Investigating the impact of interpersonal closeness and social status on electronic word-of-mouth effectiveness

This study investigates the effect of interpersonal closeness and social status on electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) effectiveness. Based on data collected from a between-subject experiment, this study finds that interpersonal closeness and social status can positively influence purchase intention. Moreover, review valence is found to moderate the impacts of interpersonal relationships and eWOM adoption on purchase intention. In addition, the results also suggest that interpersonal closeness can drive perceived homophily and thereby eWOM adoption, while social status affects perceived bridging social capital and thereby eWOM adoption.