1. wearedbp.com
SOCIAL MEDIA
PSYCHOLOGY
Ivan Fernandes,
Founder, Digital Business Partners
www.wearedbp.com

2. SOCIAL MEDIA PSYCHOLOGY IS ABOUT UNDERSTANDING
INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIOUR IN A SOCIAL MEDIA CONTEXT.
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3. SOCIAL MEDIA PSYCHOLOGY EVALUATES ATTITUDE
FORMATION, THE STRUCTURE OF ATTITUDES, ATTITUDE
CHANGE, THE FUNCTION OF ATTITUDES, AND THE
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOUR.
SOCIAL MEDIA MIND READERS’
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4. SOCIAL MEDIA PSYCHOLOGY? TELL ME MORE…
• LOOK AT HUMAN BEHAVIOUR AS INFLUENCED BY OTHER
PEOPLE
• LOOK AT HOW PEOPLE BEHAVE IN A GIVEN WAY IN THE
PRESENCE OF OTHERS
• LOOK AT THE CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH CERTAIN
BEHAVIOUR/ACTIONS AND FEELINGS OCCUR
• LOOK AT THE WAY HUMAN FEELINGS, THOUGHTS, BELIEFS,
INTENTIONS AND GOALS ARE DEVELOPED AND HOW THEY
TRANSLATE TO BEHAVIOUR
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5. KEY CONCEPTS TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION
Social Media
Facilitation
•Presence of
others can
facilitate certain
behaviour
Strong positive
communities
drive positive
behaviours
Social Media
Learning
Social Media
Cognitive
Dissonance
•Behaviour in the
social world
could be
modelled
through
observation
•We are
motivated to
reduce
inconsistencies
that causes
discomfort
Addition of guides
and “how to”
drive positive
behaviours
Increase product
information &
FAQ’s to decrease
negative
feedback
Social Media
Identity
•We need to
maintain a
positive sense of
personal and
social identity
Facilitate &
encourage
personalisation
Social Media
Attribution
•Explanatory
attributions to
understand the
world around
consumers’ and
to seek reasons
for a particular
event
Reinforce
perceived
benefits
Social Media
Influence
•Conformity to
social roles
occurs as part of
the social
interactions and
obedience is
most likely to
occur in an
unfamiliar
environment
and in the
presence of an
authority figure
Identify key
influencers and
conformity drivers
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6. DEVELOP A “TRUE” SOCIAL MEDIA EVALUATION
PROGRAMME
Social Media
Management
Social Media
Persuasion
Guide people
towards the adoption
of an attitude, idea,
or behaviour by
rational or emotive
means.
Social Media
Analysis
Social Media
Cognition
Understand how
people perceive,
think about, and
remember
information about
others.
Social Media
Persona
Social Media SelfConcept
Understand how people
develop their selfconcepts by varied
means,
including introspection,
feedback from
others, self-perception,
and social comparison.
www.wearedbp.com

7. SOCIAL MEDIA BEHAVIOUR
• CONSUMER SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR IS DYNAMIC
THINKING, ACTIONS AND FEELINGS ARE CONSTANTLY CHANGING
• CONSUMER SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR INVOLVES INTERACTIONS
THINKING, ACTIONS AND FEELINGS ARE INTERACTING WITH ENVIRONMENT
• CONSUMER SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR INVOLVES EXCHANGES
CONSUMERS GIVE UP SOMETHING OF VALUE TO OTHERS AND RECEIVE
SOMETHING IN RETURN
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8. WHAT MOTIVATES CONSUMERS TO CLICK ON THE “LIKE”
ICON?
CONSUMER AFFECT AND COGNITION REFER TO TYPES OF MENTAL
RESPONSES CONSUMERS HAVE TO STIMULI AND EVENTS IN THEIR
ENVIRONMENT.
Affect
Cognition
Refers to feeling responses
Consists of mental (thinking)
responses
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9. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO “LIKE” A BRAND ON
FACEBOOK?
Types of affect
Emotions
Specific
feelings
Moods
Evaluations
Higher arousal
Lower arousal
Stronger feeling
Weaker feeling
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10. AND WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
• BOTH AFFECT AND COGNITION ARE IMPORTANT FOR UNDERSTANDING
SOCIAL MEDIA BEHAVIOUR.
• SATISFACTION HAS ELEMENTS OF BOTH AFFECT (I.E. LIKING A PRODUCT
OR SERVICE) AND COGNITION (KNOWING WHY YOU LIKE THE PRODUCT
OR SERVICE).
• MARKETERS’ NEED TO UNDERSTAND BOTH AFFECTIVE AND COGNITION
RESPONSES TO DEVELOP OPTIMAL SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIES.
• COGNITION IS KEY TO DEVELOP A ROBUST STRATEGY.
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11. CONSUMERS’ LEARN EVERYTHING THAT THEY ARE FROM
OTHERS. THEY ARE NOT BORN WITH BRAND OR SERVICE
KNOWLEDGE ; THEY ACQUIRE THOSE FROM THEIR
ENVIRONMENT & SOCIAL INTERACTIONS.
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12. Thank
You!
Ivan Fernandes,
Digital Business Partners - @wearedbp
ivanf@wearedbp.com
uk.linkedin.com/in/ivanfernandeswearedbp/
@ivan2012
www.wearedbp.com