![Rebecca Mardon](https://profiles-cardiff.imgix.net/attachments/1344?w=200&h=200&auto=format&crop=faces&fit=crop&q=90")
Dr Rebecca Mardon
Senior Lecturer in Marketing and Strategy
- MardonRD@cardiff.ac.uk
- +44 29208 75195
- Aberconway Building, Room T33, Colum Road, Cathays, Cardiff, CF10 3EU
- Available for postgraduate supervision
Overview
Rebecca’s research explores emerging consumer behaviours in digital contexts, with a current focus on digital materiality and influencer marketing. Her research has appeared in a leading academic journals in the field of marketing, including the Journal of Consumer Research, European Journal of Marketing, Journal of Business Research and Marketing Theory. She is a Fellow of Advance HE and serves on the Editorial Review Board at the Journal of Business Research.
Rebecca teaches at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, specialising in digital marketing. She is the Admissions Tutor for the MSc Marketing and MSc Strategic Marketing programmes, serves as a departmental representative on the Business School's research ethics committee, and is a member of Cardiff Business School's Shadow Management Board.
Publication
2023
- Mardon, R., Denegri-Knott, J. and Molesworth, M. 2023. “Kind of Mine, Kind of Not”: Digital possessions and affordance misalignment. Journal of Consumer Research 50(2), pp. 255-281. (10.1093/jcr/ucac057)
- Mardon, R., Cocker, H. and Daunt, K. 2023. When parasocial relationships turn sour: Social media influencers, eroded and exploitative intimacies, and anti-fan communities. Journal of Marketing Management (10.1080/0267257X.2022.2149609)
- Mardon, R., Daunt, K. and Cocker, H. 2023. How social media influencers impact consumer collectives: An embeddedness perspective. Journal of Consumer Research (10.1093/jcr/ucad003)
- Molesworth, M., Grigore, G. and Mardon, R. 2023. The psychosocial relational dynamics of rescuer platforms. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Lund, Sweden, 27 – 30 June 2023.
- Mardon, R., Maraj, V. and Bardhi, F. 2023. What’s mine isn’t necessarily yours: How digital technology affordances destabilise couples’ sharing practices. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Lund, Sweden, 27 – 30 June 2023.
2022
- Alkaffary, B., Koenig-Lewis, N., Bosangit, C. and Mardon, R. 2022. Psychological ownership in access-based services: The role of the virtual closet. Presented at: 12th SERVSIG Conference, Glasgow, UK, 16-18 June 2022.
- Mardon, R., Maraj, V. and Bardhi, F. 2022. What’s mine isn’t necessarily yours: How digital object affordances destabilise couples’ sharing practices. Presented at: 11th Interpretive Consumer Research Workshop, Liverpool, UK, 9 – 10 June 2022.
2021
- Cocker, H., Mardon, R. and Daunt, K. 2021. Social media influencers & transgressive celebrity endorsement in consumption community contexts. European Journal of Marketing 55(7), pp. 1841-1872. (10.1108/EJM-07-2019-0567)
2019
- Mardon, R., Denegri-Knott, J. and Molesworth, M. 2019. Possessing digital objects: Affordances and agency in Possession. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Montreal, QC, Canada, 17-19 July 2019.
- Mardon, R., Cocker, H. and Daunt, K. 2019. Community-embedded human brands and dysfunctional community role dynamics: A study of the YouTube beauty community. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Montreal, QC, Canada, 17-19 July 2019. pp. -.
2018
- Mardon, R. and Belk, R. 2018. Materializing digital collecting: an extended view of digital materiality. Marketing Theory 18(4), pp. 543-570. (10.1177/1470593118767725)
- Mardon, R., Molesworth, M. and Grigore, G. 2018. YouTube beauty gurus and the emotional labour of tribal entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Research 92, pp. 443-454. (10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.04.017)
- Mardon, R., Cocker, H. and Daunt, K. 2018. Constructing and commodifying the tribal celebrity: A dramaturgical perspective. Presented at: Academy of Marketing Conference, Stirling, Scotland, 2-5 July 2018.
- Lindgreen, A. et al. eds. 2018. Communicating corporate social responsibility in the digital era. Abingdon and New York: Routledge.
2017
- Watkins, R., Denegri-Knott, J. and Molesworth, M. 2017. A relational ontology of objects & possession. Presented at: 9th Interpretivist Consumer Research Workshop (ICR), Stockholm, Sweden, 26-29 April 2017.
- Watkins, R., Molesworth, M. and Grigore, G. 2017. Selling without selling out: YouTube beauty gurus & the emotional labour of tribal entrepreneurship. Presented at: 9th Interpretivist Consumer Research Workshop (ICR), Stockholm, Sweden, 26-29 April 2017.
2016
- Watkins, R. 2016. Actor-network theory, consumer-object relations and method assemblage: methodological reflections from a study of digital possessions. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference 2016, Lille, France, 6-9 July 2016.
- Watkins, R. and Belk, R. 2016. Collections and collecting in a digital age. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference 2016, Lille, France, 6-9 July 2016.
- Molesworth, M. and Watkins, R. 2016. Adult videogame consumption as individualised, episodic progress. Journal of Consumer Culture 16(2), pp. 510-530. (10.1177/1469540514528195)
- Molesworth, M., Watkins, R. D. and Denegri-Knott, J. 2016. Possession work on hosted digital consumption objects as consumer ensnarement. Journal of the Association for Consumer Research 1(2), pp. 246-261. (10.1086/685474)
- Watkins, R. D., Denegri-Knott, J. and Molesworth, M. 2016. The relationship between ownership and possession: observations from the context of digital virtual goods. Journal of Marketing Management 32(1-2), pp. 44-70. (10.1080/0267257X.2015.1089308)
- Watkins, R. 2016. Conceptualising the ontology of digital consumption objects. Presented at: Association for Consumer Research North American Conference 2015, New Orleans, LA, 1-4 October 2015 Presented at Diehl, K., Yoon, C. and Duluth, M. N. eds.Advances in Consumer Research – North American Conference Proceedings, Vol. 43. Association for Consumer Research pp. 275-276.
- Grigore, G., Molesworth, M. and Watkins, R. 2016. New corporate responsibilities in the digital economy. In: Corporate Social Responsibility in the Post-Financial Crisis Era. Palgrave, pp. 41-62.
2015
- Watkins, R., Sellen, A. and Lindley, S. E. 2015. Digital collections and digital collection practices. Presented at: SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Seoul, Republic of Korea, 18 - 23 April, 2015Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. New York: ACM pp. 3423-3432., (10.1145/2702123.2702380)
- Grigore, G., Molesworth, M. and Watkins, R. 2015. Conceptualising digital corporate social responsibility. Presented at: 4th International Conference on Social Responsibility, Ethics and Sustainable Business, Athens, 8-9 October 2015.
2014
- Watkins, R. 2014. Fragmented ownership and the fencing in of digital virtual possessions. Presented at: Connected Life, Oxford, 12 June 2014.
2013
- Watkins, R. and Molesworth, M. 2013. The biographies of digital goods. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory, Tucson, Az, 13-16 June 2013.
- Watkins, R. and Molesworth, M. 2013. The ongoing exploitation of consumers' possession work via the permanent deferral of DVG ownership. Presented at: 7th Workshop on Interpretive Consumer Research, Brussells, 11 - 12 April 2013.
2012
- Denegri-Knott, J., Watkins, R. and Wood, J. 2012. Transforming digital virtual goods into meaningful possessions. In: Molesworth, M. and Denegri Knott, J. eds. Digital Virtual Consumption. Routledge Studies in Innovation, Organization and Technology Vol. 23. Oxford: Routledge, pp. 76-91.
- Watkins, R. and Molesworth, M. 2012. Attachment to digital virtual possessions in videogames. In: Belk, R. W., Scott, L. and Askegaard, S. eds. Research in Consumer Behaviour., Vol. 14. Bingley: Emerald Group Publishing, pp. 153-171.
- Watkins, R. and Molesworth, M. 2012. Attachment to digital virtual possessions in videogames. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Oxford, 16-19 August 2012.
Articles
- Mardon, R., Denegri-Knott, J. and Molesworth, M. 2023. “Kind of Mine, Kind of Not”: Digital possessions and affordance misalignment. Journal of Consumer Research 50(2), pp. 255-281. (10.1093/jcr/ucac057)
- Mardon, R., Cocker, H. and Daunt, K. 2023. When parasocial relationships turn sour: Social media influencers, eroded and exploitative intimacies, and anti-fan communities. Journal of Marketing Management (10.1080/0267257X.2022.2149609)
- Mardon, R., Daunt, K. and Cocker, H. 2023. How social media influencers impact consumer collectives: An embeddedness perspective. Journal of Consumer Research (10.1093/jcr/ucad003)
- Cocker, H., Mardon, R. and Daunt, K. 2021. Social media influencers & transgressive celebrity endorsement in consumption community contexts. European Journal of Marketing 55(7), pp. 1841-1872. (10.1108/EJM-07-2019-0567)
- Mardon, R. and Belk, R. 2018. Materializing digital collecting: an extended view of digital materiality. Marketing Theory 18(4), pp. 543-570. (10.1177/1470593118767725)
- Mardon, R., Molesworth, M. and Grigore, G. 2018. YouTube beauty gurus and the emotional labour of tribal entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Research 92, pp. 443-454. (10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.04.017)
- Molesworth, M. and Watkins, R. 2016. Adult videogame consumption as individualised, episodic progress. Journal of Consumer Culture 16(2), pp. 510-530. (10.1177/1469540514528195)
- Molesworth, M., Watkins, R. D. and Denegri-Knott, J. 2016. Possession work on hosted digital consumption objects as consumer ensnarement. Journal of the Association for Consumer Research 1(2), pp. 246-261. (10.1086/685474)
- Watkins, R. D., Denegri-Knott, J. and Molesworth, M. 2016. The relationship between ownership and possession: observations from the context of digital virtual goods. Journal of Marketing Management 32(1-2), pp. 44-70. (10.1080/0267257X.2015.1089308)
Book sections
- Grigore, G., Molesworth, M. and Watkins, R. 2016. New corporate responsibilities in the digital economy. In: Corporate Social Responsibility in the Post-Financial Crisis Era. Palgrave, pp. 41-62.
- Denegri-Knott, J., Watkins, R. and Wood, J. 2012. Transforming digital virtual goods into meaningful possessions. In: Molesworth, M. and Denegri Knott, J. eds. Digital Virtual Consumption. Routledge Studies in Innovation, Organization and Technology Vol. 23. Oxford: Routledge, pp. 76-91.
- Watkins, R. and Molesworth, M. 2012. Attachment to digital virtual possessions in videogames. In: Belk, R. W., Scott, L. and Askegaard, S. eds. Research in Consumer Behaviour., Vol. 14. Bingley: Emerald Group Publishing, pp. 153-171.
Books
- Lindgreen, A. et al. eds. 2018. Communicating corporate social responsibility in the digital era. Abingdon and New York: Routledge.
Conferences
- Molesworth, M., Grigore, G. and Mardon, R. 2023. The psychosocial relational dynamics of rescuer platforms. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Lund, Sweden, 27 – 30 June 2023.
- Mardon, R., Maraj, V. and Bardhi, F. 2023. What’s mine isn’t necessarily yours: How digital technology affordances destabilise couples’ sharing practices. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Lund, Sweden, 27 – 30 June 2023.
- Alkaffary, B., Koenig-Lewis, N., Bosangit, C. and Mardon, R. 2022. Psychological ownership in access-based services: The role of the virtual closet. Presented at: 12th SERVSIG Conference, Glasgow, UK, 16-18 June 2022.
- Mardon, R., Maraj, V. and Bardhi, F. 2022. What’s mine isn’t necessarily yours: How digital object affordances destabilise couples’ sharing practices. Presented at: 11th Interpretive Consumer Research Workshop, Liverpool, UK, 9 – 10 June 2022.
- Mardon, R., Denegri-Knott, J. and Molesworth, M. 2019. Possessing digital objects: Affordances and agency in Possession. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Montreal, QC, Canada, 17-19 July 2019.
- Mardon, R., Cocker, H. and Daunt, K. 2019. Community-embedded human brands and dysfunctional community role dynamics: A study of the YouTube beauty community. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Montreal, QC, Canada, 17-19 July 2019. pp. -.
- Mardon, R., Cocker, H. and Daunt, K. 2018. Constructing and commodifying the tribal celebrity: A dramaturgical perspective. Presented at: Academy of Marketing Conference, Stirling, Scotland, 2-5 July 2018.
- Watkins, R., Denegri-Knott, J. and Molesworth, M. 2017. A relational ontology of objects & possession. Presented at: 9th Interpretivist Consumer Research Workshop (ICR), Stockholm, Sweden, 26-29 April 2017.
- Watkins, R., Molesworth, M. and Grigore, G. 2017. Selling without selling out: YouTube beauty gurus & the emotional labour of tribal entrepreneurship. Presented at: 9th Interpretivist Consumer Research Workshop (ICR), Stockholm, Sweden, 26-29 April 2017.
- Watkins, R. 2016. Actor-network theory, consumer-object relations and method assemblage: methodological reflections from a study of digital possessions. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference 2016, Lille, France, 6-9 July 2016.
- Watkins, R. and Belk, R. 2016. Collections and collecting in a digital age. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference 2016, Lille, France, 6-9 July 2016.
- Watkins, R. 2016. Conceptualising the ontology of digital consumption objects. Presented at: Association for Consumer Research North American Conference 2015, New Orleans, LA, 1-4 October 2015 Presented at Diehl, K., Yoon, C. and Duluth, M. N. eds.Advances in Consumer Research – North American Conference Proceedings, Vol. 43. Association for Consumer Research pp. 275-276.
- Watkins, R., Sellen, A. and Lindley, S. E. 2015. Digital collections and digital collection practices. Presented at: SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Seoul, Republic of Korea, 18 - 23 April, 2015Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. New York: ACM pp. 3423-3432., (10.1145/2702123.2702380)
- Grigore, G., Molesworth, M. and Watkins, R. 2015. Conceptualising digital corporate social responsibility. Presented at: 4th International Conference on Social Responsibility, Ethics and Sustainable Business, Athens, 8-9 October 2015.
- Watkins, R. 2014. Fragmented ownership and the fencing in of digital virtual possessions. Presented at: Connected Life, Oxford, 12 June 2014.
- Watkins, R. and Molesworth, M. 2013. The biographies of digital goods. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory, Tucson, Az, 13-16 June 2013.
- Watkins, R. and Molesworth, M. 2013. The ongoing exploitation of consumers' possession work via the permanent deferral of DVG ownership. Presented at: 7th Workshop on Interpretive Consumer Research, Brussells, 11 - 12 April 2013.
- Watkins, R. and Molesworth, M. 2012. Attachment to digital virtual possessions in videogames. Presented at: Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Oxford, 16-19 August 2012.
Research
Primary research interests
- Digital materiality
- Ownership and possession
- Sharing
- Online consumer collectives
- Social media influencers
Teaching
Modules taught currently:
- BS3012 Digital Marketing, BSc Business Management, Yr 3 (Module Leader)
- BST240 Digital Marketing, MSc Strategic Marketing
- BST356 Digital Marketing, MSc Marketing
- BST212 Conducting Research in Marketing & Strategy, MSc Social Science Research Methods
Rebecca has previously taught a range of marketing modules at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, as well as supervising undergraduate and postgraduate dissertations and postgraduate consultancy projects.
Biography
Qualifications
- Postgraduate Certificate in University Teaching & Learning, Cardiff University, 2019
- PhD in Marketing, University of Southampton, 2015
Honours and awards
- Academy of Marketing Research Award, 2017
- Best Paper Awards - Highly Commended, Journal of Marketing Management, 2016
- Best Paper, Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Lille, 2016
- Editor's Choice, Journal of Marketing Management, 2016
- Best Paper, Consumer Culture Theory Conference, Arizona, 2013
Professional memberships
- Member of the Association for Consumer Research
- Member of Consumer Culture Theory Consortium
- Member of the Academy of Marketing
- Fellow of Advance HE
Academic positions
- 2019 - present: Senior Lecturer, Cardiff University
- 2014 - 2019: Lecturer, Cardiff University
- 2014: Researcher, Microsoft Research Cambridge
- 2012 - 2014: Lecturer (part-time), Bournemouth University
Committees and reviewing
Admissions Tutor for MSc Strategic Marketing and MSc Marketing.
Departmental representative, Cardiff Business School Research Ethics Committee.
Supervisions
I am interested in supervising PhD students conducting qualitative research projects relating to consumers' interactions with and experiences of digital media and digital technologies, in particular:
- Digital materiality (e.g. appropriating, interacting with, owning and possessing digital consumption objects)
- Online sociality (e.g. online communities and tribes, and their relation to commercial activity)
- New forms of commercialisation online (e.g. influencer marketing, crowdfunding business models)
- Consumption of smart devices.
Research themes
Specialisms
- Consumer behaviour
- Digital consumption
- Consumer culture theory