Creator Economy and Influencer Marketing: Persuasion Mechanisms, Authenticity, and Social Content Analysis - 2026_CDR_DIG_10

The research program investigates the foundational mechanisms of persuasion in influencer marketing and the structural transformations of the creator economy as an ecosystem for the production and circulation of communicative value. The work sits at the intersection of consumer behavior, marketing communication, and content analytics, aiming to understand how creator characteristics (credibility, congruity, perceived authenticity) and content characteristics shape persuasive outcomes along the purchase funnel. The program comprises three lines of work: (i) analysis of social content corpora to identify patterns linked to persuasive outcomes; (ii) study of commercial disclosure and its effect on perceived creator authenticity and trust; (iii) analysis of monetization models and relationships among creators, platforms, and brands. The program employs mixed methods (observational data, experiments, content analytics) and aims at a synergy with BRIEL.