Think about it – can portrayals of homosexuality in advertising prime consumer-perceived social connectedness and empathy?

2017 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nina Åkestam ◽  
Sara Rosengren ◽  
Micael Dahlen
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Social Connectedness ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Social Effects ◽  
Attitudes Toward Homosexuality ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Thought Listing ◽  
Societal Level ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This paper aims to investigate whether portrayals of homosexuality in advertising can generate social effects in terms of consumer-perceived social connectedness and empathy. Design/methodology/approach In three experimental studies, the effects of advertising portrayals of homosexuality were compared to advertising portrayals of heterosexuality. Study 1 uses a thought-listing exercise to explore whether portrayals of homosexuality (vs heterosexuality) can evoke more other-related thoughts and whether such portrayals affect consumer-perceived social connectedness and empathy. Study 2 replicates the findings while introducing attitudes toward homosexuality as a boundary condition and measuring traditional advertising effects. Study 3 replicates the findings while controlling for gender, perceived similarity and targetedness. Findings The results show that portrayals of homosexuality in advertising can prime consumers to think about other people, thereby affecting them socially. In line with previous studies of portrayals of homosexuality in advertising, these effects are moderated by attitudes toward homosexuality. Research limitations/implications This paper adds to a growing body of literature on the potentially positive extended effects of advertising. They also challenge some of the previous findings regarding homosexuality in advertising. Practical implications The finding that portrayals of homosexuality in advertising can (at least, temporarily) affect consumers socially in terms of social connectedness and empathy should encourage marketers to explore the possibilities of creating advertising that benefits consumers and brands alike. Originality/value The paper challenges the idea that the extended effects of advertising have to be negative. By showing how portrayals of homosexuality can increase social connectedness and empathy, it adds to the discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of advertising on a societal level.

Subject or object: a product’s scent congruent perspectives

2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 402-416
Author(s):  
Ana M. Arboleda ◽  
Carlos Arce-Lopera ◽  
Samuel González
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Quality Attributes ◽  
Marketing Strategies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Object A ◽  
Reference Quality ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is evaluate to what extent consumers can recognise a scent within a context that is congruent either with the product or with the user, respectively, objects’ quality or subjects’ involvement. Design/methodology/approach This paper consists of two experimental studies. The first study assesses people’s capacity to recognise three scents: leather, synthetic leather, and fabric. The second study assesses the way in which a frame of reference (quality or involvement) affects people’s capacity for scent recognition (leather and fabric). Findings Results confirm the difficulty of scent recognition revealing, in the first study, a low level of consistency in subjects’ responses. The second study shows an interaction between the type of scent and consumers’ framework: subjects who are primed to think about product quality present more accurate scent recognition when they smell leather, whereas subjects who are primed to think about themselves present more accurate scent recognition when they smell fabric. Practical implications These results can be used in brand communication. A scent, such as that of leather, should highlight quality attributes in its communication. If the product is unscented, communication should highlight the subject who uses the product. Originality/value Previous studies show the importance of the consistency between scent and product marketing strategies. This study complements these findings by differentiating the context where a scent is presented considering either the product (the object’s quality attributes) or the individual who uses that product (subject’s involvement).

How exposure to logos and logo varieties fosters brand prominence and freshness

2015 ◽  
Vol 24 (7) ◽  
pp. 736-744 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Sääksjärvi ◽  
Ellis van den Hende ◽  
Ruth Mugge ◽  
Nicolien van Peursem
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Purchase Intent ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Behavioral Measures ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Differential Effects ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This study aims to propose that a brand can be kept both prominent and fresh by using existing logos as well as logo varieties (i.e. slight modifications to the brand’s existing logo). Design/methodology/approach In two experimental studies, the authors exposed respondents to either the existing brand logo or to logo varieties, and examined their influence on brand prominence and freshness. Findings The findings suggest that consumers subconsciously process logo varieties to which they are exposed in a similar way as they subconsciously process the existing logo of the brand, making both types of logo exposure effective for building brand prominence and freshness. Research limitations/implications It would also be worthwhile to study the effect of logo varieties using other dependent measures than the ones employed in this study, such as purchase intent and behavioral measures (such as consumption behaviors). Practical implications This research shows that logo varieties can be used alongside the existing brand logo to build prominence and freshness. These findings diverge from the findings typically reported in the branding literature that state that consumers resist changes to logos. Originality/value This research not only demonstrates that exposure to logo varieties and existing logos evokes automatic effects (both types of logos outperform a control group in fostering brand-related outcomes) but also confirms that exposing consumers to the existing logo or logo varieties give less differential effects than one may think.

Recycling cooperation and buying status

2019 ◽  
Vol 53 (5) ◽  
pp. 944-971 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diego Costa Pinto ◽  
Márcia Maurer Herter ◽  
Patrícia Rossi ◽  
Walter Meucci Nique ◽  
Adilson Borges
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Sustainable Consumption ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Competitive Altruism ◽  
Identity Based ◽  
Pure Altruism ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This study aims to reconcile previous research that has provided mixed results regarding motivation for sustainable behaviors: pure altruism (cooperation) or competitive altruism (status). Drawing on evolutionary altruism and identity-based motivation, the authors propose that a match between pure (competitive) altruism and individualistic (collectivistic) identity goals enhance consumers’ motivations to engage in recycling (green buying). Design/methodology/approach Three experimental studies show how pure and competitive altruism are associated with specific sustainable consumption (Study 1) and how altruism types should be matched with identity goals to motivate sustainable consumption (Studies 2 and 3). Findings Study 1 shows that pure altruism is associated with recycling but not with green buying. Studies 2 and 3 show that pure (competitive) altruism and individualistic (collectivistic) goals lead to higher recycling (green buying) intentions. Research limitations/implications The present research extends previous findings by showing that pure and competitive are indeed associated with specific sustainable behaviors. The authors suggest that the interaction between motives and identity goals can lead to a greater impact on recycling and green buying intentions. Practical implications Public policymakers and companies will benefit by better understanding how specific combinations of altruism types and identity goals can foster recycling or green buying intentions. Originality/value This research is the first to show how matches between pure and competitive altruism types and individualistic and collectivistic identity goals affect consumers’ motivations to engage in recycling and green buying.

Centralizing or decentralizing control in crisis

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (11) ◽  
pp. 32-34
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Reading Time ◽  
Cutting Edge ◽  
Clear Understanding ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Pertinent Information ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Reviews the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoints practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings Centralizing or decentralizing control each have advantages and disadvantages. Clear understanding of these will help companies not just to survive but to prosper. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Insights for luxury retailers to reach customers globally

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (7) ◽  
pp. 797-811 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Jebarajakirthy ◽  
Rambalak Yadav ◽  
Amit Shankar
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Corporate Image ◽  
Luxury Consumption ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Multichannel Retailing ◽  
Intention To Purchase ◽  
Online Stores ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate whether customer intention to purchase luxury products from the online stores of fashion luxury retailers varies depending on their degree of corporate image and showrooming strategy, when the retailers do not have a wider store network in the region where customers live.Design/methodology/approachTwo scenario-based, between-subject experimental studies were conducted to test the hypotheses.FindingsFindings showed that both building corporate image and showrooms are effective in enhancing customer intention to purchase from online stores, without widely increasing the number of stores; however, building corporate image is more useful to high corporate-image retailers and showrooms are more appealing to low corporate-image retailers.Practical implicationsThe findings are useful to fashion luxury retailers, particularly those based in Western countries who seek to target customers in other regions, particularly those in developing countries.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the literature on online fashion luxury consumption and multichannel retailing.

Simpler online ratings formats increase consumer trust

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alena Kostyk ◽  
James M. Leonhardt ◽  
Mihai Niculescu
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Consumer Involvement ◽  
Information Environment ◽  
Processing Fluency ◽  
Consumer Trust ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Online Ratings ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Online customer ratings are ubiquitous in e-commerce. However, in presenting these ratings to consumers, e-commerce websites utilize different formats. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of customer ratings formats on consumer trust and processing fluency. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on the latest behavioral research, two empirical experimental studies test whether the format of online customer ratings affects consumer trust and processing fluency. Findings The studies offer converging evidence that a simpler ratings format (i.e. mean format) elicits higher processing fluency and, in turn, higher consumer trust than does a more complex ratings format (i.e. distribution format). Research limitations/implications Future research could include additional factors that might influence the ease of online ratings processing for consumers. Investigation of possible moderators, such as need for cognition, numeracy and consumer involvement, may also be of value. Practical implications These findings have timely practical implications for the design and presentation of customer ratings to enhance e-commerce outcomes. Originality/value This paper extends the effects of processing fluency on consumer trust to the increasingly important context of e-commerce. In doing so, it highlights important interactions between the evolving information environment and consumer judgment. The key takeaway for managers is that simpler online customer ratings formats help to enhance consumer trust.

A discursive textscape of workplace spirituality

2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 948-969 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brad S. Long ◽  
Cathy Driscoll
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Critical Reflection ◽  
Workplace Spirituality ◽  
Organizational Studies ◽  
Discursive Practices ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Societal Level ◽  
Conditions Of Possibility ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – Based on themes the authors observed in workplace spirituality texts, the purpose of this paper is to highlight the historicity of these texts and induce a model to help them understand how this discourse of workplace spirituality came into being. Design/methodology/approach – The authors perform intertextual analysis to show how authors draw upon concepts available in the broader discursive context, from which the authors produced a textscape of the workplace spirituality discourse to depict these layers of discursive interconnections. Findings – The expressed novelty and recency of workplace spirituality as a form of management knowledge, the authors argue, is made ambiguous by its heavy borrowing from other discourses. The authors show how existent spiritual, organizational and societal-level discourses create the conditions of possibility for the discourse of workplace spirituality to emerge. Most of the authors within the corpus engaged the same theories in organizational studies that created the kind of workplaces they now seek to change. Practical implications – The power of the workplace spirituality discourse to improve the state of workers and work and achieve the expressed desire for change may be diminished through the discursive practices of its authors. Originality/value – The authors offer a visual “textscape” in which the findings are framed and hence operationalize this idea in a novel manner that contributes to the methods of discourse analysis. The findings also call for more critical reflection into whether workplace spirituality represents a solution to organizational problems when neither the workers nor work it constructs are particularly new.

A spline hazard model for current expected credit losses

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dror Parnes
Keyword(s):  
Hazard Rate ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Spline Method ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Explanatory Variables ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Comprehensive Framework ◽  
Credit Losses ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present a comprehensive framework for assisting lending banks in their current expected credit losses (CECL) forthcoming computations. Design/methodology/approach The bottom-up approach requires multiple steps including the spline method for identifying optimal segments in the lifetimes of loans, Poisson regressions for evaluating the explanatory variables and hazard rate probes for gaining inferences toward the expected credit losses and their projected schedule. Findings The CECL paradigm has both advantages and disadvantages, as discussed hereafter. Practical implications The model is practical, accurate in the sense that provisions are properly and timely allocated, it can be programmed and it relies on merely a few mild assumptions, thus it can be conveniently calibrated to fit broad macroeconomic scenarios. Originality/value This study provides background on the subject, motivate each module, construct the advised model, assemble a pseudo-database, demonstrate the functionality of the procedures and further draw conclusions on the effectiveness of the current strategy.

scholarly journals Free upgrades with costly consequences

2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (4) ◽  
pp. 691-712
Author(s):  
Alexandra Polyakova ◽  
Zachary Estes ◽  
Andrea Ordanini
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Contextual Effects ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Opportunistic Behavior ◽  
Preferential Treatment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
A Company ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Prior Relationship

Purpose Companies often provide preferential treatment, such as free upgrades, to customers. The present study aims to identify a costly consequence of such preferential treatment (i.e. opportunistic behavior) and reveal which type of customer is most likely to engage in that negative behavior (i.e. new customers). Design/methodology/approach Across two experimental studies, the authors test whether preferential treatment increases customers’ entitlement, which in turn increases their propensity to behave opportunistically. Moderated mediation analysis further tests whether that mediated effect is moderated by customers’ prior relationship with the company. Findings Preferential treatment increases feelings of entitlement, which consequently triggers customers’ opportunistic behaviors. New customers are more likely to feel entitled after preferential treatment than repeat customers, and hence new customers are more likely to behave opportunistically. Preferential treatment also increases customers’ suspicion of the company’s motives, but suspicion was unrelated to opportunistic behavior. Research limitations/implications Future research may focus on other marketplace situations that trigger entitlement and explore whether multiple occurrences of preferential treatment provide different effects on consumers. Practical implications Present findings demonstrate that preferential treatment can evoke opportunistic behaviors among customers. The authors suggest that preferential treatment should be provided to customers who previously invested in their relationship with a company (i.e. repeat customers) rather than new customers. Originality/value Prior research has focused more on the ways companies prioritize their repeat customers than how they surprise their new customers. The present research instead examines preferential treatment based on customers’ relationship with a firm (i.e. both repeat and new customers) and demonstrates behavioral and contextual effects of entitlement.

Integration of continuous improvement strategies with Industry 4.0: a systematic review and agenda for further research

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Vinodh ◽  
Jiju Antony ◽  
Rohit Agrawal ◽  
Jacqueline Ann Douglas
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Continuous Improvement ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Lean Six Sigma ◽  
Practical Application ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Major Transformation ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide a review of the history, trends and needs of continuous improvement (CI) and Industry 4.0. Four strategies are reviewed, namely, Lean, Six Sigma, Kaizen and Sustainability.Design/methodology/approachDigitalization and CI practices contribute to a major transformation in industrial practices. There exists a need to amalgamate Industry 4.0 technologies with CI strategies to ensure significant benefits. A systematic literature review methodology has been followed to review CI strategy and Industry 4.0 papers (n = 92).FindingsVarious frameworks of Industry 4.0, their advantages and disadvantages were explored. A conceptual framework integrating CI strategies and Industry 4.0 is being presented in this paper.Practical implicationsThe benefits and practical application of the developed framework has been presented.Originality/valueThe article is an attempt to review CI strategies with Industry 4.0. A conceptual framework for the integration is also being presented.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document