THE SEARCH-TO-DISCOVERY EVOLUTION: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW OF SOCIAL MEDIA SEARCH BEHAVIOURS AND GENERATION Z ENTREPRENEURIAL ENTRY
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35631/IJEMP.934028Keywords:
Digital Entrepreneurship, Generation Z, Information Seeking Behaviour, Social Media SearchAbstract
The rapid growth of social media has transformed traditional information-seeking activities into search-to-discovery experiences, influencing how Generation Z identifies entrepreneurial opportunities and makes business-related decisions. Despite growing interest in digital entrepreneurship, limited understanding exists regarding how social media search behaviours encourage entrepreneurial engagement among this generation. To address this gap, this study conducts a systematic literature review that synthesizes existing literature on search-to-discovery dynamics and their implications for Generation Z entrepreneurship. Following the PRISMA protocol, studies were retrieved from the Web of Science and Scopus databases, resulting in the selection and analysis of 26 eligible primary studies. The thematic synthesis identifies three themes. Social media discovery influences how Generation Z recognizes opportunities, develops entrepreneurial intentions, and transitions from consumers to potential entrepreneurs. First, influencer credibility shapes entrepreneurial awareness and decision-making. Second, platform engagement and social commerce features support opportunity recognition and entrepreneurial discovery. Third, emotional engagement and perceived value strengthen entrepreneurial intentions and sustained participation. Overall, the findings suggest that social media functions as a discovery environment that supports opportunity recognition, entrepreneurial intention development, and consumer-to-entrepreneur transitions among Generation Z. This review develops an integrated framework linking entrepreneurial cognition, social commerce, digital consumer behaviour, and opportunity recognition to explain how social media search experiences influence entrepreneurial entry. The framework contributes to digital entrepreneurship literature by clarifying the mechanisms through which online discovery processes shape entrepreneurial engagement and provides practical guidance for educators, platform developers, and entrepreneurship support agencies.
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