Netnography

Abstract

This is the first article to describe how broadening of the term netnography in qualitative research is leading to misperceptions and missed opportunities. The once accepted need for human presence in netnographic studies is giving way to nonparticipatory (passive) approaches, which claim to be naturalistic and bias-free. While this may be tenable in some environments, it also removes the opportunity for cocreation in online communities and social media spaces. By contrast, participatory (active) netnographers have an opportunity to conduct their research in a way that contributes value and a continuity of narrative to online spaces. This article examines the ways in which netnographies are being used and adapted across a spectrum of online involvement. It explores the ways in which netnographies conform to, or depart from, the unique set of analytic steps intended to provide qualitative rigor. It concludes by advocating for active netnography, one which requires a netnographic "slog" where researchers are prepared for the "blood, sweat, and tears" in order to reap rich benefits.

Taking sustainable fashion mainstream: Social media and the institutional celebrity entrepreneur

“…This included the collection of archival data from @the_press_tour and from qualitative interviews with selfidentified "mainstream followers." Netnography is a flexible qualitative method that offers marketers an insight into consumer behaviour and can be enhanced by taking an active participatory approach (Costello, McDermott, & Wallace, 2017;Heinonen & Medberg, 2018). This single case study, involving both passive and active netnographic approaches, is in keeping with previous netnographic research on other topics (Ewing, Wagstaff, & Powell, 2013;Gurrieri & Cherrier, 2013;Wilkinson & Patterson, 2010).…”

“…From this, a purposive sample of eight was identified for interview. Purposive sampling is acknowledged as suitable for netnographic studies, allowing the inclusion of otherwise hard-toreach groups (Costello et al, 2017). Each interview lasted between 45 and 60 min and was conducted through computer-assisted viewing to simulate face-to-face interviewing (Kozinets, 2012).…”

Community engagement through responsible leadership in managing pandemic: insight from India using netnography

“…Xun and Raynolds, 2010). We, however, chose the generalised approach of convenient sampling suggested by Costello et al (2017), as community engagement during a pandemic affects the community at large rather than targeting a particular stratum. We considered ethical standards and followed the anonymity of the online community both in data analysis and publication (Janta et al, 2012).…”

Sharing is Caring: A Study of Food-Sharing Practices in Australian Early Childhood Education and Care Services

“…The SNAC study was conducted using a qualitative, netnographic methodology, developed by Robert Kozinets in the 1990s, which he recently refined in 2015, and characterised by data co-created by participants online [40]. The five unique steps of netnography described by Kozinets [41]-entrée, data gathering and analysis, trustworthiness, ethical research and feedback opportunities-were applied to ensure qualitative rigour; their application in this study is described next.…”

“…In the fifth netnographic step, Kozinets [41] suggests members should be provided with opportunities for feedback. When the SNAC community reached critical mass and appeared to be viable, members had the opportunity to co-create content online [40] and learn from each other. This community-created content was developed into specific resources, which were checked by participants to ensure their needs were met and was relevant, before being assimilated into more formal site features, such as factsheets and lesson plans.…”