알고리즘 추천 vs. 지인 추천: 소비자 동조 성향 기반 SNS 광고 효과의 이중 경로 메커니즘 고찰

This study investigates how different SNS advertising exposure types—algorithmic recommendation versus friend-based recommendation—shape consumer product attitudes through dual psychological mechanisms. Grounded in Consumer Conformity Theory, the study conceptualizes informational and normative consumer conformity as underlying psychological filters that consumers activate when processing SNS advertising. An online experiment using Instagram-based stimuli was conducted, and analyses via PROCESS macro and regression models yielded three major findings. First, both exposure types significantly affected product attitudes, with friend-based recommendation inducing more favorable evaluations. Second, informational and normative conformity traits each positively influenced product attitude, indicating that consumers interpret SNS advertising through internalized dispositions rather than solely through message attributes. Third, normative conformity demonstrated stronger explanatory power than informational conformity, underscoring SNS as a self-presentational and socially observable environment in which social approval and belonging motives play a critical role. Theoretically, this study repositions SNS advertising as a dual-path persuasion mechanism driven by consumer traits, rather than message-centered attributes alone. Practically, the findings suggest strategies such as incorporating social-cue visualization and developing hybrid recommendation systems that integrate both algorithm-driven personalization and socially endorsed cues.