Examining Biased Assimilation of Brand-related Online Reviews

This paper examines the impact of pre-existing brand attitudes on consumer processing of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM). This topic is particularly important for brands that simultaneously possess strongly pronounced proponents as well as opponents. Two experimental studies using univalent (study 1, N = 538) and mixed (study 2, N = 262) sets of online reviews find indications for biased assimilation effects of eWOM processing. Consumers perceive positive (negative) arguments in online reviews as more (less) persuasive when having a positive (negative) attitude towards the brand. Perceived persuasiveness in turn influences behavioral intentions and acts as a mediator on the relationship between attitude and behavioral intentions. We examine two moderators of this effect. When priming individuals to focus on other consumers (vs. a self-focus prime), the biased assimilation effect is weaker (study 3a, N = 131). In contrast, we show that biased assimilation becomes stronger under conditions of high (vs. low) cognitive impairment (study 3b, N = 124). Our findings contribute to the literature on the relationship between eWOM and brands and advance our understanding of potential outcomes of brand polarization.     

Business corruption in Ukraine: A way to get things done?

Corruption at the firm level is a very complex issue better understood within its cultural, national, and historical contexts. Using Ukrainian firms as an example via two data sets from 2013 (n = 625) and 2015 (n = 120), we describe two types of corruption: (1) the abuse of power by individuals or groups for private gain, and (2) abuse of power by CEOs and general managers not for their own private gain, but for the gain of other individuals or groups. The latter abuse of power—either within or beyond the existing rules, laws, and norms—is often the only way to get things done in Ukraine. On the other hand, corruption might also be used to hinder business activities. This ambivalent function is the main challenge in mitigating corruption.     

Experiential Engagement and Active vs. Passive Behavior in Mobile Location-based Social Networks: The Moderating Role of Privacy

The study aims to understand how social media and mobile change customer experiences and influence the online active behavior. We explore how leveraging differently on experiences that the users live online helps to increase experiential engagement and mitigate the negative influence of privacy concern on the active use of location-based social networking applications. We conceptualize experiential engagement as a second-order construct that is manifested in two first-order “experience” constructs (Personal Engagement and Social Interactive Engagement). We theorize that our engagement constructs are causally related to consumer active and passive use of a mobile location-based social network and we test (n = 379) the moderating role of privacy concern on this relation in EU and the US. Findings show that Personal Engagement plays an important role influencing active usage when users are more concerned with privacy issues. Social Interactive Engagement shows a significant effect on passive usage meaning that the more people experience a deep sense of community the more they are interested in reading other comments or collecting information. Managerial implications are discussed.     

A cross-national analysis of perceptions of corporate governance principles

Increased trade between developed and emerging economies has led to a gradual convergence of policies related to corporate governance as multinational firms attempt to standardize best practices worldwide. Due in part to this movement organizations such as the OECD and World Bank have contributed to the streamlining of acceptable protocol for publicly traded firms around the globe. In 1999 the OECD Principles of Corporate Governance were endorsed by OECD ministers in an attempt to influence policymakers by setting global governance standards. Yet the extent to which perceptions of these principles vary between OECD members and non-members is unclear. Obtaining a greater understanding of how individuals from diverse nations perceive these principles is important to managers as they maneuver through the complex world of international business. In this study we employ relational demography theory to develop and test a survey instrument in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and in the United States to assess perceptions of OECD principles. Results from a survey of 284 managers (Saudi Arabia n = 168, USA n = 116) suggest that regardless of culture perceptions of shareholder rights are positively related to beliefs about the integrity of the national legal and regulatory framework. Also, differences between the Saudi and U.S. samples on perceptions of shareholder participation, disclosure and the role of the audit function are identified. Managerial implications and future research directions are also discussed.     

The effects of marketer- and advocate-initiated online service recovery responses on silent bystanders

Dissatisfied customers increasingly voice their complaints on social media. These negative comments and subsequent responses are an important information source for potential customers. In a consumer-empowered era, these responses not only originate from marketers, but are often articulated by engaged brand advocates. In this study we investigate the effect of both marketers' and advocates' responses to service failures on bystanders' favorable and unfavorable brand-related reactions. Specifically, two scenario-based experiments (n₁ = 731; n₂ = 361) were conducted in which specific webcare response types and sources were systematically manipulated. Results show that companies are particularly effective in enhancing bystander-brand relationships by means of credible and accommodative responses and sometimes even with credible, defensive responses. Most importantly, however, brand advocates can help the company to increase favorable brand-related outcomes with accommodative responses and mitigate unfavorable outcomes with web-specific defensive responses.     

Reshoring from a demand-side perspective: Consumer reshoring sentiment and its market effects

Reshoring is the company decision to relocate activities back to the home country. Our study complements the existing research in IB by adopting a demand-side perspective. We identify new, demand-based drivers for reshoring that integrate with the firm-based ones, thereby further informing the company decision process in this context. We develop a Consumer Reshoring Sentiment (CRS) scale through multiple studies conducted on consumers (total = 1149) in two countries. Our findings reveal: six demand-based drivers that compose CRS; a link between CRS and consumer willingness to reward the reshoring company; and the effectiveness of CRS in segmenting and targeting the market.     

Cutting Through the Online Review Jungle — Investigating Selective eWOM Processing

Consumers frequently rely on online reviews, a prominent form of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM), before making a purchase decision. However, consumers are usually confronted with hundreds of reviews for a single product or service, as well as rich information cues on online review websites (review texts, helpfulness ratings, author information, etc.). In turn, consumers face more information cues on online review websites than they can or want to process, and are likely to proceed selectively. This paper investigates selective processing of such eWOM information cues. Results of Study 1, an exploratory study using verbal protocols, confirm that consumers display selective eWOM processing patterns and are able to articulate them. Study 2 develops and applies a measurement instrument to capture these patterns. A subsequent cluster analysis on members of a large-scale online panel (N = 2,295) indicates five prominent eWOM processing types, termed “The Efficients”, “The Meticulous”, “The Quality-Evaluators”, “The Cautious Critics”, and “The Swift Pessimists”. Insights of this research can help firms to better understand consumers' eWOM processing and improve the user-friendliness of online review websites.     

From entrepreneurial intentions to actions: Self-control and action-related doubt,fear, and aversion

This study draws on the Rubicon model of action phases to study the actions or lack of actions that follow the formation of entrepreneurial intentions. Concurrently, it examines the roles of self-control and action-related emotions in explaining the intention–action gap using longitudinal survey data (N = 161). The results show that self-control positively moderates the relationship between intention and action, and that it counters the rise of action-related fear, doubt, and aversion. We also find evidence for interaction effects between action aversion, action doubt, and intention strength. Our results signal the importance of studying moderators of the intention–action relationship.     

Toward a new measure of organizational environmental citizenship behavior

Previous work has conceptualized workplace pro-environmental behaviors within the organizational citizenship behavior framework and a scale to measure these behaviors has been developed. The goal of the present research was to address conceptual and psychometric issues of this scale by: (a) conceptualizing organizational environmental citizenship behavior within the dominant target-based framework, (b) developing and refining a new, more comprehensive measure of organizational environmental citizenship behavior and (c) validating this new measure by providing evidence for its content, construct, convergent, discriminant, concurrent, incremental concurrent and nomological validity, and its internal and temporal stability. To this end, six separate studies (N = 652) were conducted, which together produced a psychometrically acceptable measure of organizational environmental citizenship behavior. Theoretical and practical implications from this research and direction for future research are discussed.     

TV advertising engagement as a state of immersion and presence

Despite widespread theoretical and practical interest in advertising engagement, scholars and practitioners share little consensus as to what it is and how it can be measured. Guided by the theories of immersion and presence, this research investigates the experiential nature of advertising engagement in the television advertising context. Using survey data (N = 1,115 cases) on thirteen TV advertisements aired during two Super Bowl broadcasts, a definition of the construct is developed and a parsimonious, reliable and valid four-item scale for measuring experiential TV advertising engagement is produced. As conceptualized, TV advertising engagement is an experience independent of its antecedents and consequences, in which the viewer is psychologically immersed in and present with a TV advertisement. These conceptual dimensions are reflected in the four items of the produced scale.     

Determinants of Participation and Response Effort in Web Panel Surveys

Web panels are widely employed to conduct marketing research surveys, yet little is known regarding why consumers join web panels or participate in web surveys. The present research investigated the effects of individuals' motivational traits on whether they joined web panels, participated in surveys upon joining, and the effort they put into their responses. A longitudinal study employing population profiling gathered personality measures from the entire population of potential panelists (N = 751) and invited them to join a web panel. Those accepting (N = 503) were sent a series of six marketing research surveys. Results revealed that consumers' need for cognition, curiosity, agreeableness and extraversion were significant predictors of joining the web panel. The first three traits also predicted survey participation, as did openness to experience. Among participants, response effort was affected the greatest by curiosity, extraversion, and conscientiousness. An additional experiment, conducted with 327 participants, ruled out a selection bias explanation for some results. These findings provide useful insights to researchers using web panels, and point out limitations with using strictly demographics-based weighting schemes when selecting web panels.     

Values associated with luxury brand consumption and the role of gender

We investigate the role of gender in the perceptions of and motives for luxury brand consumption. Based on the social structural theory of gender, we propose that differences in men's and women's luxury values result from asymmetries in social status. We conduct three studies with samples of frequent luxury brand buyers. Study 1 (N = 512) generates main values associated with luxury brand consumption. Study 2 (N = 640) identifies a four-factor model of luxury brand values, including refinement, heritage, exclusivity, and elitism, and shows that women give more importance to refinement, while men give more importance to exclusivity and elitism. Study 3 (N = 1024) demonstrates that public self-consciousness has a stronger positive influence on refinement for women rather than men. In contrast, consumer need for uniqueness and status consumption exert respectively a stronger positive influence on exclusivity and elitism for men rather than women.     

In good company: The role of personal and inter-firm networks for new-venture internationalization in a transition economy

Although personal and inter-firm networks are critical for the survival and growth of entrepreneurial ventures in transition economies, their role in new-venture internationalization has been understudied. Exploring the internationalization of entrepreneurial ventures (n = 623) in Bulgaria, we find that domestic personal networks have a positive effect on internationalization. Firm age negatively moderates the effect of inter-firm networks: the earlier the new venture engages in inter-firm collaboration, the higher the degree of its internationalization. Internationalization is positively associated with new venture size and varies by industry. Implications for managerial practice and public policy are discussed.     

Consumers' cognitive and affective responses to brand origin misclassifications: Does confidence in brand origin identification matter?

Although research on country-of-origin (COO) effects in general is abundant, findings regarding the phenomenon of brand origin misclassification (i.e., consumers' association of a brand with the wrong COO) remain limited and inconclusive. This study fills this research gap by investigating how consumers' cognitive and affective responses upon learning the true origin of a previously misclassified brand drive the extent to which they revise their brand evaluation. Specifically, the authors explore the role of consumers' confidence in brand origin identification in this context. The results from an empirical study in South Korea (N = 259) suggest that consumers tend to adjust their brand evaluations only if the true COO is perceived more favorably; they tend not to take a worse COO into consideration. Moreover, negative emotions lead to greater losses in brand evaluation than positive emotions lead to gains in that respect.     

Overall justice,work group identification and work outcomes: Test of moderated mediation process

This study examined an integrated model of the antecedents and outcomes of organisational and overall justice using a sample of Indian Call Centre employees (n = 458). Results of structural equation modelling (SEM) revealed that the four organisational justice dimensions relate to overall justice. Further, work group identification mediated the influence of overall justice on counterproductive work behaviors, such as presenteeism and social loafing, while conscientiousness was a significant moderator between work group identification and presenteeism and social loafing. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Can health “halos” extend to food packaging? An investigation into food healthfulness perceptions and serving sizes on consumption decisions

The purpose of this research is to examine how perceived food healthfulness and package partitioning interact to impact intended and actual consumption. Across three studies, findings indicate that both intended consumption and actual consumption of the perceptually healthier food items increase when packaging is not partitioned. Further, partitioning does not change the intended or actual consumption of foods perceived as less healthy. Accordingly, perceptually healthy foods tend to be consumed more when servings are not partitioned, suggesting a positive health halo leading to a “healthy = eat more” consumption pattern. The role of affect regulation theory and, more specifically, guilt, in this process is examined. These findings have implications for marketers, food manufacturers, and public policymakers interested in reducing obesity.     

Intentional social action in virtual communities

There is growing evidence of the increasing participation in, and influence of, virtual communities in digital environments. To help explain this irresistible allure, the individual and social determinants of the member's intentions to participate are investigated. Conceptualizing virtual community participation as intentional social action, we explicate the concept of “we-intentions”, and use the Model of Goal-Directed Behavior to explain members’ we-intentions. Virtual community influences pertaining to compliance, internalization, and social identity are also elaborated on. An empirical study of regular virtual community participants (N = 157) finds that we-intentions to participate are functions of both individual determinants (positive anticipated emotions and desires), and community influences (social identity). Implications for marketing and future research opportunities are discussed.     

To Share and Protect: Using Regulatory Focus Theory to Examine the Privacy Paradox of Consumers' Social Media Engagement and Online Privacy Protection Behaviors

Consumers' personal information often informs retailers' marketing efforts in terms of creating value in the online marketplace. This study examines four factors related to consumers' social media engagement and online privacy protection behaviors. Regulatory focus, social exchange, and marketing relationship theories explain the online consumer personal information share-and-protect model developed. Consumers aged 18–64 years across the United States participated in this survey research. The results suggest that while personal privacy violation experience and perceived secondary control of one's personal information are influential antecedents, privacy concerns and trust in social media websites mediate each of these respectively. The findings suggest that promotion- and prevention-related behaviors regarding personal information align with the orientation of the antecedents, indicating that regulatory focus theory shows promise for examining the privacy paradox. We conclude by developing a matrix that integrates regulatory focus and social exchange theories to guide future research.     

How do Chinese employees react to psychological contract violation?

Psychological contract violation (PCV) is employee negative emotions aroused by employers not delivering their promises. Past studies have used Social Exchange Theory to explain the effects of PCV on employee responses specified in the EVLN (i.e., Exit, Voice, Loyalty and Neglect) model. The present study argues that Activation Theory may also be applied to explain employee responses to PCV for Chinese employees due to the specific role of emotions in Chinese culture. Both theories receive some supports in a Chinese employee sample (n = 439). Results and implications are discussed.     

The Roles of Modality Richness and Involvement in Shopping Behavior in 3D Virtual Stores

The rapid growth of e-commerce and consumers' increasing use of 3D virtual worlds to make purchases have rendered it important to understand how consumers develop their buying intentions in this novel context. Drawing from literature on modality richness, this study examined the effects of pre-experimental product involvement and the modality of marketing information presentation on consumers' product evaluations, buying intentions, and enjoyment of online shopping. The results of a 2 × 2 between-subjects experiment indicate significant interaction effects between modality richness and prior involvement. Consumers with low involvement are influenced by modality richness, whereas those with high involvement are not, thus confirming the moderating role of prior involvement for shopping behaviors inside 3D virtual environments. Managerial implications of these findings are discussed.