Abstract
This article presents a network analysis of word-of-mouth referral behavior in a natural environment. The relational properties of tie strength and homophily were employed to examine referral behavior at micro and macro levels of inquiry. The study demonstrates different roles played by weak and strong social ties. At the macro level, weak ties displayed an important bridging function, allowing information to travel from one distinct subgroup of referral actors to another subgroup in the broader social system. At the micro level, strong and homophilous ties were more likely to be activated for the flow of referral information. Strong ties were also perceived as more influential than weak ties, and they were more likely to be utilized as sources of information for related goods.
Keywords
HomophilyReferralInterpersonal tiesWord of mouthBridging (networking)MacroPsychologySocial psychologyStrong tiesSocial network (sociolinguistics)AdvertisingBusinessPolitical scienceMedicineSocial mediaComputer scienceFamily medicine
Affiliated Institutions
Related Publications
The Strength of Weak Ties
Analysis of social networks is suggested as a tool for linking micro and macro levels of sociological theory. The procedure is illustrated by elaboration of the macro implicatio...
Birds of a Feather: Homophily in Social Networks
Similarity breeds connection. This principle—the homophily principle—structures network ties of every type, including marriage, friendship, work, advice, support, information tr...
Social networks and Internet connectivity effects
This paper explores the impact of communication media and the Internet on connectivity between people. Results from a series of social network studies of media use are used as b...
Strong Ties and Job Information
Contrary to Granovetter's hypothesis that salient job information derives from "weak ties" (acquaintances), this study of 299 social and physical scientists at one Canadian and ...
Micro-blogging as online word of mouth branding
In this paper, we report research results investigating micro-blogging as a form of online word of mouth branding. We analyzed 149,472 micro-blog postings containing branding co...
Publication Info
- Year
- 1987
- Type
- article
- Volume
- 14
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 350-350
- Citations
- 2358
- Access
- Closed
External Links
Social Impact
Altmetric
PlumX Metrics
Social media, news, blog, policy document mentions
Citation Metrics
2358
OpenAlex
Cite This
Jacqueline Johnson Brown,
Peter H. Reingen
(1987).
Social Ties and Word-of-Mouth Referral Behavior.
Journal of Consumer Research
, 14
(3)
, 350-350.
https://doi.org/10.1086/209118
Identifiers
- DOI
- 10.1086/209118