In Pursuit of Happiness: Disentangling Sustainable Consumption,Consumer Alienation,and Social Desirability

Journal of Consumer Policy - This study makes a novel attempt to disentangle the complex relationships between making sustainable purchasing choices and happiness, while also considering the key...     

Process management practices: organizational (dis-)similarities

Organizational processes have been manifested as resources which are difficult to imitate. Not least because goods and services are offered worldwide on comparable levels, processes are nowadays sources of competitive advantage. Manufacturers recognized process management's benefits early on. Meanwhile service providers adopt related practices with slight adaptations as well and even potentials for small and flexible firms have been revealed. From a present-day perspective, the question arises whether manufacturers and large firms are still more process oriented than their entrepreneurial counterparts. The results of a survey-based comparison show that this situation continues to hold with fewer differences between manufacturers and service providers. However, it became clear that the process culture – one of six investigated factors – is independent from a firm's industry affiliation and size. The evidence demonstrates that service providers progress on their journey to process management, which is taking an increasingly decisive role in the management of service operations.     

Japan's demographic revolution? A study of advertising practitioners' views on stereotypes

This article presents results from a survey of advertising practitioners in Japan focusing on their opinions about the communication objectives and stereotypes, specifically the effectiveness of older spokespersons, their general views on older models in advertising and the effectiveness of older models by product category. We find that these opinions are rather positive. The intention to use a larger number of older models is affected by the perceived effectiveness of older spokespersons and the expected increase in older models and client interest. When targeting an older audience, older spokespersons are seen as particularly effective for the product category of health/medical, but for a general audience it is financial services/insurance. Regardless of product category, they are perceived more effective when targeting an older versus a general audience and when targeting aged 50–64 versus 65 plus.     

Charitable behavior in China under the Charity Law: Evaluation of charity advertisements involving in-groups and out-groups

This paper examines Chinese charitable behavior in 2016—the year the Charity Law was enforced—with a focus on the evaluation of charity advertisements. The 2016 Charity Law is the first law in China to regulate charitable organizations and their activities. It also provides various tax incentives for charitable organizations and donors. A study was conducted to understand Chinese charitable behavior in terms of in-groups and out-groups. Results indicate that the Chinese more positively evaluate charity advertisements targeting in-groups than those targeting out-groups. This relationship between advertisement type and advertisement attitude is mediated by ethnocentrism. Furthermore, we found that familiarity with the Charity Law moderates the effect of ethnocentrism on advertisement attitude.