Health‐care product advertising: The influences of message framing and perceived product characteristics

Message framing readily lends itself to marketing communication and advertising persuasion strategies. However, past research yields contradictory and inconsistent predictions as to whether positive or negative frames are more persuasive. This study examines the most appropriate message framing to present to consumers in print advertisements for health care products. Two experimental studies are conducted to investigate the moderating effects of product functions: perceived innovativeness and perceived risk on the processing of framed advertising messages. Findings of Study 1 indicate that messages for familiar products should be framed differently depending on perceived product functions (prevention vs. detection), but gain‐framed messages are more persuasive for both new prevention and detection products. Results of Study 2 suggest that a mixed‐framed message (combining gain and loss) could enhance message effectiveness only when subjects have prior experience. Similar to the role of product function, product perceived risk is found to moderate the framing effects on message effectiveness. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Implications for research

We aimed to study the anatomical distribution, severity, and outcome of hospitalised trauma pedestrian patients in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates (UAE), so as to improve preventive measures. All pedestrian trauma patients who were involved with a road traffic collision and admitted to Al Ain Hospital for more than 24 hours or who died in the hospital were included in the study. Data were prospectively collected during March 2003–October 2007. Three hundred and eighteen patients were studied, 279 (87.7%) were males. Median (range) age was 31 (1–75) years. UAE nationals were significantly younger than non-nationals (median (range) age of 14 (2–75) years compared with 33 (1–75) years, p = 0.001, Mann–Whitney U-test). The lower limb (57.2%) was the most common injured region followed by the head (46.9%). The median (range) Injury Severity Score of patients was 5 (1–45). The median (range) total hospital stay was 11.3 (1–130) days. Thirty patients died (overall mortality 9.4%). In conclusion, mortality of pedestrian injured patients in the UAE is high. Severe head injury was the main cause of death. Measures to improve pedestrian safety should be adopted so as to reduce morbidity and mortality. These include educating drivers and pedestrians on road safety and enforcement of traffic safety laws.     

Multifunctional risk in the adoption of innovative technological products

This study analyses whether the perceived risk of purchasing technological products is less influential on the process of technological adoption when this effect is moderated by the product's multifunctional category (hedonic vs. utilitarian product characteristics). Four experiments were developed according to scenarios related to the multifunctional content (level of complexity according to the product category) of the technology and the number of functionalities in the products. The perception of risk has less effect on adoption when the product characteristics are manipulated to be more utilitarian or heighten the consumer's social value. This study contributes to the theoretical understanding of which categories are less influenced by the perceived multifunctional risk of purchasing and adopting a new technology, as well as of when individual values overlap with consumers' risk perceptions. It also contributes managerially by identifying the profile of individuals who are more likely to consume innovations characterized by high complexity and functionality, and by providing guidance for the development of innovative products that prioritize utilitarian, rather than hedonic, characteristics.     

Coping with copies: The influence of risk perceptions in luxury counterfeit consumption in GCC countries

This research investigates counterfeit luxury consumption in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, where consumers are so affluent that their consumption of counterfeit goods is surprising. An exploratory quantitative survey conducted in the United Arab Emirates demonstrates that though GCC nationals do purchase counterfeit luxury products, the perceived performance, psychosocial, and moral risks might prevent them from the engagement in such consumption. Based on 19 in-depth interviews, a follow-up qualitative study identifies the strategies Emiratis use to cope with the cognitive dissonance that occurs from the perception of those risks. The findings are of major interest for public policy makers and luxury brand managers fighting counterfeiting.     

The low effect of perceived risk in the relation between hedonic values and purchase intention

ABSTRACT

This research seeks to identify the influence of perceived risk in the purchase intention environment regarding innovative technological products, and also to understand how brand trust reduces the expected impact of this risk due to the hedonic and utilitarian characteristics influencing purchase intention. Quantitative research was carried out and analysed through structural equation modelling, where the influence of perceived risk on utilitarian value and purchase intention was identified, as well as the influence of brand trust in reducing this risk. The conceptual implications of the study describe as the perceived risk moderates hedonic features less compared to utilitarian features regarding purchase intention, thus demonstrating that emotional relationships are less affected by this risk. The managerial implications suggest that devices with utilitarian characteristics should be more carefully planned according to their brand and complexity, while hedonic products do not require brand trust to guarantee consumers’ purchase intention in the current innovative scenario.     

Corporate goal structures and business students: A comparative study of values

Are the values of business students of today synchronized with the reality of the present business environment? Two hundred twenty-two business students rated the importance of twenty corporate goals. Moreover, the students rated the same goals as they perceived chief executive officers (CEOs) would have rated them. Significant differences were found between the two ratings, with students ranking social and employee-oriented goals as more important than they perceived CEOs would have.     

If all their products seem the same,all the parts within a product seem the same too: How brand homogeneity polarizes product experiences

Many different factors affect brand homogeneity, including the different products associated with a brand, how they are made, and how they are branded. How does the perceived homogeneity of a brand’s offered products, in turn, affect consumers’ experiences with those products? Nine experiments reveal that consumers have more polarized judgments of product experiences when the sampled products are perceived to belong to more homogeneous brands. When a consumption experience is positive, the consumer has an even more positive experience when they think the sampled product came from a homogeneous brand; however, when a consumption experience is negative, the consumer has an even more negative experience when they think the sampled product came from a homogeneous brand. This polarization occurs because the individual product inherits the brand-level quality of perceived internal consistency—when a brand seems homogeneous (i.e., consisting of homogeneous products), consumers also perceive any individual product from the brand as similarly consisting of homogeneous ingredients or parts. We suggest that brand homogeneity leads to selective processing of individual product experiences, which makes products seem more coherent, products rated faster, and ratings of different product ingredients or features more highly correlated. The perception that all of the parts within the individual sampled product are homogeneous in quality polarizes judgments of the product experience.     

How to reduce perceived risk when buying online: The interactions between intangibility,product knowledge,brand familiarity,privacy and security concerns

This paper studies how product intangibility and its moderators affect perceived risk in an online shopping setting. The moderators studied were brand familiarity, product knowledge, privacy concerns and security concerns. Student samples performed online experimental tests, wherein product intangibility was manipulated. The findings indicate that both mental intangibility and physical intangibility increased perceived risk. Mental tangibility had more impact over perceived risk than physical tangibility. This study is the first to show how intangibility, product knowledge, brand familiarity, privacy and security concerns interact and affect perceived risk. Previous studies did not have the opportunity to observe the interactions of these relevant dimensions, thus not identifying which one would have a stronger effect over the perceived risk of buying online. In short, we found that when interacting with intangibility security and privacy concerns increase perceived risk to the same degree. On the other hand, product knowledge reduces the perceived risk more than brand familiarity.     

Perceived Environmental Dynamism and Managerial Risk Aversion as Antecedents of Manufacturing Outsourcing: The Moderating Effects of Firm Maturity

This study investigates how perceived environmental dynamism and managerial risk aversion influence a firm's manufacturing outsourcing activities. Based on a survey of 86 small manufacturing firms, the study found that higher levels of perceived environmental dynamism and managerial risk aversion are associated with increased outsourcing activity. These relationships are moderated by firm maturity such that newer firms engage in more manufacturing outsourcing than their mature counterparts when the environment is perceived to be more dynamic. Mature firms were found to outsource more than newer firms when their top-management teams were relatively more risk averse.     

Making new products go viral and succeed

Why are some new product introductions more viral and successful than others? This research integrates theories of interpersonal communication and consumer learning to explore this question. Analyzing a unique data set of millions of consumer word-of-mouth transmissions (eWOM) on social media regarding 345 new automobile products introduced during 2008–2015, we find that more innovative products generate more eWOM volume but surprisingly less positive sentiment. These effects vary in magnitude across eWOM channels. However, the use of rich-content communication, pre-announcement, and cobranding strengthens (weakens) the positive (negative) effect of product innovativeness on eWOM volume (sentiment). The results further indicate that eWOM sentiment is a stronger predictor of new product success than eWOM volume. Experimental results reveal more insights into how product innovativeness influences eWOM metrics in several product categories and shed light on the role of excitement and perceived risk as mechanisms underlying these effects. The research offers useful implications for firms to design effective viral marketing campaigns to enhance new product success.     

User Perceptions of Mobile and Online Channels for Purchasing Financial Products

ABSTRACT

This study investigates users' perceptions of costs and benefits of mobile versus online, PC-based, channels for accessing financial information and completing financial transactions. Results indicate that, in the financial services context, the mobile channel has no perceived advantages over the online channel. The older online channel does have several perceived advantages related to transaction cost, risk, ease of use, meeting financial goals, and information accessibility. The channels are similar on four dimensions, but most of the similarities arise because the online and mobile channels enable purchase of the same financial products. Finally, users are more willing to use the mobile channel for less risky tasks (accessing information) than they are for more risky tasks (buying financial products).     

Determinants of consumers’ purchase behaviour towards green brands

This study applies perceived risk theory to explore the factors that influence consumers’ purchase behaviour towards green brands, including green perceived quality, green perceived value, green perceived risk, information costs saved, and purchase intentions towards green brands. This study focuses on consumers who have the experience of purchasing products from green brands in the food and restaurant service industry in Taiwan. The results of this study show that purchase intentions are positively associated with purchase behaviour. Moreover, the study demonstrates that purchase intentions mediate the impacts of green perceived quality, green perceived value, information costs saved, and green perceived risk on purchase behaviour. Specifically, green perceived risk is negatively influenced by green perceived value and information costs saved and functions as a mediator among green perceived value, information costs saved, and purchase intentions. The study has critical implications for green brand researchers and practitioners.     

An exploratory investigation of factors affecting and best predicting the renewed adoption of mobile wallets

Foreign nationals often have no other choice than to adapt themselves to technological innovations of their host countries. This is particularly the case of individuals who are exposed temporarily to the world’s cashless societies where mobile wallets are the dominated payment method. Yet, little is known regarding continuous usage intentions among these individuals who have accumulated experience interacting with mobile wallets.This study explores how relative convenience, relative advantage, perceived privacy, and perceived security influence 'renewed adoption' of mobile wallets among experienced users of the leading Chinese mobile wallets. It also explores the best predictors of the renewed adoption intention of mobile wallet technology among these users. The results of this study show that each of the independent variables positively influences renewed adoption intentions. The results also show that relative advantage and perceived security as the best predictors of renewed adoption intention of mobile wallets. Based on the results of this study, practical and theoretical implications are provided.     

Consumers’ Willingness to Pay for Non-pirated Software

This study analyzed consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP) for non-pirated computer software and examined how attitudes toward intellectual property rights and perceived risk affect WTPs. Two commonly used software products, Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office, were used in the study as objects to reveal consumer assessed values. A consumer survey was administered in Taiwan and the total valid samples were 799. Respondents in this study included students from senior high schools, colleges, and graduate schools, and general consumers who were no longer full-time students. The estimated average WTP for Windows was USD 58.55 and for Office was USD 53.49, much lower than the respective suggested retail prices in the market. Social norms had strong positive influences on willingness-to-pay for software products. The prosecution risk did not significantly increase WTPs for software products due to the reason that individuals who used pirated software were not at a high risk of being prosecuted. Performance risk was positively correlated to WTPs for software products. The respondents segmented into the low-WTP cluster were more likely to use pirated software than those in the high-WTP segment. Source reliability, legitimacy, technical support, and customer service were emphasized in decisions of respondents in the high-WTP segment and could be used in marketing strategies. Dr. Jane Lu Hsu is Professor in Department of Marketing at National Chung Hsing University in Taiwan. Charlene Wan-Yun Shiue was a former Research Assistant in the Department of Marketing at National Chung Hsing University in Taiwan.     

Changing risk perceptions and food-handling practices of Oregon household food preparers

Results of 1986 and 1995/6 statewide random surveys were compared to assess changes in the risk perceptions and food-handling practices of Oregon food preparers. The 1986 survey revealed that perishable foods (baked potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, sliced turkey and cream pie) were often held at room temperature for longer than 2–3 h. Those who perceived greater food safety risks were significantly less likely to report temperature abuse of cream pie (P < 0·02) and baked potatoes (P < 0·001). Respondents reported serving raw and/or rare animal products (fish, milk, hamburger and pork) in both surveys. More food preparers perceived that serving undercooked foods was a ‘high’ risk in 1995/6 than in 1986. More (88%) also perceived that serving raw hamburger was a ‘high’ risk in 1995/6 than in 1986 (52%), possibly because of media coverage linking under-cooked hamburgers to the E. coli 0157:H7 outbreak in the Pacific Northwest. Those who perceived a ‘high’ risk were less likely to serve raw fish (P < 0·038) and raw milk (P < 0·002). Significantly more females perceived raw milk to be a ‘high’ risk (P < 0·003). The risks of consuming both raw fish and raw milk were more likely to be underestimated, however. Food safety education is therefore needed to help food preparers to identify ‘high’ risk foods and to motivate them to minimize risks.     

Psychological antecedents and risk on attitudes toward e-customization

Consumers can experience relatively low prices with the dramatic diffusion of online shopping even with customized products, which are commonly more expensive than regular products, due to unique functions of customized product order processes in online environments. This paper investigates how two psychological antecedents, (1) need for uniqueness and (2) status aspiration, can influence consumers' attitude with regard to forming procedures toward e-customized products and how perceived risk, another psychological factor, on purchasing e-customized products plays a role of moderating factor. A self-administered online survey of 321 Japanese consumers is conducted to examine a proposed conceptual model with Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The analysis using results indicates that the need for uniqueness directly impacts on attitude toward e-customized products while it mediates the effect of status aspiration. A multi-group analysis to test a moderating effect of the perceived risk on purchasing e-customized products highlights the significant effects of psychological factors. The result also provides potential guidelines to e-tailors on possibility of segmenting markets as well as promoting their customized products using these psychological criteria of their target consumers.     

感知质量和感知风险对自有品牌购买意向的影响

在中国,品牌名称和价格能够影响消费者对于自有品牌的感知质量和感知风险,进而影响其购买意向,其中品牌名称的影响要大于价格的影响。零售商在市场策略上,应该更加注重品牌建设,以提高消费者的购买欲望,而不是单纯依靠低价竞争。但是,价格和品牌名称只是最重要的外部因素,未来的研究可以综合考虑更多的外部因素。     

High performance work systems in the global context: A commentary essay

The study by Shih, Chiang, and Hsu (2011) contributes substantially to the high performance work systems (HPWS) literature by sampling Chinese host country nationals (HCNs) of a Taiwanese firm and by introducing new mediating variables. A number of interesting issues follow from the study, including the use of perceived HPWS and the dimensionality of HPWS. This commentary essay briefly explores each of these areas.     

How do you feel when you see a list of prices? the interplay among price dispersion,perceived risk and initial trust in Chinese C2C market

The issues of trust fraud, product genuineness and price dispersion jointly make Chinese C2C buyers difficult to identify trustworthy sellers with a low price. Little is known about the generation of initial trust when buyers search products and receive lists of widely ranged prices. This study proposes a theoretical model to explain how price dispersion interacts with other factors in C2C purchase, such as initial trust, perceived risk, perceived value and purchase intention. Product type is considered as a moderator. 261 students were invited in a survey-based experiment. The results from PLS analysis show that price dispersion negatively affects perceived value, whilst, positively affects perceived risk, which further influences perceived value negatively. Price dispersion also negatively influences initial trust through perceived risk. Moreover, the negative effects of price dispersion are stronger when buyers purchase high-touch products.     

Consumer Attitudes Toward and Preferences for Food Standards of Identity

Abstract

Federal food standards of identity protect consumers from nutritional and economic fraud by establishing standardized names and characteristics for some products. Standards have been criticized for a variety of reasons, raising the possibility that standards may be harmful to the consumers' interests that they are designed to protect. The authors conducted focus groups to collect information on consumers' attitudes toward food standards and their perceived usefulness. Many participants believed that standards are useful and deemed standards to be more important for some types of products than others. Regulators can use the study findings to guide policy decisions on food standards.