Roxana Tutaya Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, Lima, Peru; CENTRUM Católica Graduate Business School, Lima, (Perú)
Keywords
Marca personal, visibilidad digital, capital profesional, legitimidad profesional, señalización, fenomenología
Abstract
Este estudio propone el «efecto espejo», un fenómeno mediante el cual la marca personal en línea no confiere legitimidad profesional de manera autónoma, sino que refleja y amplifica el capital profesional acumulado en contextos offline. Aunque la literatura sobre marca personal ha privilegiado la visibilidad digital y las prácticas de autopresentación en entornos online, existe una comprensión limitada de las condiciones bajo las cuales dicha visibilidad se percibe como creíble y legítima. El objetivo de este estudio es explorar cómo el capital profesional offline se refleja en la marca personal online y condiciona su interpretación en términos de legitimidad profesional. Desde un enfoque fenomenológico descriptivo, se analiza cómo profesionales y ejecutivos latinoamericanos experimentan la relación entre la trayectoria offline y el reconocimiento digital, así como los criterios por los que las audiencias interpretan la visibilidad online. El estudio se basa en 26 entrevistas en profundidad a profesionales y ejecutivos de Perú y Colombia, analizadas según Moustakas (1994). Los resultados muestran que la visibilidad digital adquiere mayor credibilidad cuando se percibe como coherente con una trayectoria profesional previa, mientras que una presencia online intensificada, sin respaldo suficiente, genera escepticismo y riesgo reputacional. Este trabajo contribuye a la literatura al conceptualizar la marca personal online como un fenómeno relacional y propone el «efecto espejo» como lente explicativa. Ofrece implicaciones para la formación profesional y la gestión estratégica de la visibilidad.
References
Barley, S. R., Meyerson, D. E., & Grodal, S. (2011). E-mail as a Source and Symbol of Stress. Organization Science, 22(4), 887–906. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1100.0573
Bolino, M., Long, D., & Turnley, W. (2016). Impression Management in Organizations: Critical Questions, Answers, and Areas for Future Research. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 3, 377–406. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-041015-062337
Bourdieu, P. (1986). The Forms of Capital. In J. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education (pp. 241–258). Greenwood.
Connelly, B. L., Certo, S. T., Ireland, R. D., & Reutzel, C. R. (2011). Signaling Theory: A Review and Assessment. Journal of Management, 37(1), 39–67. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206310388419
Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2016). Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing Among Five Approaches. Sage Publications.
Goffman, E. (1959). The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life. Anchor Books.
Gorbatov, S., Khapova, S. N., & Lysova, E. I. (2018). Personal Branding: Interdisciplinary Systematic Review and Research Agenda. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 2238. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02238
Guba, E. G., & Lincoln, Y. S. (1994). Competing Paradigms in Qualitative Research. In Handbook of Qualitative Research (Vol. 2, pp. 105–117). Sage Publications.
Guo, S., Guo, X., Wu, X., He, G., & Wang, K. (2025). Enhancing social support: Role of professional capital in shaping identity-driven participation in online patient communities. Frontiers of Engineering Management, 12(4), 1094–1123. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42524-025-4222-z
Hargreaves, A., & Fullan, M. (2015). Professional Capital: Transforming Teaching in Every School. Teachers College Press.
Hearn, A. (2008). `Meat, Mask, Burden`:Probing the contours of the branded `self`. Journal of Consumer Culture, 8(2), 197–217. https://doi.org/10.1177/1469540508090086
Hogan, B. (2010). The Presentation of Self in the Age of Social Media: Distinguishing Performances and Exhibitions Online. Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, 30(6), 377–386. https://doi.org/10.1177/0270467610385893
Huang, Y.-A., Lin, C., & Phau, I. (2015). Idol attachment and human brand loyalty. European Journal of Marketing, 49(7-8), 1234–1255. https://doi.org/10.1108/ejm-07-2012-0416
Ibarra, H., & Barbulescu, R. (2010). Identity As Narrative: Prevalence, Effectiveness, and Consequences of Narrative Identity Work in Macro Work Role Transitions. Academy of Management Review, 35(1), 135–154. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.35.1.zok135
Jacobson, J. (2020). You are a brand: social media managers’ personal branding and “the future audience”. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 29(6), 715–727. https://doi.org/10.1108/jpbm-03-2019-2299
Jost, M., Sajons, G. B., & Schmid Mast, M. (2026). Are women less convincing or perceivers biased? Understanding differential reactions towards men and women’s intentions to exert influence. The Leadership Quarterly, 37(1), 101882. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. leaqua.2025.101882
Khamis, S., Ang, L., & Welling, R. (2017). Self-branding, ‘micro-celebrity’ and the rise of Social Media Influencers. Celebrity Studies, 8(2), 191–208. https://doi.org/10.1080/19392397.2016.1218292
Kvale, S., & Brinkmann, S. (2009). Interviews: Learning the Craft of Qualitative Research Interviewing. Sage Publications.
Labrecque, L. I., Markos, E., & Milne, G. R. (2011). Online Personal Branding: Processes, Challenges, and Implications. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 25(1), 37–50. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intmar.2010.09.002
Marwick, A. E., & boyd, d. (2011). I tweet honestly, I tweet passionately: Twitter users, context collapse, and the imagined audience. New Media & Society, 13(1), 114–133. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444810365313
Matthews, A., Hine, A., & Weissmann, M. A. (2026). Can Online Content Indicate an Individual’s “Real-Life” Personality? Global Business and Organizational Excellence, 45(2), 153–162. https://doi.org/10.1002/joe.70006
Moustakas, C. (1994). Phenomenological Research Methods. Sage Publications. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412995658
Noordegraaf, M., & Schinkel, W. (2011). Professional Capital Contested: A Bourdieusian Analysis of Conflicts Between Professionals and Managers. Comparative Sociology, 10(1), 97–125. https://doi.org/10.1163/156913310X514092
Pahos, N., Polyportis, A., Kyriakopoulos, N., & Van der Heijden, B. I. J. M. (2025). The effects of personal brand equity on hiring recommendation: why, how, when…? Journal of Brand Management, 32(5), 458–475. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41262-025-00394-z
Patton, M. Q. (2014). Qualitative Research & Evaluation Methods: Integrating Theory and Practice. Sage Publications. https://study.sagepub.com/patton4e
Petruca, I. (2016). Personal Branding Through Social Media. International Journal of Communication Research, 6(4), 389–392. https://ijcr.eu/articole/345_10%20Irina%20PETRUCA.pdf
Scheidt, S., Gelhard, C., & Henseler, J. (2020). Old Practice, but Young Research Field: A Systematic Bibliographic Review of Personal Branding. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1809. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01809
Spence, M. (1973). Job Market Signaling. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 87(3), 355–374. https://doi.org/10.2307/1882010
Tong, W., & Razniak, A. (2017). Building professional capital within a 21st century learning framework. Journal of Professional Capital and Community, 2(1), 36–49. https://doi.org/10.1108/jpcc-06-2016-0018
Tracy, S. J. (2010). Qualitative Quality: Eight “Big-Tent” Criteria for Excellent Qualitative Research. Qualitative Inquiry, 16(10), 837–851. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077800410383121
Trang, N. M., McKenna, B., Cai, W., & Morrison, A. M. (2023). I do not want to be perfect: investigating generation Z students’ personal brands on social media for job seeking. Information Technology & People, 37(2), 793–814. https://doi.org/10.1108/itp-08-2022-0602
Treem, J. W., & Leonardi, P. M. (2013). Social Media Use in Organizations: Exploring the Affordances of Visibility, Editability, Persistence, and Association. Annals of the International Communication Association, 36(1), 143–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/23808985.201 3.11679130
Venciute, D., April Yue, C., & Thelen, P. D. (2024). Leaders’ personal branding and communication on professional social media platforms: motivations, processes, and outcomes. Journal of Brand Management, 31(1), 38–57. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41262-023-00332-x
Wang, Q., Li, X., & Yan, X. (2025). Digital charisma or human appeal: A comparative study on how streamers’ multidimensional signals affect viewers’ impulsive purchases in live commerce. Decision Support Systems, 201, 114581. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dss.2025.114581
Technical information
Received: 2026-03-06 | Reviewed: 2026-04-02 | Accepted: 2026-04-03 | Online First: 2026-07-17 | Published: 2026-07-19
Metrics
Metrics of this article
Views: 38099
Abstract readings: 36810
PDF downloads: 1289
Full metrics of Comunicar 77
Views: 459033
Abstract readings: 446071
PDF downloads: 12962
Cited by
Cites in Web of Science
Currently there are no citations to this document

Cites in Scopus
Currently there are no citations to this document

Cites in Google Scholar
Currently there are no citations to this document
Métricas alternativas
Cómo citar
Roxana Tutaya. (2026). El efecto espejo: Capital profesional offline y legitimidad de la marca personal online. Comunicar, 34(86). 10.5281/zenodo.21421659