The impact of multiracial identity on behavior influences during influencer interactions

As the multiracial population continues to grow in the United States, advertisers continue to ignore, misrepresent, or commodify this population in media representations. Due to the recency of this group being recognized as a distinct segment of the population, there is little knowledge of the unique values, experiences, or needs shared by multiracial consumers. One specific subgroup, multiracial consumers of Black-white parentage, is particularly interesting in this context due to the unique history between these two racial groups in the United States. Beyond this population’s unique experiences, there is little widespread understanding of this group's consumer habits. The purpose of this study is to gain insight into the unique experiences of the Black-white multiracial population, to understand how these experiences shape their identity, and how their identity shapes consumer behavior, values, and habits in the context of influencer marketing. Using Social Identity Theory to develop research questions, this exploratory qualitative study used semi-structured interviews. Six Black-white multiracial participants were interviewed, and the resulting interview data was coded using thematic analysis. Three themes emerged during the coding process: Identity Development, Navigating Bicultural Discomfort, and Marketing Advice. These themes were then discussed in detail and used to answer the initial research questions, highlighting the pivotal role that influencers and media representations play in the development and navigation of Black-white multicultural identity. Finally, theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Name thesis:degree_name

M.S.

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Advertising

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2024

Author dc:creator

• Baptiste, Paris Marcella Tracie

Contributors dc:contributor

• Chambers, Jason P
• Nelson, Michelle R
• Ham, Chang-Dae

• Advertising
• Multiracial Consumers
• Social Identity Theory
• Influencers
• Social Media
• Multicultural Advertising

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2024 Paris Baptiste

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/124423

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F124423