Date of Award

5-10-2026

Date Published

June 2026

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Marketing

Advisor(s)

Guiyang Xiong

Subject Categories

Business | Marketing

Abstract

Digital technologies have transformed how information about firms is created, disseminated, and interpreted in the marketplace. In particular, social media and artificial intelligence (AI) have introduced new channels through which marketing-related information reaches financial markets. Consumers increasingly share product experiences and opinions on social media, while firms communicate technological initiatives through corporate disclosures such as press releases. These developments have reshaped the information environment surrounding firms and influence how investors and financial analysts evaluate firm performance. In this dissertation, I examine how digitally mediated information originating from both consumers and firms affects financial market perceptions, contributing to research at the intersection of marketing and finance. The first essay investigates how negative word of mouth (NWOM) expressed by consumers on social media affects stock market performance. Using large-scale social media data, I examine whether negative consumer discussions translate into adverse market reactions and explore the moderating role of firms’ corporate social responsibility (CSR) reputations. Specifically, I analyze how different types of CSR reputation shape investors’ responses to negative online conversations about firms’ products. The second essay examines how AI adoption by firms influences financial analysts' earnings forecasts. Specifically, I analyze how AI implementation affects analyst forecast accuracy and investigate how both the characteristics of the underlying implementation and the functional area of AI deployment shape analysts' ability to form precise earnings estimates. In particular, I examine whether AI applications in marketing, compared with those in other business functions, are more difficult for analysts to interpret because their financial implications are often more indirect and uncertain.

Access

Open Access

Download

Included in

Marketing Commons

Share

COinS