Mapping the terrain of social and livestream commerce research through the affordance lens: A bibliometric review and research agenda

Abstract

Livestream commerce is a form of social commerce that leverages advanced technology for interactivity. Although research is complex due to vast geographical and platform diversity, this domain is ideal for applying affordance theory. We systematically analyze 62 livestreaming and social commerce research papers that have used affordance theory. Our three-step methodology includes performance analysis to identify prolific authors and collaborative patterns; thematic analysis to uncover methodological approaches, contextual themes and focal points of investigation; and science mapping to identify thematic evolution and research frontiers. Through our integrated perspective on affordance theory in social and livestream commerce, we present a typology of key affordances, review prominent works, categorize clusters and topics and identify four research frontiers. We propose an integrated model to explore potential avenues for research on consumer behaviours, holistically integrating actors, context, platform diversity and affordances, and addressing methodological challenges, including use of visual methodologies to investigate real-time interactions.