2024/06/13 by Shawn Enriques, Mark Peterson · 4 citations
Decision Sciences · Psychology · Social Sciences · #Business #Computer science #Computer security #Coping (psychology) #Covert #Economics #Ethics in Business and Education #Government (linguistics) #Marketing #Media Influence and Politics #Misinformation and Its Impacts #Perspective (graphical) #Political science #Psychology #Public relations #State (computer science) #Vulnerability (computing)
paper · pdf · doi:10.1177/02761467241256578
published in Journal of Macromarketing 45(1), 113-129 (SAGE Publishing)
crossref issued 2024/06/13 · crossref published 2024/06/13 · crossref published-online 2024/06/13 · openalex publication_date 2024/06/13 · crossref created 2024/06/13 · crossref published-print 2025/03/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · crossref deposited 2026/04/29 · crossref indexed 2026/08/04 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/04
As technology and interconnectivity increase globally, the opportunity to wage irregular warfare (competition) has become low-cost-low-risk, simple to wage, challenging to detect, and more difficult to deter and defend. Propaganda is the most common method of covert or overt influence operations used by state actors today and often employs the same technologies, channels, and market communication techniques that firms use in more benign pursuits. We propose a framework based on Consumer Vulnerability Theory to explain the effects of state-sponsored propaganda on citizens’ propensity to become vulnerable consumers by manipulating beliefs about the availability and control of government-provided resources. Vulnerability leads citizens to employ coping strategies that help achieve the propagandist’s goals. This perspective may inform policy and public education campaigns to deter and attenuate the harmful effects of state-sponsored propaganda on citizens. Research on moderators and mediators that reduce influence now become more salient.