"What Do I Manage and on Whom Do I Depend": Determinants of Bloggers' Actions

Abstract

Blogs have been increasingly sought by companies to form strategic alliances. These alliances form digital networks of relationships between blogs, readers and sponsors. The network, structured by preferential attachment, forces the new blogger to not only manage resources that the blog depends on to survive and build attractiveness in a competitive, heterogeneous and mutable environment; but also the challenge of overcoming the uncertainties, contingencies and vulnerabilities imposed by the context (network), in which they operate. However, do bloggers take different managerial actions in the pursuit of survival and success? With this question in mind, a theoretical model was developed to characterize managerial action according to blog context. The empirical tests of this model, carried out by quantitative and qualitative analysis with 21 blogs, indicated not only that bloggers have adaptive managerial actions, but also that their actions evolve in attempts to increase attractiveness. These results shed light on how managerial actions and decisions can be used to overcome the favoritism intrinsic to networks and contribute to the understanding of how some blogs achieve success quickly and legitimately by acting dynamically and contextually. This explains how leadership positions may switch, something assumed to be random in research based on network theory (preferential attachment).

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