Digital Ethnography of Douban's Car Group: Polymedia Ecosystems, Offline-Online Interplay, and Conviviality Community Construction

This paper uses digital ethnography to explore social dynamics in Douban's Car Group, a 120,000-member user-driven e-commerce community characterized by autonomous governance. Focusing on polymedia ecosystems, offline-online interplay, and convivial community construction, the research combines immersive observation and semi-structured interviews to analyze group buying practices. Findings show members leverage platforms like Taobao, JD, and Idlefish to integrate e-commerce promotions and coupons, bypassing merchant involvement. Transactions, whether online or offline, adhere to strict group rules to ensure trust, with roles of initiators and participants fluid. Exclusivity—via bans on external promotion and resistance to commercial intrusion—strengthens group identity, fostered through shared symbols and conviviality. The paper highlights how autonomy sustains order and solidarity, offering insights into virtual collectives' cultural role in China's digital landscape.