PhD defence: Katrine Kunst

The widespread digitization of consumers’ daily lives creates a plethora of digital traces of consumers’ product-related behaviors. This dissertation investigates the use of such digital traces in product design and how consumer’s digital behaviors can in fact be turned into communicative content with marketing value. Through a series of five research papers, the dissertation seeks to both conceptually and empirically shed light on this type of behavior-based information. First, through a grounded theory-inspired approach the concept of ‘Electronic Word of Behavior’ (eWOB) is derived. Second, through an online experiment it is demonstrated how the incorporation of behavior-based information (eWOB), as well as opinion-based information (eWOM), into an online service positively affects potential users’ attitude towards the service. Third, through an interview design, it is documented that users ascribe meaning and use-opportunities to eWOB that go beyond what has hitherto been considered its role. Finally, implications for product design are offered to guide the utilization of eWOB.

Primary Supervisor:
Professor Ravi Vatrapu
Department of Digitalization
Copenhagen Business School

Secondary Supervisor:
Professor Torsten Ringberg
Department of Marketing
Copenhagen Business School

Assessment Committee:
Professor MSO Ioanna Constantiou (Chair)
Department of Digitalization
Copenhagen Business School

Professor Harri Oinas-Kukkonen 
Faculty of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering
University of Oulu 

Professor Scott Robertson 
Department of Information and Computer Sciences
University of Hawai'i at Mānoa

Thesis:
The thesis will be available here

Reception:
The Doctoral School of Business and Management will host a reception, which will take place immediately after the defence in the area outside the defence room.

Location:
Copenhagen Business School, Kilevej 14A (Ks54), 2000 Frederiksberg