Genuine, fake, or does it matter? Exploring engagement behavior driven by self-presentation

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Alexander, Matthew and Jaakkola, Elina and Thanvarachorn, Archareeporn and Doherty, Anne Marie (2026) Genuine, fake, or does it matter? Exploring engagement behavior driven by self-presentation. Journal of Business Research, 210. 116144. ISSN 0148-2963 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2026.116144)

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Abstract

Customer engagement research assumes engagement is underpinned by pre-existing purchase or usage relationships and genuine cognitive or emotional connections with a brand. However, social media research reveals extensive activity motivated by self-presentation, resulting in content that lacks veracity. This paper explores self-presentation-driven engagement behaviors on social media and the brand relationships that drive them. A qualitative study employing semi-structured interviews with 30 Facebook users was conducted, revealing three types of engagement behaviors for self-presentation (EBSP) — “staged,” “fanciful,” and “faked” behaviors — and identifying their underlying brand relationships and consumer motivations that deviate from existing assumptions in engagement research. This study contributes by (1) introducing new types of engagement behaviors informed by self-presentation theory; (2) challenging assumptions about the brand relationships that support customer engagement; (3) reframing how engagement should be conceptualized and studied; and (4) revealing how engagement behaviors reflect differing levels of congruity between the self and brand.

ORCID iDs

Alexander, Matthew ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3770-8056, Jaakkola, Elina, Thanvarachorn, Archareeporn and Doherty, Anne Marie ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5480-814X;
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)