Use and social value in peer-to-peer prosumption communities

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to examine how prosumption manifests in an online community, Instructables.com, and its value for those who engage with it. The paper emphasizes its distinctiveness compared to similar phenomena, particularly co-creation. Design/methodology/approach This work uses a netnography-informed research approach, involving Instructables community observations, participation and 15 online interviews with members of the community. Findings Prosumption provides personal benefits including hedonic elements of enjoyment and fun, functional elements of monetary saving and self-sufficiency, and cognitive benefits such as problem solving and learning. Further, extra-personal benefits include community-, environment-, market-, family- and friends-oriented benefits. Research limitations/implications Personal and extra-personal prosumption benefits generate use and social value, progressing understanding of value through a type of prosumption that the authors term peer-to-peer. Practical implications An understanding of the differences among concepts can set expectations, responsibilities and opportunities for both firms and prosumers in an increasingly collaborative marketplace. Originality/value By critically analyzing the nature of value through a particular kind of prosumption, the paper makes three theoretical contributions. First, it transforms and broadens the scope of empirical research by clarifying critical distinctions between co-creation and prosumption and establishing them as higher-order concepts. Second, the paper determines the benefits, use and social value participants derive from particular forms of participation in the marketplace. Finally, the paper establishes a new concept, namely peer-to-peer prosumption, which the authors define as a type of prosumption that prioritizes collective, peer-to-peer use and social value over exchange value. The paper contributes to marketing literature on the ongoing evolution of consumer roles and participation in the marketplace, by furthering theorization in this field.