How does persuasion knowledge differ between humanlike virtual influencers and human influencers?

Humanlike virtual influencers (HVIs) mimic human influencers (HIs), but how do consumers perceive them, and how does this affect persuasion knowledge? This experiment examines how consumers differentiate HVIs from HIs based on two mental states – intentions and emotions– and how differences in mind perception affect two dimensions of persuasion knowledge. Results reveal: (1) a negative indirect effect, where consumers attribute less intentions to HVIs (vs. HIs), reducing their understanding of persuasive intent (conceptual persuasion knowledge), and (2) a positive indirect effect, where consumers attribute less emotion to HVIs (vs. HIs), thereby increasing skepticism (attitudinal persuasion knowledge). Results also unveil a negative direct effect of a HVI (vs. HI) content on skepticism. Overall, while consumers are less skeptical of sponsored content from HVIs, they also attribute less emotion to these influencers, fostering consumer skepticism toward their content, and suppressing the persuasive advantage of HVIs. These findings may explain the inconsistent results in previous research regarding the effects of HVIs versus HIs.