Garcia, David, Yonas Mitike Kassa, et al. “Analyzing gender inequality through large-scale Facebook Advertising Data.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 115, no. 27, 19 June 2018, pp. 6958–6963, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1717781115. 

• This study introduces the Facebook Gender Divide (FGD) as a real-time, cost-effective tool for assessing gender disparities in Facebook usage across 217 countries. The FGD reflects broader indicators of gender equality in education, health, and economic opportunity. The research highlights a negative correlation between economic gender equality and the Facebook Gender Divide, suggesting that while social media networks exhibit gender imbalances, they can also enhance information access for women and reduce the economic gender gap.

• Garcia and colleagues' work provides valuable insights into gender disparities in digital spaces using large-scale data. The study's strength lies in its extensive dataset, which covers over 1.4 billion Facebook users, offering a comprehensive global perspective. The use of FGD as a metric is innovative and significant for understanding the intersection of digital and gender divides. However, the study may benefit from deeper exploration into the causal mechanisms behind the observed correlations. Additionally, while the findings are promising, they underscore the need for continuous monitoring and targeted interventions to address persistent gender imbalances in online social networks.

Lee, Nicol Turner, and Tom Wheeler. "Solving the Problem of Racially Discriminatory Advertising on Facebook." Brookings, 10 Oct. 2023, www.brookings.edu/articles/solving-the-problem-of-racially-discriminatory-advertising-on-facebook/.

• This article examines the issues surrounding racial discrimination in Facebook’s advertising algorithms. Turner Lee and Wheeler demonstrate how Facebook's tools, such as "multicultural affinity" groups, Lookalike Audiences, and Special Ad Audiences, enable advertisers to target specific racial and ethnic groups. The authors discuss the implications of this discrimination, highlighting its violation of civil rights laws and its potential for spreading misinformation to vulnerable demographic groups. They call for regulatory and industry actions to enhance transparency and fairness in online advertising practices.

• Turner Lee and Wheeler provide a compelling analysis of the discriminatory potential of Facebook’s advertising algorithms. The article is well-researched, drawing on data and legal frameworks to substantiate its claims. The authors’ recommendations for policy interventions and greater transparency are practical and timely, addressing the need for regulatory oversight in digital advertising. However, while the analysis is robust, the solutions proposed could benefit from more detailed implementation strategies. Overall, this resource is valuable for understanding the intersection of technology, advertising, and civil rights.

Bencker, Kirsten Michaela. "The Representation of Race in Advertising." 2021.

• This paper reveals how P&G's ads "The Look" and "The Talk" effectively address significant racial issues in society, using symbolic resources to focus on the construction of systemic racism and whiteness. By narrating from a black perspective, P&G challenges social norms and aligns with contemporary social movements, although there are some gaps in cross-representation. Consumer responses showed a mix of support and criticism, suggesting that the online community is divided. Ultimately, P&G's efforts in social media advertising demonstrate its commitment to addressing key socio-cultural changes, positioning the brand as an influential cultural activist that encourages consumers to rethink deeply held racial biases, and demonstrating the far-reaching impact of strategic social media campaigns.

Davis, Judy Foster. "Representation Matters: An Illustrated History of Race and Ethnicity in Advertising." Advertising & Society Quarterly, vol. 21 no. 3, 2020. Project MUSE, https://doi.org/10.1353/asr.2021.0002.

• This article highlights the critical role that advertising plays in shaping society's attitudes toward race and ethnicity. By examining a series of historical advertisements, this article sheds light on the longstanding problem of racial and ethnic imagery. This paper suggests remedies to improve these images, such as strengthening diversity education, including more racial/racist themes in educational curricula, and increasing the participation of different groups in AD development and decision making. It highlights the impact of visual representations in advertising on cultural norms and personal attitudes. Given the significant impact of social media advertising, professionals must use this influence to promote positive change and reduce harmful stereotypes.

Roth-Cohen, Osnat, Halyna Sofiia Kanevska, and Martin Eisend. "Gender Roles in Online Advertising." Journal of Gender Studies, vol. 31, no. 5, 2022, pp. 186-200, https://doi.org/10.1080/09589236.2022.2102970.

• This article examines gender roles in YouTube online advertising using content analysis of 311 German and Israeli advertisements featuring 473 key characters. The findings reveal that more than work roles, online advertising perpetuates gender stereotypes, particularly for physical characteristics such as height and body shape. In contrast, preconceptions are more commonly associated with job positions in traditional advertising. The authors provide a thorough investigation of these patterns, demonstrating that, while internet media such as YouTube tends to emphasize physical qualities, traditional media frequently promotes professional stereotypes. This distinction is critical for understanding how digital platforms impact public perceptions of gender roles in unique ways.

• Furthermore, cross-cultural research on gender portrayals in Germany and Israel calls into question the concept that YouTube is a globally consistent platform. These differences emphasize the importance of cultural background in generating advertising content and propose that advertisers should consider cultural nuances to prevent the development of unfavorable stereotypes. This study's broad implications highlight the need for more complicated, culturally sensitive advertising efforts and legislative frameworks. The study emphasizes for academics and decision-makers the importance of approaching digital media from a cross-cultural viewpoint to detect distinct representational patterns and deal with the specific ways that digital advertising may promote stereotypes. Academics, marketers, and lawmakers interested in the intersection of gender, media, and culture would benefit greatly from this article, which provides a detailed analysis of how digital advertising influences and reflects society's attitudes toward gender.

Bivens, Rena, and Oliver L. Haimson. "Baking Gender Into Social Media Design: How Platforms Shape Categories for Users and Advertisers." Social Media + Society, vol. 7, no. 2, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305116672486.

• This article looks at how various social networking sites include gender categories in their designs, going beyond the usual binary of "male" and "female." The authors study the ten most prominent English-language social media networks, looking at different user-facing gender category design methodologies. These range from providing bespoke gender alternatives (e.g., Facebook, Google+, Pinterest) to removing gender fields completely (e.g., Twitter, LinkedIn). The study includes walkthroughs from two different perspectives: a new user creating an account and a new advertiser creating an ad. The authors examine sign-up pages, profile pages, and advertising portals to determine how gender is entrenched in social media design and what it means for broader social categorization systems.

• The study emphasizes the critical impact that social media platforms have in creating gender views and categorization. The authors contend that these platforms, which serve as intermediaries within the larger advertising and web analytics ecosystem, significantly influence how gender is classified and perceived. This control influences user behavior and advertisement strategy, generating severe concerns about the societal ramifications of digital gender categorization. The study's findings highlight the need to critically examine how social media design can either reinforce or disrupt established gender norms. This article is helpful for researchers, designers, and politicians interested in the convergence of technology, gender, and society since it provides insights into the recursive relationship between social media design and societal gender norms.

Bajpai, Vivek, Sanjay Pandey, and Shweta Shriwas. "Social Media Marketing: Strategies & Its Impact." International Journal of Social Science & Interdisciplinary Research, vol. 1, no. 7, July 2012, pp. 214-223.

• The paper discusses strategies in social media marketing that zero in on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and blogs. It discusses avenues opened up by these platforms for posting ads to ensure brand loyalty and personal interaction. The authors discuss the competitive edge social media holds over traditional press about immediacy and reach. The role of cell phones in any social media marketing, the importance of customer engagement, and successful campaigns of brands like Adidas and the appearance of Betty White on SNL - all these topics are discussed in this paper. The research concludes with a suggestion for advanced social media marketing strategies for small businesses, such as using multimedia, integrating offline and online advertisements, customizing messages for various platforms, using social networks focused on local areas, and creating contests with discounts.

• Credible academic perspectives highly empower the authors since faculty members belong to Dr. C. V. Raman University and Chouksey Engineering College. This paper, edited in a peer-reviewed journal, provides a clear insight into the strategies of social media marketing and the influence of those strategies on consumers' behavior. Real examples and advanced techniques for small businesses increase their practical relevance. However, the empirical robustness of this study may be slightly limited by their reliance on secondary sources and citation verifications.

• This is a highly relevant article in trying to ascertain the influence of social media on consumer behavior. It generally presents information regarding various social media and strategies in marketing, which follows our goal of detailing effective digital marketing techniques. The discussion of competitive advantages resulting from social media, coupled with the in-depth analysis of strategies for engagement and campaigns, adds valuable insights to the project. We can make use of sophisticated strategies mentioned in the paper while conducting our analysis, especially those that include the use of multimedia and customized messaging, in putting forward a better understanding of how social media influences consumer purchasing decisions.

Boon-Long, Supond, and Winai Wongsurawat. "Social media marketing evaluation using social network comments as an indicator for identifying consumer purchasing decision effectiveness." Journal of Direct, Data and Digital Marketing Practice 17, no. 2 : 130-149.

• This study aims to devise a measurement tool for the effectiveness of social media marketing by content analysis of consumer comments on social media community websites. Specifically, this research will look into comments that have been made during a period of five months on the Facebook fan page of Samsung Mobile, Thailand. Comments were categorized and analyzed about their influence on consumer purchasing decisions through confirmatory factor analysis. It identifies four significant variables in this respect that highly impact purchasing decisions: problems associated with usage experience, information inquiries, issues related to business practices, and feedback on product launches and developments. These variables act as indicators for measuring the effectiveness of social media marketing strategies.

• Supond Boon-Long, a PhD candidate at the Asian Institute of Technology, and Winai Wongsurawat, an assistant professor of Mahidol University carried out the study. Well-published research findings are those published in one of the top-ranked peer-reviewed journals. Therefore, its quality is high. In sum, a systematic methodology applied with confirmatory factor analysis offers a solid framework to test the effectiveness of marketing activities conducted on social media. However, the fact that this is a single-brand and a single geographical area study has the disadvantage of limited generalisability.

• This is very relevant to our research on the impact of social media marketing on consumer behavior. In this paper, it provides a profound explanation of the methodology to measure the effectiveness of a social media marketing campaign based on user-generated content analysis. The identification of critical variables influencing purchase decisions will serve our interest in how these strategies are affecting consumer behavior attributed to social media marketing. We can use variables and some of the analytical techniques examined in this research to analyze social media comments and their influence on consumer purchasing behavior, bringing greater generality and relevance to our findings.

Godey, B., Manthiou, A., Pederzoli, D., Rokka, J., Aiello, G., Donvito, R., & Singh, R. (2016). Social media marketing efforts of luxury brands: Influence on brand equity and consumer behavior. Journal of Business Research, 69(12), 5833-5841.

• This paper investigated how social media marketing efforts affect different types of luxury brand’s equity and consumer behavior towards it. The famous brands, Dior, Gucci, Hermes across the globe all use online social media techniques to help expand their influences and on catching buyers' eyes. Furthermore, the interesting part is that this study/paper developed a structural equation model to demonstrate the relationships between social media marketing efforts and outcomes like brand preference, price premium, and loyalty. In which I do agree with the main components of social marketing and consumer behavior that this model ended up with, which are, entertainment, interaction, trendiness, customization, and word of mouth. These will eventually influence consumer responses of their willingness to pay from a specific brand. 

• This paper provides valuable insights into the mechanisms through which social media marketing can enhance brand equity and influence consumer behavior. By employing an equation model that connects social media marketing effort and outcomes, the study offers empirical evidence that social media efforts can significantly boost brand awareness and image, driving consumer loyalty and buying willingness. Thus we can apply this finding to our project development of finding the digital humanities in social media and consumer behavior study. Eventually link the two together through different aspects or components, or perhaps, an equation.

Madlberger, M., & Kraemmer, L. (2019). Social Media Advertising: The Role of the Social Media Platform and the Advertised Brand in Attitude Formation and Purchase Intention. In Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on Web Information Systems and Technologies (WEBIST 2019), 100-109.

• This paper explores the impact of social media advertising on consumer behavior, particularly focusing on how different social media platforms and advertised brands influence attitudes and purchase intentions. The researchers tested a research model with data collected from Austrian social media users, using Facebook as the platform. The choice of Facebook is insightful, given its wide usage. However, the study's focus on consumer attitudes towards Facebook ads might be too subjective. The findings indicate that platform enjoyment and brand familiarity significantly shape general attitudes towards advertising and specific attitudes towards individual ads. The study emphasizes the importance of distinguishing between general attitudes towards social media platforms and specific attitudes towards individual advertisements to understand their effects on purchase intention.

• This research provides a comprehensive examination of the impact of social media platforms and brand familiarity on consumer attitudes and purchase intentions. By employing a detailed research model, the study offers empirical evidence that positive experiences with social media platforms and familiarity with advertised brands can significantly enhance consumer attitudes towards ads, subsequently boosting purchase intentions. The insights from this study can be directly applied to our project. We can similarly develop visualizations that incorporate consumer attitudes towards ads on social media platforms. Eventually explore and analyze what it will lead to, whether these attitudes lead to increased purchasing power or negative responses?

Voramontri, D., and Leslie Klieb. "Impact of social media on consumer behavior." Int. J. Information and Decision Sciences vol. 11, no. 3, 2019, pp. 209-233.

• The role of social media in the consumer decision-making process for complex purchases is empirically investigated in this paper. Typically, complex purchases are associated with high brand differences, high consumer involvement, and risk, expensiveness, and infrequency. This research uses the classical EBM model, whose stages of information search, alternative evaluation, and purchase decision are used. It tests how social media experiences alter consumer satisfaction at these stages by conducting a quantitative survey of internet-savvy consumers within South-East Asia. The results indicate that with social media usage, consumer satisfaction increases from the search information stage to the alternative evaluation stage and further on to the final purchase decision and post-purchase evaluation stages.

• Duangruthai Voramontri and Leslie Klieb conduct it from Webster University, Thailand. The fact that the article is published in a peer-reviewed journal gives quite a high academic credibility to it. This research works through quite a solid quantitative methodology; the survey, which involved 158 participants, produced an excellent empirical background to the study. Using the classical EBM model will theoretically add value to the measurement of the systematic effect of social media on complex purchasing decisions, hence increasing the theoretical and practical value of this study.

Bajpai, Vivek, Sanjay Pandey, and Shweta Shriwas. "Social Media Marketing: Strategies & Its Impact." International Journal of Social Science & Interdisciplinary Research, vol. 1, no. 7, July 2012, pp. 214-223.

• The paper discusses strategies in social media marketing that zero in on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and blogs. It discusses avenues opened up by these platforms for posting ads to ensure brand loyalty and personal interaction. The authors discuss the competitive edge social media holds over traditional press about immediacy and reach. The role of cell phones in any social media marketing, the importance of customer engagement, and successful campaigns of brands like Adidas and the appearance of Betty White on SNL - all these topics are discussed in this paper. The research concludes with a suggestion for advanced social media marketing strategies for small businesses, such as using multimedia, integrating offline and online advertisements, customizing messages for various platforms, using social networks focused on local areas, and creating contests with discounts. Credible academic perspectives highly empower the authors since faculty members belong to Dr. C. V. Raman University and Chouksey Engineering College. This paper, edited in a peer-reviewed journal, provides a clear insight into the strategies of social media marketing and the influence of those strategies on consumers' behavior. Real examples and advanced techniques for small businesses increase their practical relevance. However, the empirical robustness of this study may be slightly limited by their reliance on secondary sources and citation verifications.

Boon-Long, Supond, and Winai Wongsurawat. "Social media marketing evaluation using social network comments as an indicator for identifying consumer purchasing decision effectiveness." Journal of Direct, Data and Digital Marketing Practice 17, no. 2 : 130-149.

• This study aims to devise a measurement tool for the effectiveness of social media marketing by content analysis of consumer comments on social media community websites. Specifically, this research will look into comments that have been made during a period of five months on the Facebook fan page of Samsung Mobile, Thailand. Comments were categorized and analyzed about their influence on consumer purchasing decisions through confirmatory factor analysis. It identifies four significant variables in this respect that highly impact purchasing decisions: problems associated with usage experience, information inquiries, issues related to business practices, and feedback on product launches and developments. These variables act as indicators for measuring the effectiveness of social media marketing strategies.

• Supond Boon-Long, a PhD candidate at the Asian Institute of Technology, and Winai Wongsurawat, an assistant professor of Mahidol University carried out the study. Well-published research findings are those published in one of the top-ranked peer-reviewed journals. Therefore, its quality is high. In sum, a systematic methodology applied with confirmatory factor analysis offers a solid framework to test the effectiveness of marketing activities conducted on social media. However, the fact that this is a single-brand and a single geographical area study has the disadvantage of limited generalisability.

Pütter, Michael. "The Impact of Social Media on Consumer Buying Intention." Journal of International Business Research and Marketing 3.1 (2017): 7-13.

• This article examines how social media influences consumer buying intentions. The authors highlight various strategies used on social media to engage consumers and sway their purchasing decisions. The study includes empirical data showing the effectiveness of these strategies and how they shape consumer behavior.

• The article provides a thorough and well-researched analysis of social media's impact on consumer intentions. It combines theoretical insights with empirical data, making it a credible source for understanding modern digital marketing. The methodology is robust, and the findings are relevant for businesses looking to harness social media for marketing purposes.

• This resource is instrumental in my research on digital marketing strategies. The detailed examination of social media's influence on consumer behavior offers valuable insights into how businesses can effectively use these platforms. The empirical data supports the theoretical claims, providing a solid foundation for my understanding and application of social media strategies in marketing.

Palalic, R., Ramadani, V., Mariam Gilani, S., Gërguri-Rashiti, S. and Dana, L. (2021), "Social media and consumer buying behavior decision: what entrepreneurs should know?", Management Decision, Vol. 59 No. 6, pp. 1249-1270. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-10-2019-1461

• This article explores the influence of social media on consumer buying behavior and provides insights for entrepreneurs. It analyzes how social media platforms impact consumer decisions, focusing on factors such as social influence, brand engagement, and content sharing. The study presents empirical data to support its findings and offers practical recommendations for entrepreneurs to leverage social media in enhancing consumer engagement and driving sales.

• The article comprehensively and well-structured examines social media's impact on consumer behavior. The authors provide a detailed analysis supported by empirical research, making it a reliable source for understanding the dynamics of digital marketing. The study's practical recommendations are particularly valuable for entrepreneurs seeking to optimize their social media strategies.

• This resource is highly relevant to my research on digital marketing and consumer behavior. The insights on how social media influences buying decisions are crucial for developing effective marketing strategies. The article's practical recommendations will help formulate actionable plans to engage consumers and boost sales through social media platforms.