Anais
Resumo do trabalho
Marketing · Comportamento do Consumidor
Título
READING IN THE AGE OF INFLUENCE: AN ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT OF BOOKTOKERS ON BOOK CONSUMPTION INTENTIONS
Palavras-chave
BookToker.
Book Consumption Intention.
Theory of Planned Behavior.
Autores
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Tyson AntonioUNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE PERNAMBUCO (UFPE)
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Eduardo Luis Cândido BezerraUNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE PERNAMBUCO (UFPE)
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Marianny Jessica de Brito SilvaUNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE PERNAMBUCO (UFPE)
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PATRÍCIA DE OLIVEIRA CAMPOSUNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DA PARAÍBA (UFPB)
Resumo
Introdução
BookTok has become a vibrant subcommunity where readers and authors interact around classic and contemporary works. Influencers known as booktokers play a central role in it, sharing opinions, offering recommendations, and generating discussions about memorable characters and emotionally engaging narratives. The influence of these opinion leaders is reshaping youth habits, bringing audiences closer to authors and their works. Such influential power can transform a book with limited sales into a bestseller through the dissemination and viralization of informative digital content.
Problema de Pesquisa e Objetivo
Interactions with Booktokers can significantly shape users’ preferences and reading intentions. Despite recognition of the impact that digital influencers have on the attitudes and behaviors of their followers, few studies have sought to understand the dynamics of BookTokers’ influence within literary consumer communities. This study seeks to extend the Theory of Planned Behavior by exploring how users’ attitudes toward booktokers’ recommendations, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and the direct impact of influencers influence intentions to consume literary content.
Fundamentação Teórica
The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) is based on the idea that human behavior results from an individual’s intention to perform a specific action. The theory was originally developed by Ajzen (1991) as an extension of the Theory of Reasoned Action (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980). According to the TPB, an individual’s intention to perform a specific behavior is the primary determinant of that behavior (La Barbera & Ajzen, 2020). Intentions, in turn, are influenced by three main factors: attitude toward the behavior, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control (Ajzen, 1991).
Metodologia
To test the research model, the study employed a quantitative approach using survey methodology. Data were collected from a non-probabilistic convenience sample of individuals aged 18 and over who consumed literary content online and followed at least one BookToker. A cross-sectional online questionnaire, built on validated scales from prior literature, was distributed via Google Forms. After screening, 663 valid responses were retained. Sample profiling was conducted using R, while the hypothetical model was analyzed using SmartPLS 4.
Análise dos Resultados
The study found that users’ attitudes toward book recommendations by BookTokers significantly influence their intention to consume those books. While the hypothesis regarding the impact of external subjective norms was not supported, BookTokers themselves emerged as key social agents shaping followers’ intentions. Among all independent variables, the influence of BookTokers had the strongest effect on consumption intention. Additionally, BookTokers were shown to affect followers’ attitudes toward recommendations, as well as their subjective norms and perceived behavioral control.
Conclusão
The study highlights the role of digital opinion leaders in shaping consumption intentions within online communities. BookTokers are seen as key agents of social and cultural influence, shaping reading habits by encouraging engagement with recommended books and reinforcing social connections among readers. The results indicate that the intention to read books promoted by BookTokers is driven more by internal motivation, enjoyment, and community belonging than by external pressures or practical constraints.
Contribuição / Impacto
The study reconfigures the TPB by incorporating BookTokers as key influencers not only of consumption intention but also of the theory’s core antecedents. From a managerial perspective, it highlights BookTokers as effective promoters of literary products reaching broad and diverse audiences. Beyond their marketing role, BookTokers also serve promoting reading habits, particularly in societies where engagement with books remains critically low. They can contribute meaningfully to the promotion of a sustained reading culture.
Referências Bibliográficas
Ajzen. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211.
La Barbera & Ajzen. (2020). Control interactions in the theory of planned behavior: Rethinking the role of subjective norm. Europe's Journal of Psychology, 16(3), 401.
Roberts, E. (2021). The rise of BookTok. The School Librarian, 69(4), 27-27.
Silva, de Oliveira Campos, de Pontes Gomes, Melo & de Moura. (2025). Proposing an integrative scale of digital influence in the context of influencer marketing. Journal of Business Research, 189, 115152.
La Barbera & Ajzen. (2020). Control interactions in the theory of planned behavior: Rethinking the role of subjective norm. Europe's Journal of Psychology, 16(3), 401.
Roberts, E. (2021). The rise of BookTok. The School Librarian, 69(4), 27-27.
Silva, de Oliveira Campos, de Pontes Gomes, Melo & de Moura. (2025). Proposing an integrative scale of digital influence in the context of influencer marketing. Journal of Business Research, 189, 115152.