openness in presenting personal opinions0.726
Information‣ Intention to share the obtained beauty information1.5220.87025.3740.821
diffusion‣ Willingness to recommend the obtained beauty information0.861
behavior‣ Word-of-mouth intention for the obtained beauty information0.843
Table
Table 5. Results of confirmatory factor analysis.
Table 5. Results of confirmatory factor analysis.
Measurement ItemUnstandardized
Coefficient		Standardized CoefficientSECRConstruct
Reliability		AVE
Conformity appeal attributes of beauty-focused one-person media
Information cascade
11.0000.859--0.8000.705
20.9660.8760.02215.869
30.9380.9580.01913.868
Utility value efficiency
11.0000.881--0.7410.651
20.9420.9830.04922.798
30.8940.9160.03516.269
Reference group influence
11.0000.873--0.7890.667
20.9880.9230.03520.163
30.8940.9560.02816.294
Subnetwork structure
11.0000.921--0.8140.669
20.9910.9690.03219.415
30.8590.8400.02414.778
Social conformity
Social imitation conformity
11.0000.894--0.8110.681
20.9690.9850.02016.599
30.8170.7920.01310.941
Social connection conformity
11.0000.905--0.7860.696
20.9870.8560.02417.452
30.9510.9530.02114.788
Social comparative conformity
11.0000.921--0.7470.681
20.9580.8560.02819.460
30.9420.9410.01913.214
Cocreation
11.0000.992--0.7350.642
20.9240.9020.02821.083
30.8000.8400.01813.765
Information diffusion behavior
11.0000.909--0.8320.717
20.9710.8620.02414.404
30.9690.8940.01811.938
Note. SE = standard error; CR = critical ratio; AVE = average variance extraction.
Table
Table 6. Result of the estimation of the model fit.
Table 6. Result of the estimation of the model fit.
ConceptGoodness of Fit Index
X2dfp-ValueGFIAGFIRMRNFICFIRMSEA
Study Model183.40320.0000.9480.9190.0460.9390.9540.062
Note. GFI = goodness of fit index; AGFI = adjusted goodness of fit index; RMR = root mean square residual; NFI = normed fit index; CFI = comparative fit index; RMSEA = root mean square error of approximation.
Table
Table 7. Results of hypotheses testing.
Table 7. Results of hypotheses testing.
TypePathwayEstimateSECRp-ValueResult
H1-1-1Information cascade→Social imitation conformity0.2860.02511.5980.000 ***Accepted
H1-1-2Utility value efficiency→Social imitation conformity0.1220.0245.5880.000 ***Accepted
H1-1-3Reference group influence→Social imitation conformity0.0850.0223.8360.000 ***Accepted
H1-1-4Subnetwork structure→Social imitation conformity0.1350.0226.1060.000 ***Accepted
H1-2-1Information cascade→Social connection conformity0.0050.0310.1700.865Rejected
H1-2-2Utility value efficiency→Social connection conformity0.0030.0280.1140.909Rejected
H1-2-3Reference group influence→Social connection conformity0.0360.0261.3770.169Rejected
H1-2-4Subnetwork structure→Social connection conformity0.0850.0263.2650.011 *Accepted
H1-3-1Information cascade→Social comparative conformity0.0540.0321.7680.098Rejected
H1-3-2Utility value efficiency→Social comparative conformity0.0040.0290.1510.880Rejected
H1-3-3Reference group influence→Social comparative conformity0.1010.0273.7320.000 ***Accepted
H1-3-4Subnetwork structure→Social comparative conformity0.0600.0272.2100.027 *Accepted
H2-1Social imitation conformity→Cocreation0.1330.0472.8630.004 **Accepted
H2-2Social connection conformity→Cocreation0.2050.0454.5840.000 ***Accepted
H2-3Social comparative conformity→Cocreation0.3930.0419.6650.000 ***Accepted
H3Cocreation→Information diffusion behavior0.6930.02725.3130.000 ***Accepted
Note. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001.
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Kang, S.; Na, Y. A Study on Conformity Appeal Attributes and Social Contagion of Beauty-Focused One-Person Media in Sustainable E-Commerce. Sustainability 2022, 14, 6226. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14106226

AMA Style

Kang S, Na Y. A Study on Conformity Appeal Attributes and Social Contagion of Beauty-Focused One-Person Media in Sustainable E-Commerce. Sustainability. 2022; 14(10):6226. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14106226

Chicago/Turabian Style

Kang, Sungmin, and Younkue Na. 2022. "A Study on Conformity Appeal Attributes and Social Contagion of Beauty-Focused One-Person Media in Sustainable E-Commerce" Sustainability 14, no. 10: 6226. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14106226

APA Style

Kang, S., & Na, Y. (2022). A Study on Conformity Appeal Attributes and Social Contagion of Beauty-Focused One-Person Media in Sustainable E-Commerce. Sustainability, 14(10), 6226. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14106226

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