An Investigation of Referral- and Comparison-based Social Influence on Social Networking Sites

This study explored social influence resulting from two distinct social reference processes on social networking sites (SNS). A web-based survey was conducted among consumers in the USA and Indonesia using restaurant consumption as a research context. The study identified the positive relationships between SNS engagement and both referral-based and comparison-based social influence for restaurant selection. Further, it was also identified that the relationships between SNS engagement and social influence are moderated by the different dimensions of consumers’ susceptibility to global influence, which include conformity to consumption trend and social prestige.