Guilt-Decreasing Marketing Appeals: The Efficacy of Vacation Advertising on Chinese Tourists

This study assesses the effectiveness of guilt-decreasing appeals in reducing anticipated guilt regarding a luxury vacation and the maintenance of the happiness associated with a guilty pleasure. An experiment involving two independent groups was conducted on a sample of Chinese tourists. The results show that guilt can be reduced without compromising the benefits of a guilty pleasure. The more successful an advertisement is in depressing anticipated guilt, the more successful it is in enhancing the attitude toward the advertisement and toward the promoted vacation. Implications for destination advertising are suggested.     

Density estimation for randomly distributed circular objects

Summary Nearest neighbour methods traditionally used to estimate density of a sessile biological population treat individuals as points. The present paper suggests distance-based density estimators which treat individuals as circles with variable areas. Distribution of distance between a sample point and thek-th (k = 1, 2, 3, …) nearest circle is derived. Maximum likelihood estimator of density is obtained from a random sample of point tok-th order distances. Assuming a skewed distribution for the circle radius, moment estimators of density and mean circle area are derived.     

Consumer intentions to falsify personal information online: unethical or justifiable?

ABSTRACT

Companies routinely analyse the online activities of consumers to understand shopping habits and buying patterns. As the amount of personal information available online has grown, so has the potential for its misuse. When consumers believe that their personal information is being used for an unstated purpose, they may consider the firm to be acting unethically. They may then falsify their personal information online as a reaction to apparent ethical violations by companies or as an opportunistic unethical act of their own. The purpose of the present research is to propose a framework that could be used to understand consumer intentions to falsify personal information online. The research is important from both a theoretical and business perspective. From a theoretical standpoint, they add to the literature on the dark side of marketing by examining ethically questionable behaviour by consumers. The research is relevant for firms because when consumers falsify personal information their ability to target consumers with personalised offers is diminished. The research is also relevant for policymakers as they evaluate existing regulatory safeguards intended to protect consumer information online.     

<Emphasis Type="BoldItalic">» Emerging markets are becoming core business for multinationals «</Emphasis>

INTERVIEW

? Emerging markets are becoming core business for multinationals ?     

Consumer Decision Making on the Web: A Theoretical Analysis and Research Guidelines

Recent empirical data on online shopping suggests that consumers have the potential to make better quality decisions while shopping on the web. But whether such potential is being realized by most consumers is an unresolved matter. Hence, the purpose of this research is to understand how (1) certain features of electronic environments have a favorable effect on the abilities of consumers to make better decisions, and (2) identify information‐processing strategies that would enable consumers to make better quality decisions while shopping online. A cross‐disciplinary theoretical analysis based on constructs drawn from economics (e.g., time costs), computing (e.g., recommendation agents), and psychology (e.g., decision strategies) is conducted to identify factors that potentially influence decision quality in electronic environments. The research is important from a theoretical standpoint because it examines an important aspect of online consumer decision making, namely, the impact of the electronic environment on the capabilities of consumers. It is important from both a managerial and public policy standpoint because the ability of shoppers to make better quality decisions while shopping online is directly related to improving market efficiency and enhancing consumer welfare in electronic markets.     

Senior Travelers’ Motivations and Future Behavioral Intentions: THE CASE OF NICE

The push and pull framework was used to understand the motives of senior travelers and their future behavioral intentions to the city of Nice, France. The results, based on a convenience sample of 200 senior travelers, indicated that rest and relaxation, spend time with family, and being together as a family were the three most important motives for visiting the city. Pull attributes such as weather and climate, beaches and watersports, and beautiful scenery and attractions were the three most important pull factors. Significant correlations were found between some of the push and pull factors. Revisit intentions were predicted by the motive of escape and relaxation while recommendation intentions were predicted by the pull factor of cultural attractions and accommodation. Managerial implications for product development and marketing to the senior market are suggested.     

Impulse buying and variety seeking: Similarities and differences

Impulse buying and variety seeking seem to emerge from similar personality traits, yet the similarities and differences in the manifestation of these behaviors have not been fully explored. Despite the common origin, research on the two constructs has diverged as definitions of the phenomena have become more elaborate. Previous research on the two constructs shows that they are classifiable as low-effort, feeling-based behaviors with hedonic undertones. A middle-range theory that provides a more comprehensive depiction of how variety seeking and impulse buying are theoretically related is necessary. One way toward such a theory is the addition of a fourth “hidden” socio-normative dimension to the three-dimensional typology of purchase behaviors that Baumgartner (2002) proposes.