由於Web 2.0、行動技術和社交媒體的發展，品牌社群產生了一種新的社群形式：線上品牌社群（Online Brand Community，OBCs）。品牌可以直接獲得消費者的回饋，消費者也可獲得與品牌相關的訊息與使用該品牌的經驗等，促進品牌和消費者的關係與互動。
OBC對消費者的品牌選擇具有重要影響，成為吸引消費者的重要管道。越來越多公司致力於建立OBC，以創造更高的品牌價值。此外，即時通訊應用程式（IMA）的使用越來越普遍，成為人們在手機上傳遞即時訊息的主要工具，用戶也用它們瀏覽品牌資訊和商品。許多品牌也在IMA上建立自己的OBC。
近期的研究著重使用社會學和市場行銷理論來探討OBC的功能、運作機制、價值創造、消費者參與等議題。然而，以賦能（Affordance）視角的研究相對較少。此外，消費者參與在OBC中被視為重要研究領域，並且建立品牌忠誠度對於品牌非常重要。因此本研究旨在綜合賦能理論和社會心理學的人際互動視角，深入探討消費者參與OBC和品牌忠誠的原因。

本研究之研究對象為參與過建立在IMA上的 OBC 使用者，採用網路發放問卷的方式進行調查，總回收問卷為373 份，最終符合需求的有效問卷為 202 份。研究結果顯示：（1）可見性、選擇性、多媒體性對人際互動有正向影響，而持久性則無顯著影響（2）人際互動對消費者參與有正向影響（3）消費者參與對品牌忠誠有正向影響。因此品牌可以透過關注IMA賦能使得成員之間的人際互動提升，進而增進消費者參與，並產生品牌忠誠。

With the continuous development of Web 2.0, mobile technology, and social media, brand communities and network technology have produced a new form of communities: online brand communities (OBCs). Brands can directly receive feedback from consumers, and consumers can access brand-related information and share their experiences with the brand, fostering relationships and interactions between brands and consumers.
OBCs play a crucial role in influencing consumers' brand choices and have become an important channel to attract consumers. More and more companies are dedicating their efforts to establishing OBCs to create higher brand value. Additionally, the use of instant messaging applications (IMAs) has become increasingly prevalent, serving as the primary tool for people to exchange real-time messages on their mobile devices. Users also utilize IMAs to browse brand information and products. Many brands have also established their own OBCs on IMAs.

Recent research has focused on using sociological and marketing theories to explore the functions, mechanisms, value creation, and consumer participation in OBCs. However, there is relatively less research from an affordance perspective. Furthermore, consumer participation in OBCs is regarded as an important research area, and establishing brand loyalty is crucial for brands. Therefore, this study aims to comprehensively investigate the reasons for consumer participation in OBCs and brand loyalty by integrating the perspectives of affordance theory and social psychology's interpersonal interaction.

The participants of this study were users who had participated in online brand communities (OBCs) established on instant messaging apps (IMAs). A web-based survey was conducted to collect data, and a total of 373 questionnaires were received. After screening, 202 questionnaires were deemed valid and suitable for analysis.
The research findings indicate that: Visibility, selectivity, and multimediality have a positive impact on interpersonal interaction, while persistence has no significant effect; (2) Interpersonal interaction positively affects consumer participation; (3) Consumer participation has a positive impact on brand loyalty. Therefore, brands can enhance consumer participation and foster brand loyalty by focusing on affordances within IMAs to elevate interpersonal interaction among community members.

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