Discovering the juxtaposed affordances in digitally transformed live streaming e-commerce: A mixed-methods study from a vicarious learning perspective

In the post-COVID-19 era, firms have to survive in the increasingly intense brand and economic competition. Brands’ self-built live streaming e-commerce (BLSE), an innovative business model featured with real-time, interactive, and high efficiency characteristics by leveraging technology affordances, arises and becomes increasingly prevalent. BLSE allows brands to communicate directly with customers, providing firms with an opportunity to involve customers in improving brand performance. However, BLSE could have dark side effects and unfavorable consequences. As individuals’ working memory is limited, a wealth of product and brand information may add to their cognitive load. Customers’ satisfaction and brand citizenship behaviors may suffer as a result. How firms can engage customers to improve their economic and brand performance in BLSE has become a pressing concern. Existing research has focused on the economic-related behaviors of customers, primarily from an emotional and psychological perspective. Scant attention has been paid to customers’ brand citizenship behaviors, and the dark side effects of BLSE have yet to be examined. To advance this line of research, this paper conducted a mixed-methods design to bridge these gaps. A qualitative study (Study 1) was conducted to identify the affordances (positive & negative) in BLSE, with the results being applied in a quantitative study (Study 2) to develop a theoretical model. Combing with affordance theory, vicarious learning theory, and cognitive load theory, this paper confirmed that BLSE can exert both positive and negative effects on customers’ decision-making process, and according suggestions are provided.