Deinfluencers as Institutional Actors: Dramaturgical Work and the Embedded Contestation of Consumerism

Authors

• Gokcen Coskuner-Balli, Chapman UniversityFollow
• Charlene Chu, Chapman UniversityFollow
• Niklas Myhr, Chapman UniversityFollow
• Cristina Nistor, Chapman UniversityFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

3-30-2026

Abstract

"In the sections that follow, we develop theoretical scaffolding for our analysis. We begin by reviewing the literature on institutional work, focusing on how embedded actors engage in purposive actions to disrupt taken-for-granted norms. Next, we examine theoretically how influencers operate, setting the stage for understanding how deinfluencers leverage and subvert these roles. We then review scholarship on anti- consumption and consumer resistance, highlighting how deinfluencers depart from conventional activist modes by adopting culturally embedded, everyday practices. Collectively, these literatures inform our conceptualization of deinfluencing as a dramaturgically enacted form of institutional work. Subsequently, we present our methodology, followed by an analysis of five types of institutional work observed in deinfluencer content: constructing moral identities, changing normative associations, educating audiences, constructing normative tribes, and mimicking influencer conventions. We conclude with a discussion of our theoretical contributions."

Comments

This article was originally published in Journal of Business Research, volume 210, in 2026. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2026.116152

Recommended Citation

Coskuner-Balli, G., Chu, C., Myhr, N., & Nistor, C. (2026). Deinfluencers as institutional actors: dramaturgical work and the embedded contestation of consumerism. J. Bus. Res., 210, 116152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2026.116152

Peer Reviewed

1

Copyright

The authors

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.