Public Policy Issues and Technoethics in Marketing Research in the Digital Age

Companies collect customer information in marketing research to understand customers and generate customer insights. Various public policy and ethical issues are associated with the process. The issues include intrusions on consumer privacy; misuse, misinterpretation, and misrepresentation of research findings; ethical and social dilemma in the collection of customer information; and ethical dilemma in generating customer insights through neuromarketing and its applications. In this digital age, it is easier to invade consumer privacy. Companies abide by the various laws and regulations enforced to protect customers and adopt a number of initiatives to convince their customers. Understanding of the various public policy and ethical issues and addressing such issues by adopting proper initiatives will help companies convince customers, build effective customer relationships, and achieve business excellence. The understanding might also help policymakers to appreciate the customer requirements and devise policies, rules, and regulations accordingly.

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Public Policy Issues in Direct and Digital Marketing – Concerns and Initiatives

International Journal of Public Administration in the Digital Age ◽

10.4018/ijpada.2019100105 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 6 (4) ◽

pp. 54-71 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Pratap Chandra Mandal

Keyword(s):

Public Policy ◽

Marketing Channels ◽

Customer Relationships ◽

Digital Marketing ◽

Policy Issues ◽

Consumer Privacy ◽

Regulatory Bodies ◽

Require Information

Companies require information about customers to understand them, know their preferences, and develop relationships with them. Companies employ a number of direct and digital marketing channels to collect information and intelligence about customers. Marketers adopt a number of unfair practices for collecting information through direct and digital marketing and this raises concerns about consumer privacy. The article discusses the various aspects of consumer privacy and the need for protecting consumer privacy. The article further focuses on the various regulations enforced by regulatory bodies and governments of countries to protect customers. Various initiatives taken by companies to protect customers are discussed. Direct and digital marketing channels allow companies to collect information and intelligence about customers and to influence them. However, companies should be sensitive to customer concerns. This will help companies in building long-term customer relationships.

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Ethical Issues and Concerns in Collection of Marketing Information and Marketing Intelligence

International Journal of Business Intelligence Research ◽

10.4018/ijbir.2019070102 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 16-28

Author(s):

Pratap Chandra Mandal

Keyword(s):

Ethical Issues ◽

Personal Information ◽

Customer Relationships ◽

Security And Privacy ◽

Sensitive Information ◽

Shared Information ◽

Marketing Intelligence ◽

Research Findings ◽

Marketing Information ◽

Sensitive Issues

Companies require capturing relevant marketing information and marketing intelligence about customers to understand their requirements, formulate marketing strategies, serve them better, and develop customer relationships. Sometimes, it is difficult to collect information because individuals hesitate to share personal information due to a number of reasons. They worry about the manner in which companies use the shared information, and the safety, security, and privacy of the information. The article discusses the sensitive issues of intrusion of privacy of customers, the ethics involved, the responsibilities of marketing researchers regarding sensitive information shared by customers, the possible misuse of the shared information, the preventive measures against misuse of research findings, and the initiatives taken by companies and authorities to protect the privacy of customers. Such actions by companies will instill trust and faith in the minds of customers.

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'Information Technology, Marketing Practice, and Consumer Privacy: Ethical Issues', Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 12, pp. 106-19.

Privacy in the Information Society ◽

10.4324/9781315246017-16 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 151-164

Keyword(s):

Public Policy ◽

Information Technology ◽

Ethical Issues ◽

Marketing Practice ◽

Consumer Privacy ◽

Technology Marketing

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Consumer Online Privacy: Legal and Ethical Issues

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing ◽

10.1509/jppm.19.1.7.16951 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

pp. 7-19 ◽

Cited By ~ 186

Author(s):

Eve M. Caudill ◽

Patrick E. Murphy

Keyword(s):

Public Policy ◽

Ethical Issues ◽

Policy Issue ◽

The Internet ◽

Ethical Theories ◽

Consumer Privacy ◽

Public Policy Issue ◽

Ethical Policy ◽

Privacy Issues ◽

Legal And Ethical Issues

Consumer privacy is a public policy issue that has received substantial attention over the last thirty years. The phenomenal growth of the Internet has spawned several new concerns about protecting the privacy of consumers. The authors examine both historical and conceptual analyses of privacy and discuss domestic and international regulatory and self-regulatory approaches to confronting privacy issues on the Internet. The authors also review ethical theories that apply to consumer privacy and offer specific suggestions for corporate ethical policy and public policy as well as a research agenda.

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Marketing Information, Analytics, and Intelligence

International Journal of Business Strategy and Automation ◽

10.4018/ijbsa.287618 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2 (4) ◽

pp. 1-15

Author(s):

Pratap Chandra Mandal

Keyword(s):

Customer Relationship Management ◽

Customer Relationships ◽

Customer Relationship ◽

Effective Utilization ◽

Marketing Analytics ◽

Customer Information ◽

Long Run ◽

Business Excellence ◽

Marketing Intelligence ◽

Marketing Information

Companies collect customer information, store the information in databases, and analyze it to generate customer insights. The study focuses on the roles of customer relationship management (CRM) in making proper usage of the information, marketing analytics, and the marketing intelligence generated to develop fruitful customer relationships. Companies employ advanced marketing analytics and big data to understand customers and implement CRM effectively. The customer insights generated should be distributed and used properly. Although companies benefit from implementation of CRM, the implementation has its own drawbacks. Implementation of CRM will not solve all issues related to customers. It has its own drawbacks. However, proper implementation and effective utilization of CRM will help companies in developing customer relationships, in growing their businesses, and in achieving business excellence in the long run.

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Confidence in Local, National, and International Scientists on Climate Change

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13010272 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (1) ◽

pp. 272

Author(s):

Aaron C. Sparks ◽

Heather Hodges ◽

Sarah Oliver ◽

Eric R. A. N. Smith

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Public Policy ◽

News Media ◽

Internet Survey ◽

Party Affiliation ◽

The Public ◽

Research Findings ◽

Scientific Report ◽

Media Reports ◽

Change Beliefs

In many public policy areas, such as climate change, news media reports about scientific research play an important role. In presenting their research, scientists are providing guidance to the public regarding public policy choices. How do people decide which scientists and scientific claims to believe? This is a question we address by drawing on the psychology of persuasion. We propose the hypothesis that people are more likely to believe local scientists than national or international scientists. We test this hypothesis with an experiment embedded in a national Internet survey. Our experiment yielded null findings, showing that people do not discount or ignore research findings on climate change if they come from Europe instead of Washington-based scientists or a leading university in a respondent’s home state. This reinforces evidence that climate change beliefs are relatively stable, based on party affiliation, and not malleable based on the source of the scientific report.

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Ethical dilemmas are really important to potential adopters of autonomous vehicles

Ethics and Information Technology ◽

10.1007/s10676-021-09605-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Tripat Gill

Keyword(s):

Autonomous Vehicles ◽

Ethical Issues ◽

Social Dilemma ◽

Innovation Adoption ◽

Preliminary Evidence ◽

Policy Makers ◽

Early Adopters ◽

The Social ◽

Legal And Ethical Issues ◽

Theoretical Standpoint

AbstractThe ethical dilemma (ED) of whether autonomous vehicles (AVs) should protect the passengers or pedestrians when harm is unavoidable has been widely researched and debated. Several behavioral scientists have sought public opinion on this issue, based on the premise that EDs are critical to resolve for AV adoption. However, many scholars and industry participants have downplayed the importance of these edge cases. Policy makers also advocate a focus on higher level ethical principles rather than on a specific solution to EDs. But conspicuously absent from this debate is the view of the consumers or potential adopters, who will be instrumental to the success of AVs. The current research investigated this issue both from a theoretical standpoint and through empirical research. The literature on innovation adoption and risk perception suggests that EDs will be heavily weighted by potential adopters of AVs. Two studies conducted with a broad sample of consumers verified this assertion. The results from these studies showed that people associated EDs with the highest risk and considered EDs as the most important issue to address as compared to the other technical, legal and ethical issues facing AVs. As such, EDs need to be addressed to ensure robustness in the design of AVs and to assure consumers of the safety of this promising technology. Some preliminary evidence is provided about interventions to resolve the social dilemma in EDs and about the ethical preferences of prospective early adopters of AVs.

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Transformative Consumer Research and Public Policy and Marketing Research: Distinct, Yet Complementary, Approaches

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing ◽

10.1177/07439156211015993 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 40 (3) ◽

pp. 331-335

Author(s):

Christopher L. Newman ◽

Stacey R. Finkelstein ◽

Brennan Davis

Keyword(s):

Public Policy ◽

Consumer Research ◽

Marketing Research ◽

Transformative Consumer Research

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Ethics for a Digital Age (Vol. II) [Book Review]

Journal of Communication Technology - Special Issue of Communication Technology and Well-Being (Part 2) ◽

10.51548/joctec-2021-013 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Emily Stones

Keyword(s):

Corporate Responsibility ◽

Ethical Issues ◽

Digital Age ◽

Digital Ethics ◽

Technology Ethics ◽

Field Of Inquiry

The second volume of Ethics for a Digital Age edited by Bastiaan Vanacker and Don Heider (2018) highlights research presented at the fifth and sixth Annual International Symposia on Digital Ethics. The volume features ten essays organized under three banner topics that include 1) Trust, Privacy, and Corporate Responsibility; 2) Technology, Ethics, and the Shifting Role of Journalism; and 3) Ethics and Ontology. Together, the essays aim to invigorate conversations about ethical issues in professional and philosophical contexts. In this review, I first provide a synopsis of each section and its corresponding essays to give readers a sense of the depth and breadth of topics covered in the volume. I conclude the review by identifying themes that unite the essays and broadly contribute to this robust field of inquiry.

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