Dirty weekends and personal hygiene products: The embodiment of casual sex in marketing

In the current inquiry, we propose that reminders of casual sex might lead individuals to feel physically dirty, and this would then motivate consumers to acquire and like personal hygiene products such as toothpaste, body soap, and face wash. We further test the possibility that our hypothesized effect would arise mainly for those who link casual sex with impurity. In three studies, reminders of casual sex increase liking for personal hygiene products mainly among conservative (Study 1), religious (Study 2), and individuals who see “casual sex” to be “dirty,” “wrong,” or even “immoral” (Study 3). These findings are consistent with embodied cognition, suggesting that abstract representations can effect concrete sensations. We study this possibility in a novel domain in sex and sexuality. Our work is relevant to marketers of personal hygiene products, but we situate our findings in the broader discourse of how mere reminders of casual sex might influence individuals’ choices and behaviors.     

Shaping consumer preference using alignable attributes: The roles of regulatory orientation and construal level

The structural alignment literature suggests that people place more weight on alignable (vs. nonalignable) attributes when evaluating competing options. The present research proposes that consumers' regulatory orientation moderates this process. Specifically, consumers differentially weight alignable versus nonalignable attributes depending on whether they are prevention or promotion-oriented. Results of four studies indicate that prevention-oriented consumers who tend to construe information at a more concrete level rely more on alignable attributes when evaluating two options as compared to promotion-oriented consumers who tend to construe information at a more abstract level, and are influenced more by nonalignable attributes. The authors further show that consumers' construal level and differential ease of processing the two types of attributes mediate the influence of regulatory orientations on their relative weighting of alignable versus nonalignable attributes and product evaluations.     

Purchasing environmentally sustainable apparel: The attitudes and intentions of female Kuwaiti consumers

The purpose of this study is to examine relationships among knowledge, environmental concern, attitudes about environmentally sustainable apparel (ESA) and ESA purchasing behaviours of Kuwaiti women. This was accomplished by surveying 236 participants using four preexisting scales, measuring knowledge about the impact of manufacturing apparel and textile products on the environment, levels of concern about environmental degradation, feelings about clothing that is environmentally sustainable and ESA purchase intentions. Data analysis determined several findings. First, female Kuwaiti nationals showed a low level of knowledge about the environmental impacts of the apparel and textile industry. The participants also held neutral attitudes of environmental concern and neutral attitudes towards ESA. Finally, despite their knowledge and attitudes, the participants did have positive intentions to purchase ESA in the future. To produce, market and sell ESA effectively in Kuwait, the conclusions from this study are important for manufacturers and retailers of ESA products. Kuwait provides a large market for apparel goods and this study is a contribution to a better understanding of consumers and ESA in that market.     

Uncertainty representation and risk management for direct segmented marketing

ABSTRACT

Mining for truly responsive customers has become an integral part of customer portfolio management, and, combined with operational tactics to reach these customers, requires an integrated approach to meeting customer needs that often involves the application of concepts from traditionally distinct fields: marketing, statistics, and operations research. This article brings such concepts together to address customer value and revenue maximisation as well as risk minimisation for direct marketing decision-making problems under uncertainty. We focus on customer lift optimisation given the uncertainty associated with lift estimation models, and develop risk management and operational tools for the multiple treatment (recommendation) problem using stochastic and robust optimisation techniques. Results from numerical experiments are presented to illustrate the effect of incorporating uncertainty on the performance of recommendation models.     

Determinants of Mobile Banking Users’ Loyalty

Abstract

In recent years, the banking sector has undergone major changes in the way it serves its customers. Banks have found that customer loyalty is fundamental to strengthening their strategies. The objective of this paper is to identify the variables that have the greatest influence on the loyalty of mobile banking users. A structural equation model of the relationships between the studied variables was developed. The main results indicate that the variables with the greatest influence on mobile banking users’ loyalty are satisfaction, use, and trust. Several conclusions, managerial implications, and possibilities for future studies emerge from these results.     

Application of extended theory of planned behavior model to ecological behavior intentions in the food and beverage service industry

ABSTRACT

This study examined the relationships between environmental concern, the three main constructs of theory of planned behavior (TPB), two extended constructs (psychological ownership of the company and sense of responsibility) and employee behavioral intention to implement environmental measures. A questionnaire designed for restaurant employees was used to measure identified indicators. Structural equation modeling was chosen for hypothesis testing. Our results indicated that the three TPB constructs and one psychological trait (sense of responsibility) mediated the relationship between environmental concern and behavioral intention. Employee psychological ownership of a company was verified to exert a positive effect on employee behavioral intention. However, the findings cannot be applied to F&B settings in general since the study was restricted to Chinese restaurants identified.     

Callable bull/bear contracts,call auction sessions,and price manipulations: Evidence from Hong Kong

Call auction sessions are widely adopted to improve the price discovery process. The suspension of the closing call auction session (CAS) of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEx) in 2009 and the reintroduction of an enhanced CAS in 2016 provide us a unique experimental environment to assess the effectiveness of the two different CAS models in reducing market manipulation. In examining the probability of mandatory call events (MCEs) of callable bull/bear contracts (CBBCs), we find the enhanced CAS model being more effective in price manipulation reduction. We also find the enhanced CAS reducing price manipulation in the preopening auction session.     

Client Perceptions of Reported Outcomes of Group Model Building in the New Zealand Public Sector

System dynamics modellers sometimes involve decision-makers in the modelling process, a method known as “group model building”. Group model building has been associated with a number of different outcomes, and it is not clear which of these outcomes are important to clients. The public sector is a significant audience for group model building interventions; this paper reports on what outcomes are most valued by potential clients in the New Zealand public sector. Senior management within four government agencies identified the employees who were most likely to commission and conduct group decision processes. These individuals participated in detailed semi-structured interviews, and completed a written questionnaire, exploring the contexts in which group model building may be useful and the outcomes sought in each situation. The results suggest that, even within the public sector, the importance of a particular outcome will depend upon context. However, public servants generally appear to value trust and agreement over policy quality when conducting group-decision processes. Knowledge of the outcomes sought by potential clients helps guide the outcomes measured by researchers, and helps practitioners to tailor communication messages to clients.     

Supervisor–Subordinate Guanxi and Employee Work Outcomes: The Mediating Role of Job Satisfaction

In this study, we attempt to explain the divergent results found in the relationships between supervisor–subordinate guanxi and employee work outcomes. Specifically, we propose that the relationships between supervisor–subordinate guanxi and participatory management, turnover intentions, and organizational commitment are mediated by job satisfaction. Based on the data collected from a sample of 196 employees of three local manufacturing firms in Zhejiang Province, China, we found that job satisfaction fully mediated the effects of supervisor–subordinate guanxi on participatory management and intentions to leave, but partially mediated the relationship between supervisor–subordinate guanxi and organizational commitment. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

An Empirical Investigation of the Ethical Perceptions of Future Managers with a Special Emphasis on Gender – Turkish Case

This study presents an empirical investigation of the ethical perceptions of the future managers – Turkish university students majoring in the Business Administration and Industrial Engineering departments of selected public and private Turkish universities – with a special emphasis on gender. The perceptions of the university students pertaining to the business world, the behaviors of employees, and the factors leading to unethical behavior are analyzed. The statistically significant differences reveal that female students have more ethical perceptions about the Turkish business climate, behavior of employees, and the ethicalness of the behavior of the employees in comparison with their male counterparts. M.G. Serap Atakan is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Business Administration of Istanbul Bilgi University, Turkey. She is teaching and conducting researches on business ethics, corporate social responsibility and retailing. She has two co-authored articles published in the Journal of Business Ethics. Sebnem Burnaz is an Associate Professor of Marketing at Istanbul Technical University. She holds Ph.D. degree in management with major in marketing. Her teaching and research interests are in the field of Marketing, Retailing, Decision Making, and Business Ethics. She has published articles which have appeared in Advances in International Marketing, Sex Roles: A Journal of Research, Journal of Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis. Y. Ilker Topcu is an Associate Professor of decision sciences in Istanbul Technical University. He has finished his Ph.D. studies in I.T.U., Faculty of Management. His teaching and research specialties are in the field of Operations Research/Management Science, Multiple Criteria Decision Making, Logistics, Transportation Planning, and Business Ethics. He has published papers which have appeared in Journal of the Operational Research Society, European Journal of Operational Research, Journal of Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis, Journal of Global Optimization, Transportation Research Part A, Lecture Notes in Economics and Mathematical Systems, Energy, and Building and Environment.