본 연구의 목적은 CoP 활동 속에서 관계의 신뢰 정도, 평등함, 의사소통의 원활성에 대한 참여자들의 인식이 CoP 참여의 내재동기 및 참여도에 어떠한 영향을 끼치는지 밝히는데 있다. 이를 위해 실증적 방법 으로 국내 기업 내 CoP에서의 동료 간 신뢰, 권력, 의사소통이 내재동기와 참여도에 미치는 영향을 살펴 보았다. 이러한 연구결과, 첫째, 성별, 직급, 직무에 따라 구성원들이 느끼는 기업 내 CoP에서 동료에 대 한 신뢰 형성의 어려움, 권력의 불평등, 의사소통의 장애는 유의미한 차이가 존재하지 않았다. 둘째, CoP 활동은 동료 간 수평적 관계를 인식하기 보다는 동료에 대한 신뢰가 내재적 동기를 발생하는데 더 직접적 인 관련이 있었다. 셋째, CoP 활동에서 동료 간 의사소통의 활성화는 CoP 참여에 직접적인 관련이 있었 다. 본 연구결과는 CoP 구성원들이 인식하는 CoP 내부의 신뢰, 권력, 의사소통 중에 동료들 간의 높은 신 뢰와 원활한 의사소통이 CoP 참여에 유의미한 영향을 준다는 것을 확인하였다. 그러므로 CoP를 보다 효 과적으로 실행하기 위해서 참여자 구성이 중요하며, 형성 초기 상호간 신뢰를 증진할 수 있는 적절한 개 입이 필요하다. 또한 CoP 동료간 의사소통을 활성화 할 수 있는 장치를 마련하는 것이 중요한 전략으로 볼 수 있다.

This study seeks to examine the effects of customer’s power motivation in the social media context, driven primarily by to extend the theory of how powerlessness induces compensatory consumption (Rucker and Galinsky, 2008). Power motivation refers to a chronic desire to strive and retain power (Maner, Gailliot, Butz, & Peruche, 2007). Given that positions of power are often associated with enjoyment of social and material rewards, naturally some individuals strive to achieve and retain positions of power as a satisfying goal in itself (Cassidy and Lynn, 1989). These ‘power-strivers’ are motivated to achieve status and superiority, and prone towards negative emotional states when confronted with situations that induce a state of powerlessness. The sense of inferiority have been shown to lead to greater desire for status-enhancing goods, such as luxury items with more prominently displayed brand names to restore their sense of wellbeing (Rucker and Galinsky, 2009). In the context of social media, research suggests that longterm exposure to upward social comparisons on social media resulted in lower levels of self-esteem (Vogel, Rose, Roberts, & Eckles, 2014). We argue that observing other people’s ‘highlight reel’ on social media may also negatively influence the consumers’ sense of power. Thus, these type of consumers are likely to be more receptive towards communications that advertise status-enhancing goods. However, this effect should be particularly pronounced in consumers who have high power motivation in the first place. Subsequently, our first proposition is that when exposed to negative social comparisons, power motivation would moderate the consumers’ sense of inferiority and lead to more positive attitude towards advertisements of luxury goods. Our second proposition points to mindfulness as a palliative to mitigate this sense of inferiority, since exercising mindfulness enables better self-regulation that contributes to behaviors and decisions that positive contribute towards one’s wellbeing (Brown and Ryan, 2003). Two experimental studies confirm our hypotheses that when exposed to upward social comparisons on social media, power-strivers exhibit more positive attitude towards advertisements of luxury goods, mediated by a sense of inferiority. In the second study we found that implicitly inducing mindfulness mitigates the effects of power motivation. This paper thus enriches the understanding of the role of consumers’ sense of power in the context of social media. Furthermore, we offer a balanced view that (1) unpacks how marketers could exploit social media features to induce desire for luxury goods but also (2) suggests ethical solutions that contributes to positive psychology literature in the context of social media usage.