Paper Type
Complete
Paper Number
PACIS2026-1550
Description
Virtual influencers (VIs) have emerged as digital actors widely used in social media marketing. However, limited research has examined how visual cues embedded in VI posts shape user engagement, particularly through body image as an underlying mechanism. Drawing on the Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model, this study investigates how body shape and visual wealth in VI posts influence body image–related responses and subsequent user engagement, with social appearance anxiety as a dispositional susceptibility factor. An online between-subjects experiment using simulated VI posts yielded 174 valid responses from female U.S. residents. Results show that body shape and visual wealth jointly influenced internalization, whereas appearance comparison became more differentiated when social appearance anxiety was taken into account. Cognitive responses were associated with emotional responses, and body appreciation mediated the relationship between cognitive responses and user engagement. These findings extend research on virtual influencers and body image while offering practical design insights.
Recommended Citation
Lin, Hungting and Bi, Nanyi, "Designed to Inspire or to Compare? Body Image Responses and User Engagement with Virtual Influencer Posts" (2026). PACIS 2026 Proceedings. 11.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/pacis2026/general_topic/general_topic/11
Designed to Inspire or to Compare? Body Image Responses and User Engagement with Virtual Influencer Posts
Virtual influencers (VIs) have emerged as digital actors widely used in social media marketing. However, limited research has examined how visual cues embedded in VI posts shape user engagement, particularly through body image as an underlying mechanism. Drawing on the Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model, this study investigates how body shape and visual wealth in VI posts influence body image–related responses and subsequent user engagement, with social appearance anxiety as a dispositional susceptibility factor. An online between-subjects experiment using simulated VI posts yielded 174 valid responses from female U.S. residents. Results show that body shape and visual wealth jointly influenced internalization, whereas appearance comparison became more differentiated when social appearance anxiety was taken into account. Cognitive responses were associated with emotional responses, and body appreciation mediated the relationship between cognitive responses and user engagement. These findings extend research on virtual influencers and body image while offering practical design insights.
Comments
17-General