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Slanguage: The Use and Effects of Slang Terms in Consumer-to-Consumer and Firm-to-Consumer Online Communication
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- Author(s) / Creator(s)
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SSHRC IG awarded 2018: Our goal is to build an understanding of how internet slang terms affect consumers in public (consumer-to-consumer) and commercial (firm-to-consumer) online communication. How does exposure to slang in online WOM impact consumers' product attitudes and purchase intentions? When and why might slang have positive or negative effects? Does a firm Tweet using slang have similar or different effects? We address these questions by developing and testing a framework that explains how, why, and when internet slang terms affect consumers, whether these terms are used by other consumers or by firms. To do so, we explore two points in the slang lifecycle. First, slang often originates within particular social groups, and is used only by that group (Eble, 2012). We predict that early-stage slang terms will polarize consumer attitudes and purchase intentions when they are used by members of the originating group (consumers or firms), and should do so only for members of that group, because using the slang term signals shared group membership. Second, over their lifetime, slang terms are adopted by the mainstream culture (Coleman, 2012), imbuing them with value (i.e., "coolness"; McCracken, 1988). Thus, we predict that late-stage slang terms will polarize attitudes and purchase intentions for most consumers, because using the slang term signals broad cultural value.
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- Date created
- 2017-10-01
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- Type of Item
- Research Material
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- License
- ©️Moore, Sarah. All rights reserved other than by permission. This document embargoed to those without UAlberta CCID until 2025.