Theoretical and Methodological Perspectives on Consumer Response to Electricity information

Extensive analysis of consumers’ responses to electricity information and feedback programs has yielded a consensus that such programs have little or no effect on consumers’ electricity use. We argue that these results may be misleading because offsetting usage effects are likely to occur both within and among households. Conventional experimental designs capture only net interhousehold usage effects. We propose alternative experimental designs better suited to answering important policy questions. An experiment involving continuous-display electricity-use monitors supports our prediction of dissimilar and offsetting behavioral responses among treatment households.     

Public Information and Consumer Skepticism Effects on Celebrity Endorsements: Studies among Young Consumers

This article reports on a survey and an experimental study that were conducted to determine the extent to which public information about celebrity endorsers influences consumers' attitudes and perceptions, and whether this was moderated by an individual difference factor, consumer skepticism. Participants in the survey were more likely to recall and discuss negative events involving male sports celebrities; thought that these negative events had little or no effect on their perceptions of brands or companies associated with embattled celebrities; and focused discussion on the case of Kobe Bryant, when they were asked to discuss a specific case of a controversy involving a celebrity endorser. The experimental study revealed significant main and interaction effects of nature of information about a celebrity and consumer skepticism. It revealed that consumer skepticism has its greatest impact when information is neutral. The experimental study established that advertisers have to take into account the level of consumer skepticism when they use celebrities in their advertisements to target different groups of consumers.     

Consumer responses to service situations: Tests for main and interaction effects

This research examines the effects of service criticality, service type, previous service experience, and service recovery on customer satisfaction, customer loyalty, and complaint behavior. The results of a 2 (service criticality: high or low) x2 (service type: personal or nonpersonal) x 2 (previous service experience: failure or nonfailure) x3 (service recovery: assistance only, compensation only, or assistance with compensation) between-subjects experimental design indicate significant main effects for each independent variable on the combined dependent measures. In addition, two-way interaction effects, each involving service type, were found. Managerial implications and future research directions are discussed.     

The impact of bilateral tax treaties: A multi-country analysis of FDI inflows into India

This paper models the role of tax treaties in promoting foreign direct investment (FDI) with the help of panel data for 14 countries for the period 1993–2011. A fixed effects (least squares dummy variable) model is developed that captures macroeconomic factors such as gross domestic product (GDP) and per capita income (PCI) in ratio form of home to host country. It also includes bilateral tax treaties as a determinant of FDI inflow. The results show that GDP is a major determinant that is demand driven and per capita income is a major determinant that is supply driven. FDI openness of the home countries and population are also significant determinants. The introduction of the treaty had a positive impact on FDI inflows into India. We get largely significant and positive results for the ‘age of the treaty effect’, especially, in the case of Germany, Switzerland and Japan. The main contribution of the paper is to show that both presence and ‘age of treaty’ are important determinants of FDI flows to India. Further, fundamentals like GDP and PCI are major variables that influence FDI inflows.     

Sovereign bond spreads determinants in Latin American countries: Before and during the XXI financial crisis

This paper aims to identify the main determinants of sovereign bond spreads in seven Latin American countries and verify the existence of contagion effect over these markets during the last financial crisis. We apply a panel data framework and find that the inflation, terms of trade ratio and the external debt and international reserves (both as percentage of GDP) are key drivers of sovereign bond spreads. Moreover, we test the crisis impact over emerging economies. Our results show that the crisis has a statistically significant impact on the EMBIG spreads since 2008.     

Female,married and endorsing: integrating celebrity marital status,role congruence and credibility

In this study, we investigate the effect of marital status and perceived role congruence (RCN) of a female celebrity endorser on consumer attitudes incorporating the role of credibility in the Indian context. The research hypotheses were tested using a series of experimental designs. The main study had a 4 (Celebrity: Unmarried/Just Married/Married but Endorsing/Married and Comeback) × 2 (Product: Role Congruent/Role Incongruent) full factorial design. Non-student samples were used in this study. Major findings implied a significant effect of celebrity marital status, RCN and the interaction term on consumer attitudes. The three source credibility dimensions were found to have differential effects on consumer attitudes when they were included as moderators. This study finds evidence in support of diminishing effectiveness of female celebrities over time/marriage. In this study, we explored a new dimension of congruence (RCN) and found the same to influence consumer attitudes favourably towards the endorsed product.     

Identifying bubbles in Latin American equity markets: Phillips-Perron-based tests and linkages

The identification of periods of price exuberance in equity markets is of great interest to policy makers and financial investors. In this paper, we identify financial bubble periods within the major equity markets in Latin America. We use the recently developed recursive Augmented Dickey-Fuller methods and propose similar recursive procedures based on Phillips-Perron. We find that conditional on bubbles in the S&P 500, there are strong links between bubble episodes across equity markets in Latin America. In addition, the financial bubble periods in Latin America begin earlier and last longer than bubble periods in the United States during the 2008 financial crisis. Price bubbles were identified prior to the establishment of the Integrated Latin American Market (MILA).     

Testing interaction effects of the dimensions of market orientation on marketing program creativity

Despite the plethora of research on market orientation, our understanding of how different dimensions of market orientation interact with each other in generating new intelligence for marketing programs is limited. In this paper, we develop and test a model that examines the interaction effects of the three dimensions of market orientation—customer orientation, competitor orientation, and cross-functional integration—on generation of marketing program creativity, composed of novelty and meaningfulness dimensions. In empirically testing such effects, we illustrate how to use two-stage least squares (2SLS) estimation. We find significant positive interaction effects between customer orientation and competitor orientation and between competitor orientation and cross-functional integration in predicting marketing program novelty. We also find that competitor orientation and cross-functional integration significantly and positively interact with each other in improving marketing program meaningfulness. Our empirical results provide implications and directions for market orientation research.     

Creativity in the opportunity identification process and the moderating effect of diversity of information

We employ two study designs for a more detailed examination of creativity in the opportunity identification process. We employ a correlational field study to test the hypothesis that divergent thinking affects venture growth through business idea generation. We use an experimental design to test the hypothesis that diversity of information moderates the effect of divergent thinking on business idea generation. Analyses based on 98 business owners across both study designs supported our hypotheses. Combining the findings from both designs points to boundary conditions of theories suggesting constraining information; this may weaken the indirect effect of divergent thinking on venture growth.     

Trip chaining behavior in multi-destination shopping trips: A field experiment and laboratory replication

Models of consumer store patronage generally employ the economic theory-based assumption that, all else being equal, consumers seek to minimize travel distance. Moreover, consistent with reference-dependent theory, findings from recent experimental research conducted in a controlled lab setting suggest that holding travel distance constant, the configuration of stops along multi-stop routes may also impact store-patronage decisions. However, given the use of simplified map configurations of multi-stop routes, along with the stimulus-based nature of the laboratory exercise, the external validity of these findings are open to question. Thus, the purpose of the three experiments in the present paper is to replicate and test the external validity of the reference-dependent predictions supported in previous research. In experiment one, consumer travel preferences are examined in a memory-based field experiment with results replicating those of earlier research. In experiment two, results are again replicated, but this time in a lab setting using realistic maps. Finally, experiment three provides a test of boundary conditions for the theory-consistent results of experiments one and two.     

Location Advantages,Firm Advantages,and Export Success in the Latin American Automotive Parts Industry

Abstract

This paper examines the influence of location advantages and firm-level advantages on the propensity of Latin American firms to export. An empirical test based on Latin American firms in the automobile parts industry suggests that firms in more competitive Latin American country environments are more likely to export than those in less competitive country environments. Also, older and larger firms are more likely to export than are younger and smaller firms, and businesses that are subsidiary companies are more likely to export than are independent companies. Implications for managers and policy makers are presented.     

ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement: Evaluating Trade Creation and Trade Diversion Effects

The present study attempts to provide insight into the trade creation and trade diversion effects of ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement in goods, which came into force in 2010. The paper applies a theoretically consistent gravity model and uses empirically robust procedures such as ordinary least squares and pseudo-Poisson maximum likelihood in order to analyze the ex post effects of the agreement at an aggregate level. The results reveal that standard gravity variables are statistically significant and report expected signs, yet a reduction in export flows has been observed following the implementation of the free trade agreement, giving rise to pure trade diversion effects.     

Validating the Effects of Brand Quality on Attitude and Purchase Intention in Service–Product Alliances

The purpose of this article is to replicate the findings of previous research studying the effects of brand quality on consumer attitude and purchase intentions in service–product encounters. The main contribution of the current research is to improve the generalizability of the previous findings by basing the experimental inquiry on real-world brands. Drawing on information integration and categorization theories, a set of hypotheses are presented that predict both mediating and moderating relationships between the independent and dependent variables. Results from an experimental study confirm previous findings, demonstrating that the quality of a product brand in a service–product alliance has significant effects on the attitude toward the service brand. Such effects are moderated by the quality of the service brand. Alternatively, service brand attributes do not have the same effect on component product brands included in the performance of that service. Service and product quality exhibit the same effects on purchase intentions as mediated by attitude.     

To Be or Not to Be Price Conscious—a Segment‐Based Analysis of Compromise Effects in Market‐Like Framings

Numerous researchers have investigated the compromise effect, according to which a middle option of a consideration set is assumed to be perceived more attractive by consumers, thus becoming more likely to be chosen than the extreme options. However, a closer examination of the experimental designs that were used in previous studies on compromise effects clearly reveals a lack of realism in terms of forced choices between fictitious options in hypothetical choice settings of student samples. This article reports two consecutively implemented studies demonstrating that the compromise effect is robust even in an enhanced design that incorporates basic conditions of real purchase decisions in laboratory‐based experiments. Specifically, the relative share of the middle option increases significantly in an overall analysis when experienced consumers make unforced decisions between real brands in a binding choice context. However, segmented analysis indicates substantial differences, meaning that (1) the compromise effect is strong and significant among quality‐seeking consumers, whereas (2) the compromise effect is weak and insignificant among price‐conscious subjects.     

Action control,proxy control,and consumers' evaluations of the service exchange

This article adopts a consumer's point of view, and extends current literature that models the relationships between consumers' control perceptions, service providers' fair behaviors, and consumers' satisfaction with the exchange. Perceived control is disassembled into action and proxy control and their differential actions in the service exchange discussed. This article models, for the first time, the joint effects of perceived control and service provider behaviors on consumer satisfaction by explicitly connecting service‐provider fair behaviors to consumers' perceptions of control. The results from two repeated‐measures experiments provide support for the hypotheses. Specifically, a multivariate analysis of the data demonstrated main effects for the experimental manipulations on perceived control, perceived fairness, satisfaction, and behavioral intentions. An interaction effect between perceived control and perceived fairness was also evident in one experiment. Future research and managerial implications are discussed. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

独特化需求对虚拟代言人说服效果影响研究

虚拟代言人在营销沟通中担任重要角色,但以往研究多关注各项拟人化特征对广告效果的影响,鲜有对消费者的独特化需求特质如何影响虚拟代言人沟通效果的研究。通过三个实验研究,考察两类代言人（虚拟代言人与真人）与消费者独特化需求水平（从低到高）交互作用下的广告说服效果。研究一表明：不同代言人类型的广告说服效果受消费者独特化需求水平的调节,其中高独特化需求的消费者对虚拟代言人的反应更积极。研究二进一步发现：独特化需求和代言人类型的交互作用是通过积极情绪作为中介路径,进而提升广告说服力。研究三加入品牌类型（奢侈品牌与大众品牌）作三阶调节效应检验,结果显示：虚拟代言人在大众品牌广告中,对高独特化需求的消费者说服力要比真人代言人的说服力更强;然而这种调节效应在奢侈品牌广告中差异不显著。     

The effects of postexposure test expectation in advertising experiments utilizing recall and recognition measures

Whether due to unaccepted guises, previous exposure to measures, or overt instructions, subjects in advertising experiments often expect testing related to ads, while individuals encountering ads in daily life feel no such expectation. The results of experiments exploring main and interactive effects of postexposure test expectation on ad retention measures are reported. In the first experiment, subjects who expected a recall or recognition test performed better on that test than subjects who expected a different measure or measures unrelated to retention. In the second experiment, the sort of test expectations which may arise when subjects encounter ads in controlled research settings moderated the effect of competitive advertising interference on recall scores. Summarily, these data suggest that test expectation may often influence the findings of advertising experiments.The authors wish to thank Frank Kardes and James Kellaris for their helpful comments.     

An Approach to Model,Estimate, and Control the Effect of Ambient Temperature on Advertising Experiments

Abstract

The impact of ambient weather may not be obvious and weather may play a bigger part than previously attributed to variations in experimental and test market results including advertising results. While some researchers have passed off this issue as just another “seasonal effect,” ambient weather conditions have played a major impact on various test market studies. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the following: (1) ambient temperatures that differ from seasonal mean temperatures may affect sales in certain cities; moreover, the effects differ among sales of certain varieties both within and between cities, and (2) these effects may be estimated and controlled. The results show that while seasonal effects explain most variation, there is a significant amount of variation explained by ambient temperature. This variation could be the difference between which a number of alternative commercials or promotions are selected for implementation.     

Foreign Exchange Reserves and Import Demand: Evidence from Latin America

This paper investigates the impact of foreign reserves, domestic real income and relative import prices on import demand for seven Latin American countries. We differentiate empirically between the short‐run and long‐run impact of reserves, income and prices on imports. The paper has three main results. First, we show that there exists a unique long‐run relationship among real imports, real income, relative import prices and real foreign exchange reserves for all seven countries. Second, we find that increases in foreign exchange reserves exert a significant positive effect on import demand in both the long run and the short run in all countries. However, the economic impact of foreign exchange reserves is rather small. Finally, we find that the long‐ and short‐run impact of real domestic income on import demand is positive as well, while the effect of relative prices is negative.     

Consumer responses to price discrimination: Discriminating bases, inequality status, and information disclosure timing influences

This study broadly explores consumers' perceived unfairness, negative emotions, internal reference price, and store choice under five common methods of price discrimination using two experimental studies. Study 1 investigates the interaction between discriminating bases and inequality status. Results reveal that discriminating bases only influence perceived unfairness for advantaged consumers, but affect all four responses for disadvantaged consumers. For disadvantaged consumers, direct discrimination that complies with social norms evokes the weakest unfavorable responses, whereas direct discrimination against social norms triggers the highest perception of unfairness and negative emotions but has similar effects on internal reference price and store choice to indirect discrimination. Study 2 examines the effect of information disclosure timing by comparing pre- and post-purchase disclosure policies. Results show that post-purchase disclosure of discrimination information elicits higher negative emotions for indirect discrimination involving coupon and purchase quantity, but is rather inconsequential for direct discrimination or indirect discrimination through membership.