WHEN INFLUENCE PERSUADES AND TRUST CONSTRAINS: INTEGRATING MEDIA DEPENDENCY AND SOCIAL LEARNING MECHANISMS IN SOCIAL COMMERCE
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33736/ijbs.14462.2026Keywords:
Influencer Marketing, Purchase Intention, Perceived Influence, Credibility of eWOM, TikTokAbstract
In this study, the role of perceived quality of information (PQI), emotional attachment (EMO), perceived influence (PIN), and credibility of eWOM (CWM) is examined to explain how TikTok influencers shape purchase intention (PUR) in social commerce. Under the guidance of Media Dependency Theory and Social Learning Theory, the research examines how influencer-driven content operates through the psychological mechanisms underlying consumer decision-making. Analysis of cross-sectional survey data from 434 TikTok users in Indonesia using PLS-SEM shows a positive relationship between PQI, EMO, and PIN, which subsequently drives PUR. However, EMO does not directly influence PUR, indicating that affective bonds alone are insufficient to trigger purchasing behaviour. Besides, CWM negatively moderates the connection between PIN and PUR, suggesting that greater trust in peer-generated information can constrain, rather than amplify, influencer persuasion, thereby challenging the common assumption that credibility uniformly strengthens influence effects. These findings explain the psychological processes that underlie an influencer's effectiveness. This study contributes to influencer marketing literature by identifying PIN as a central mediating mechanism and by clarifying the boundary conditions under which trust constrains, rather than amplifies, influencer effectiveness in algorithm-driven social commerce.
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