Coding variables for VI-fan engagement
| Determinants | Variables | Definitions | References |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anthropomorphic appearance | Humanoid | Authentic and human-like representation | Allal-Chérif et al., (2024) Arsenyan and Mirowska (2021) |
| Non-human | Non-human appearances (typically animals or objects) | ||
| Content types | Character narratives | Personal storytelling by VIs | Allal-Chérif et al., (2024), Kozinets et al., (2010) |
| Communal norms | Content expression and dissemination guidelines for VIs | ||
| Community reactions | VI-fan engagement for different content types | ||
| Cultural congruence | Cultural | Cultural consistency with VIs' origin and identity | De Brito Silva et al., (2022) Kim and Park (2023) |
| Non-cultural | Low or no cultural congruence | ||
| Fan engagement | Comments | Peak fan engagement with high self-expression effort | Antonopoulos et al., (2016) Unnava and Aravindakshan (2021) |
| Likes | Fan acceptance and positive attitudes toward VI posts | ||
| Shares | Enhanced fan engagement with increased feedback through sharing | ||
| Platform differences | Douyin | China's short-video platform (TikTok equivalent) | Shen (2023) Unnava and Aravindakshan (2021) |
| Photo and video-based social networking | |||
| TikTok | Fan interactions via short videos | ||
| Real-time information sharing within fan networks | |||
| Xiaohongshu | China's image-sharing platform (Instagram equivalent) | ||
| YouTube | Online video-sharing and streaming platform |
| Determinants | Variables | Definitions | References |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anthropomorphic appearance | Humanoid | Authentic and human-like representation | |
| Non-human | Non-human appearances (typically animals or objects) | ||
| Content types | Character narratives | Personal storytelling by VIs | |
| Communal norms | Content expression and dissemination guidelines for VIs | ||
| Community reactions | VI-fan engagement for different content types | ||
| Cultural congruence | Cultural | Cultural consistency with VIs' origin and identity | |
| Non-cultural | Low or no cultural congruence | ||
| Fan engagement | Comments | Peak fan engagement with high self-expression effort | |
| Likes | Fan acceptance and positive attitudes toward VI posts | ||
| Shares | Enhanced fan engagement with increased feedback through sharing | ||
| Platform differences | Douyin | China's short-video platform (TikTok equivalent) | |
| Photo and video-based social networking | |||
| TikTok | Fan interactions via short videos | ||
| Real-time information sharing within fan networks | |||
| Xiaohongshu | China's image-sharing platform (Instagram equivalent) | ||
| YouTube | Online video-sharing and streaming platform |
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