From filthy to healthy and beyond: finding the boundaries of taboo destruction in sex toy buying

ABSTRACT

The liberalisation of Western society has led to the destruction of certain taboos, but on the individual level, taboo destruction may be curtailed by opposing conventions. This study investigates the boundaries of taboo destruction in relation to buying products that were once considered as taboo but are increasingly subject to liberalisation, namely, sex toys. Adopting an exploratory mixed-method approach, which combines a consumer survey with expert interviews, this study establishes a framework suggesting that self-protection and status maintenance are the core forces behind individual-level taboo construction. Additionally, consumers may voluntarily construct taboos regarding sex toys as the controlled violation of a taboo is associated with sexual excitement. Implications about how the results diverge from societal taboo destruction, on which sex toy retailing is currently built, are discussed.     

消费者尴尬研究回顾、营销应用及未来展望

消费者时常会体验到尴尬,然而营销学者近几年才对这一情绪予以关注。本文通过对现有文献的梳理,首先界定了消费者尴尬这一构念,之后重点梳理了消费者尴尬产生的前因变量和相应的调节因素,并总结了消费者的尴尬情绪对消费者动机、认知、情感和行为的影响。最后,本文就企业的渠道管理、产品陈列方式以及服务行业员工培训和广告设计提出了切实可行的建议,并展望了几个有潜力的未来研究方向。     

基于“不可持续困境”视角审视可持续发展的必然性

控制自然、改造自然致使生态环境日益恶化,片面强调当代人的眼前利益是人类欲望无限膨胀的后果,人类发展因此陷入困境。可持续发展是人类在长期的发展经验中的理性选择,人类选择可持续发展的道路和模式是基于发展中面临的“不可持续发展的困境”所决定的。资源、环境是可持续发展的两个重要内容．只有珍惜资源、保护环境。才能真正做到全面协调、可持续发展。     

为民营经济发展构建多层次金融支持体系

本文分析了民营企业在融资过程中存在的障碍,提出了缓解民营企业融资难的思路,即以商业性金融为主体,政策性金融为补充,同时积极发展民间金融机构的多角度、全方位的民营企业贷款融资支持体系。     

Oh my gosh,I got to get out of this place! A qualitative study of vicarious embarrassment in service encounters

Vicarious embarrassment is a negative emotion, which is experienced by an individual when others misbehave. People can feel vicariously embarrassed when observing other people's pratfalls or awkward appearance. For instance, vicarious embarrassment is elicited when watching reality TV or in service encounters where many other customers are present. However, the relevance of vicarious embarrassment in physical service environments has not yet been thoroughly analyzed in the context of service encounters. The objective of the present study is to close this research gap and to introduce the phenomenon of vicarious embarrassment to service research. The findings of 25 in‐depth interviews indicate that vicariously embarrassing incidents mostly occur in service encounters and that these incidents are triggered by the violation of social norms in both customer‐to‐customer and customer‐to‐employee interactions. The authors of the present paper identified closeness of relationship, the service context, and parties involved as important situational variables influencing vicarious embarrassment and further emotional, cognitive, and behavioral consequences for the observing person. From a managerial point of view, the relevance of vicarious embarrassment in physical service environments is caused by negative spillover effects of the service experience, which lead to decreasing customer satisfaction, negative word‐of‐mouth and purchase intentions, and a negative impact on the overall image of the service provider.