Skip to main content
Article | Journal of Digital Marketing and Communication | Volume 5 - Issue 2 - 2025 | 184−198 | https://doi.org/10.53623/jdmc.v5i2.937
© 2025 by the author(s), and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) License Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) License

Effect of Video Type on the Intention to Follow the Influencer's Advice on Tik Tok: Moderating Role of the Need for Humor

Author(s): Khouloud Chaabane 1 , Rym Bouzaabia 2
Author(s) information:
1 Faculty of Economics and Management of Sousse, University of Sousse,Tunisia
2 ERMA Laboratory, Institute of Higher Business Studies of Sousse, University of Sousse, Tunisia

Corresponding author

Journal of Digital Marketing and Communication

Volume 5 - Issue 2 - 2025

 About the journal
Submit your article

In a context characterized by a strong and increasing competitiveness of digital markets, it was essential to understand how humor could increase the intention of followers on Tik Tok. This study fills a gap in previous research by examining the effect of the types of videos (humorous vs non-humorous) on the attitude towards the influencer and the intention to follow the influencer's advice.  A quantitative approach was adopted, and an online questionnaire was distributed to Tik Tok followers. The sample, consisting of 120 followers of a popular TikTok influencer, was analyzed using the SPSS and AMOS 23 software. To test the hypotheses, we used means comparison tests, supplemented by a moderation mediation analysis using model 7 of the Hayes macro PROCESS. The results of a quasi-experiment showed that the humorous video increases the attitude towards the influencer more than the non-humorous video. In addition, the results show that the attitude towards the influencer positively influences the intention to follow the influencers' advice. On the other hand, the results revealed that the moderating role of the need for humor is confirmed. These results enrich the understanding of the mechanisms by which humor influences TikTok followers in search of more captivating experiences. It would be relevant for subsequent research to reproduce the study by mobilizing a larger sample, so as to strengthen the reliability and generalization of the conclusions and to integrate additional variables to enrich the current model.

Read Full-Text
Previous article
Next article

Boughroum, Y.; Hamadi, C. (2025). Orientation commerciale de la marque et marketing d’influence : un dilemme de crédibilité perçue par les consommateurs marocains. International Journal of Accounting, Finance, Auditing, Management and Economics, 6(9), 28–43.

Azzouzi, M.; Naoui, F. (2025). Impact de la communication digitale par le biais des influenceurs sur l’intention d’achat en ligne des produits de mode : étude quantitative sur la base de la modélisation par les équations structurelles. African Scientific Journal, 3(32), 90–90.

Bu, Y.; Parkinson, J.; Thaichon, P. (2022). Influencer marketing: Homophily, customer value co-creation behaviour and purchase intention. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 66, 102904. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2021.102904.

Top 10 most downloaded apps and games of 2021: TikTok, Telegram big winners (20 January 2022). (accessed on 1 November 2025) Available online: https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnkoetsier/2021/12/27/top-10-most-downloaded-apps-and-games-of-2021-tiktok-telegram-big-winners/.

Marketers increasingly turn to TikTok for influencer marketing. (accessed on 1 November 2025) Available online: https://www.emarketer.com/content/tiktok-influencer-marketing.

Haenlein, M.; Anadol, E.; Farnsworth, T.; Hugo, H.; Hunichen, J.; Welte, D. (2020). Navigating the new era of influencer marketing: How to be successful on Instagram, TikTok & Co. California Management Review, 63(1), 5–25. https://doi.org/10.1177/0008125620958166.

6 Red-hot influencer marketing predictions for 2022. (accessed on 1 November 2025) Available online: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2022/01/11/6-red-hot-influencer-marketing-predictions-for-2022/.

Belanche, D.; Casaló, L. V.; Flavián, M.; Ibáñez-Sánchez, S. (2021a). Understanding influencer marketing: The role of congruence between influencers, products and consumers. Journal of Business Research, 132, 186–195. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.03.076.

Lahuerta-Otero, E.; Cordero-Gutiérrez, R. (2016). Looking for the perfect tweet: The use of data mining techniques to find influencers on Twitter. Computers in Human Behavior, 64, 575–583. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2016.07.015.

Tafesse, W.; Wood, B. (2021). Followers’ engagement with Instagram influencers: The role of influencers’ content and engagement strategy. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 58, 102303. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2020.102303.

Arora, A.; Bansal, S.; Kandpal, C.; Aswani, R.; Dwivedi, Y. (2019). Measuring social media influencer index: Insights from Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 49, 86–101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2019.03.012.

Sokolova, K.; Kefi, H. (2020). Instagram and YouTube bloggers promote it, why should I buy? How credibility and parasocial interaction influence purchase intentions. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 53, 101742. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2019.01.011.

Audrezet, A.; de Kerviler, G.; Moulard, J. G. (2020). Authenticity under threat: When social media influencers need to go beyond self-presentation. Journal of Business Research, 117, 557–569. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.07.008.

Casaló, L.V.; Flavián, C.; Ibáñez-Sánchez, S. (2020). Influencers on Instagram: Antecedents and consequences of opinion leadership. Journal of Business Research, 117, 510–519. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.07.005.

Barta, S.; Belanche, D.; Fernández, A.; Flavián, M. (2023). Influencer marketing on TikTok: The effectiveness of humor and followers’ hedonic experience. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 70, 103118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2022.103118.

Yoon, S.; Tinkham, S.F. (2013). Understanding celebrity fan identification: A functional, symbolic interactionist perspective. Psychology & Marketing, 30(9), 796–804. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.20651.

Mathies, C.; Lee, J.; Patterson, P.; Chiew, T.M. (2025). Impacts of humour use and humour-endorsing climate on job stress and satisfaction among frontline healthcare service employees. Journal of Services Marketing, 39(2), 245–259. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSM-01-2024-0031.

Zhang, J.; Yu, L.; Zhou, Z. (2025). How does the humorous community climate promote consumer engagement? The mediating role of social capital and the moderating role of heterogeneity. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 34(5), 634–647. https://doi.org/10.1108/JPBM-08-2023-4205.

Cacioppo, J.T.; Petty, R.E.; Kao, C.F.; Rodriguez, R. (1986). Central and peripheral routes to persuasion: An individual difference perspective. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51(5), 1032–1043. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.51.5.1032.

Girandola, F. (2003). Psychologie de la persuasion et de l'engagement (Vol. 4). Presses Universitaires de Franche-Comté.

Aillaud, M.; Piolat, A. (2012). Influence of gender on judgment of dark and nondark humor. Individual Differences Research, 10(4), 211–222.

Suls, J.M. (1972). A two-stage model for the appreciation of jokes and cartoons: An information-processing analysis. The psychology of humor: Theoretical perspectives and empirical issues, 1, 81–100.

Martin, R.A. (2007). The psychology of humor: An integrative approach. Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/C2016-0-03294-1.

Murphy, S.T.; Cody, M. J.; Lubker, J. R. (1979). Effects of humorous literature on attribution of responsibility for events. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37(9), 1486–1492. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.37.9.1486.

Eisend, M.; Evanschitzky, H.; Calantone, R.J. (2014). The relative advantage of marketing over technological capabilities in influencing new product success. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 31(5), 967–983. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpim.12137.

Emadi, D.A.; Yahia, I.B. (2020). The role of social media influencers in shaping purchase intentions and brand loyalty. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 54, 102092. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2019.102092.

Wang, Y. (2020). Humor and camera view on mobile short-form video apps influence user experience and technology-adoption intent: An example of TikTok (DouYin). Computers in Human Behavior, 110, 106373. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2020.106373.

Li, J.J.; Chen, X.P.; Kotha, S.; Fisher, G. (2017). Catching fire and spreading it: A glimpse into displayed entrepreneurial passion in crowdfunding campaigns. Journal of Applied Psychology, 102(1), 1075–1090. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000217.

Lee, M.T.; Theokary, C. (2021). The superstar social media influencer: Exploiting linguistic style and emotional contagion over content. Journal of Business Research, 132, 860–871. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.03.059.

Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-T.

Casaló, L.; Flavián, C.; Ibáñez-Sánchez, S. (2017). Understanding consumer interaction on Instagram: The role of satisfaction, hedonism, and content characteristics. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 20(6), 369–375. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2016.0362.

Ki, C.W.C.; Kim, Y.K. (2019). The mechanism by which social media influencers persuade consumers: The role of consumers’ desire to mimic. Psychology & Marketing, 36(10), 905–922. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21244.

Barta, S.; Belanche, D.; Fernández, A.; Flavián, M. (2023). Influencer marketing on TikTok: The effectiveness of humor and followers’ hedonic experience. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 70, 103118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2022.103118.

García-Buades, M.E.; Peiró, J.M.; Montañez-Juan, M.I.; Kozusznik, M.W.; Ortiz-Bonnín, S. (2020). Happy-productive teams and work units: A systematic review of the happy-productive worker thesis. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(1), 69. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17010069.

Pöyry, E.; Parvinen, P.; Malmivaara, T. (2013). Can we get from liking to buying? Behavioral differences in hedonic and utilitarian Facebook usage. Electronic Commerce Research and Applications, 12(4), 224–235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.elerap.2013.01.003.

Picard, D.; Blanc, N. (2013). Need for humor scale: Validation with French children. Psychological Reports, 112(2), 502–518. https://doi.org/10.2466/15.09.PR0.112.2.502-518.

Cline, T.W.; Altsech, M.B.; Kellaris, J.J. (2003). When does humor enhance or inhibit ad responses? The moderating role of the need for humor. Journal of Advertising, 32(3), 31–45. https://doi.org/10.1080/00913367.2003.10639133.

Cook, T.D.; Campbell, D.T.; Shadish, W. (2002). Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for generalized causal inference. Houghton Mifflin.

Montag, C.; Wegmann, E.; Sariyska, R.; Demetrovics, Z.; Brand, M. (2021). How to overcome taxonomical problems in the study of Internet use disorders and what to do with smartphone addiction? Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 9(4), 908–914. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.2020.00086.

Bucknell Bossen, C.; Kottasz, R. (2020). Uses and gratifications sought by pre-adolescent and adolescent TikTok consumers. Young Consumers, 21(4), 463–478. https://doi.org/10.1108/YC-07-2020-1186.

Silvera, D.H.; Austad, B. (2004). Factors predicting the effectiveness of celebrity endorsement advertisements. European Journal of Marketing, 38(11/12), 1509–1526. https://doi.org/10.1108/03090560410560218.

Perdue, B.C.; Summers, J.O. (1986). Checking the success of manipulations in marketing experiments. Journal of Marketing Research, 23(4), 317–326. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224378602300401.

Les méthodes des équations structurelles. (accessed on 1 May 2025). Available online: https://editions-rnti.fr/render_pdf.php?p=1001904

Anderson, J.C.; Gerbing, D.W. (1988). Structural equation modeling in practice: A review and recommended two-step approach. Psychological Bulletin, 103(3), 411–423. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.103.3.411.

Roussel, P.; Durrieu, F.; Campoy, E.; El Akremi, A. (2005). Analyse des effets linéaires par modèles d'équations structurelles. Méthodes & Recherches, 297–324.

Fornell, C.; Larcker, D.F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39–50. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224378101800104.

Fitzsimons, G.J. (2008). Death to dichotomizing. Journal of Consumer Research, 35(1), 5–8. https://doi.org/10.1086/589561.

Read Full-Text
About this article

SUBMITTED: 30 November 2025
ACCEPTED: 17 December 2025
PUBLISHED: 27 December 2025
SUBMITTED to ACCEPTED: 17 days
DOI: https://doi.org/10.53623/jdmc.v5i2.937

Cite this article
Chaabane, K., & Rym Bouzaabia. (2025). Effect of Video Type on the Intention to Follow the Influencer’s Advice on Tik Tok: Moderating Role of the Need for Humor. Journal of Digital Marketing and Communication, 5(2), 184−198. https://doi.org/10.53623/jdmc.v5i2.937
Accessed
141
Citations
0
Share this article