Influencers som informationskällor : Unga vuxnas upplevelser av trovärdighet på Tiktok och Instagram

Sammanfattning

The purpose of this study is to understand how young adults between the ages of 18-28 interpret information from influencers on Tiktok and Instagram. But also how they navigate in the digital information overload. The study was conducted with a qualitative method in terms of semistructured interviews and a thematic analysis. The results show how respondents use a variation of factors to assess credibility from influencers on Tiktok and Instagram. Influencers' collaborations with companies are often seen with skepticism which lowers the credibility, but if the influencers use the products themselves it can increase the credibility. Also if it is a collaboration with a well established company it might be interpreted as more reliable. Other factors that affect the credibility are social signals such as likes, number of followers and comments. It can be used as heuristics to determine if a content is trustworthy, especially when the viewers are unsure. Expertise is a factor that often increase the credibility for the influencers and their content. Attraction and parasocial relationships are often an unaware factor that contribute to how an influencer's content is perceived, which can also be affected by algorithms. However, the respondents' own experiences can play a stronger role in how they perceive the content. In summary the study suggests that young adults use a combination of factors when they decide if an influencer's content is trustworthy, which may differ depending on the recipient's own life experiences.