More-than-human netnography

ABSTRACT

Drawing on actor-network theory (ANT), this paper develops a ‘more-than-human’ conception of netnography to extend current thinking on the scope, focus and methods of netnographic research. The proposed approach seeks to account more clearly for the role of human and non-human actors in networked sociality and sets out to examine the interactions of people, technology and socio-material practices. The paper critiques reductive applications of netnography, bound by proceduralism, and advocates research that embraces the complex, multi-temporal, multi-spatial nature of internet and technology-mediated sociality. It challenges researchers to examine and account for the performative capacities of actors and their practices of enactment. By synthesising insights from ANT and emerging work in marketing and consumer research that adopts relational approaches, this paper outlines the challenges and opportunities in developing more-than-human netnographies as an approach to extend current netnography.

KEYWORDS:

• More-than-human
• netnography
• actor-network theory (ANT)
• methodology
• technology

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Peter Lugosi

Peter Lugosi is a Reader at the Oxford School of Hospitality Management, Oxford Brookes University. He has researched and published on a wide range of subjects including customer experience management, parenting cultures, migration and migrant labour issues, research methods, and organisational behaviour. His work appears in a variety of outlets including Annals of Tourism Research, Qualitative Inquiry, Space and Culture, The Sociological Review, Tourism Management, and Urban Studies. He serves on a number of editorial boards including the International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, Journal of Business Research, International Journal of Tourism Research, and Journal of Destination Marketing and Management.

Sarah Quinton

Sarah Quinton is a researcher fascinated by how digitalisation is changing society and how we as researchers explore that changed society. Her research centres around how and why digital technologies are shaping the world of consumption, small business strategy, and citizen behaviour. Her work has been published in multiple international journals including Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of Strategic Marketing, Journal of Marketing Management, International Journal of Management Reviews. Her currently holds the post of Chair of Research Ethics at Oxford Brookes University.