Journal of Consumer Behaviour最新文献

This study explores the effects of temporal reframing of price (TRP), a strategy presenting the total cost of a product or service in smaller, segmented amounts (e.g., $1 per day rather than $365 in total), and its potential to intensify consumers' feelings of being misled, thereby negatively impacting their attitudes toward the product. While previous research has underscored the benefits of TRP, such as lowering perceived costs and enhancing perceived benefits through heuristic information processing, the current study, informed by theories of heuristic versus systematic processing and attribution theory, investigates whether TRP leads to increased feelings of manipulation by deviating from conventional category-specific temporal frames of pricing. Through two experiments, we find that such deviations may prompt consumers to view TRP as manipulative, subsequently heightening feelings of being misled, especially at higher price levels, whereas lower price levels could diminish the scrutiny applied to marketers' intentions. Additionally, this study demonstrates that feelings of being misled mediate the relationship between the presentation of price information and product attitude, highlighting the potential risks of employing TRP strategies. The paper discusses optimal situations for implementing TRP, aiming to navigate its strategic use effectively.

Organic labels certify a product's commitment to ecological balance. However, the association between organic products and health benefits can inadvertently promote overconsumption, particularly in the case of alcoholic beverages such as red wine. In research conducted with participants from the United States, we demonstrate that consumers implicitly link organic wine with health and pleasure, which is explicitly reflected in heightened purchase intentions and anticipated consumption volume. Interestingly, our findings indicate that these effects are moderated by label colour. Implicitly, red organic labels are associated with a less healthy but tastier drink than green labels. Explicitly, organic labels overall stimulate higher purchase intentions regardless of their colour. Nevertheless, our results highlight a moderating role of label colour. Compared to green labels, red organic labels elicit increased purchase intentions, driven by greater expectations of tastiness associated with the red label. Additionally, red labels convey a perception of higher alcohol strength and an intention to consume wine in smaller quantities versus green labels. Thus, the use of a red label may signal both pleasure and potential danger, facilitating organic wine sales without necessarily increasing consumption. These findings have implications for marketers and policymakers interested in supporting responsible wine consumption.

Customer referral programs (CRPs) are considered an effective means of customer acquisition through which firms stimulate existing customers to refer services and products to potential new customers. Digitalization and technological developments have led to the common practice of using digital devices like smartphones or laptops to create and submit customer referrals. This is the first study to investigate the influence of submission devices in CRPs from both the sender's and receiver's perspective. Based on four experiments, we demonstrate that smartphone-generated referrals are shorter and less positive than those composed on laptops/PCs. These differences in text length and valence negatively influence receiver responses, leading to lower purchase intentions due to the perceived usefulness of the referral mediating this relationship. Our findings underscore the important role of submission devices for online referral behavior and contribute to the growing body of research on device-mediated consumer behavior, offering crucial insights to optimize the promotion and design of CRPs.

Understanding the metaverse experience (MEX) is paramount to allow companies to exploit its potential and to align with consumers' expectations. Accordingly, this paper develops a scale to identify the main dimensions that define the MEX as well as investigate which constituent dimensions of the MEX are more suited to enhance consumers' attitude toward the metaverse, a key element to foster consumers' exploratory behavior. By drawing on a research design based on multiple stages including qualitative and quantitative data and analysis, this paper develops a measure of the MEX that includes six dimensions: sensory/affective, intellectual, behavioral, relational, interoperability, and safety. The dimensions of intellectual, behavioral, and relational experience were found non-significant showing that the MEX is built on the experiential dimensions of sensory/emotional, interoperability, and safety. These dimensions were also found to directly affect consumers' attitude toward the metaverse. The paper contributes to current discussion of the metaverse by offering the first tested and reliable scale to measure the MEX.

Advertisers typically publish in-feed ads with two types of authorship: brand or influencer, yet little is known about the effectiveness of in-feed ads between these two authors. In this study, we investigated the interactions and mechanisms of ad authorship (brand vs. influencer) and brand type (luxury vs. mass) on advertising effectiveness, and tested the moderating effect of upward social comparison based on the stereotype content model. A pilot study, by coding the secondary data from Most Liked WeChat Moment Ads, found that a greater proportion of luxury (vs. mass) brands were authored by brands (vs. influencers). Study 1 used eye tracking technique to identify the interactive effect of ad authorship and brand type on visual attention. Study 2 further identified perceived competence and warmth as mediators. Study 3 verified the moderating effect of upward social comparison on the above effects. This paper contributes to the theoretical literature on in-feed advertising by showing the interactive effect of advertising authorship and brand types on advertising effectiveness. It also offers valuable insights for luxury or mass brands on strategically leveraging the brand itself or influencer for advertising.

The digital divide remains a formidable challenge in emerging economies, highlighting disparities in technology access and utilisation. This study explores consumer engagement with mobile payment applications for transportation in Lagos, Nigeria, a critical context where these disparities manifest. The research presents consumer perceptions and behaviours using a triangulated approach encompassing ethnographic observation, semi-structured interviews, and the ALARA model of information search. Anchored in the Engel–Kollat–Blackwell (EKB) theory of consumer behaviour, which depicts the five stages of consumer decision-making—problem recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision, and post-purchase behaviour—this study identifies five key themes: awareness, information search, alternatives evaluation, engagement, and post-engagement evaluation. Insights from the study reveal that cultural preferences and trust in traditional payment methods significantly influence users' willingness to adopt mobile payment apps. These insights underscore the importance of addressing socio-cultural factors in technology adoption strategies. The findings highlight the need for an inclusive technological strategy to bridge the digital divide, emphasising the necessity of accessible information channels and user-friendly interfaces to enhance consumer engagement. Continuous app refinement based on user feedback is crucial for optimising usability. Additionally, a nuanced understanding of socio-cultural influences on technology adoption is essential for informing policy and business strategies. Overall, this study contributes to understanding technology adoption in emerging economies and provides actionable insights to foster inclusive digital transformations and mitigate the digital divide.

This study addresses a critical gap in the literature on the consumer–brand relationship by focusing on the under-investigated concept of attitudinal and behavioural brand hate. This study goes beyond such common determinants as negative experiences and unfair pricing, introducing employee incivility and service quality as overlooked, but significant, antecedents. Employing structural equation modelling, a sample of 593 participants from the airline and restaurant industries was examined. The findings reveal that brand hate significantly impacts brand opposition and emotional forgiveness. Importantly, consumer resilience moderates these relationships, mitigating the negative effects of brand hate. Moreover, the study finds industry-specific variations in the triggers and outcomes of brand hate, suggesting the need for tailored managerial strategies. The study extends the consumer–brand relationship literature by highlighting new research avenues and making significant contributions. Theoretically, it validates affective event theory and personality characteristics' role in buffering brand hate. In addition, this study carries implications for policymakers and managers to understand the multifaceted nature of brand hate, develop effective strategies to mitigate the negative effects of service failures and build stronger consumer–brand relationships. Furthermore, these insights facilitate the creation of tailored approaches that consider industry-specific characteristics, thus helping to prevent the harmful impact of brand hate.

In recent years, digital avatars employed as virtual streamers are experiencing a surge in popularity in e-commerce livestreaming. However, the influence of the avatars' anthropomorphic features on their effectiveness as virtual streamers remains unclear. This study investigates the avatar effect of artificial intelligence-enabled virtual streamers, wherein their form and behavioral realism interactively affect consumer purchase intention. Three lab experiments with 604 participants were conducted to test this effect and its underlying mechanism and boundary conditions. Based on the findings, behavioral realism positively affects consumer purchase intention only when the virtual streamers' form realism is low. Parasocial interactions underpin this avatar effect, which only holds when consumers exhibit a communal relationship norm orientation. When consumers possess an exchange relationship norm orientation, the effect of behavioral realism becomes positive regardless of the level of form realism. Overall, our study proposes an avatar effect in livestreaming, and extends the literature by offering insights on the interactive effect of the anthropomorphic features of human-like avatars (as virtual streamers) on the effectiveness of e-commerce livestreaming. By revealing the mechanisms and boundary conditions of this effect, our conclusions offer guidance for companies in developing appropriate combinations of form and behavioral realism for the avatars of virtual streams while considering consumer characteristics.

This paper investigates the pre-decisional cognitive dissonance states that guide Generation Z's consumer behavior, with a focus on the healthcare sector. By integrating insights from neurology, cognition, and psychology, the study addresses the lack of understanding regarding the psychological underpinnings of this cohort's rapidly evolving consumption patterns. Key contributions of this research include identifying cognitive heuristic elements, such as latent needs, that trigger pre-decisional cognitive dissonance. The study empirically demonstrates how these elements influence Generation Z's decision-making process, particularly in their shift from traditional allopathic healthcare to alternative and complementary medicine. The data, collected from 35 Indian Zoomers, reveal that this cohort relies heavily on internal cognitive cues and self-driven information processing to make healthcare choices. This study establishes a new framework for consumer decision-making, highlighting the role of cognitive dissonance in navigating information overload and selective exposure. Overall, the research provides valuable insights into the psychological and cognitive factors driving Generation Z's healthcare decisions, offering a robust foundation for marketers and healthcare providers to develop more effective strategies tailored to this influential consumer segment.

With increasing evidence supporting the use of biometric identification methods for authentication, this study aims to enhance our understanding of the factors influencing the acceptance of and resistance to facial recognition payment (FRP) systems. To provide a comprehensive review of these factors, we conducted a systematic literature review (SLR) of empirical studies. We examined 22 key research articles from an initial pool of 1372 publications, identifying 37 factors that influence consumer acceptance or resistance to FRP. These factors were categorized into usage-related aspects, attitudes and evaluations, user-related traits, privacy and security concerns, and other factors. Our findings reveal that the most frequently cited factors include performance expectancy, effort expectancy, perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use. These factors are crucial in contexts where FRP can increase productivity by providing prompt information and effective assistance. This research proposes a collective model for understanding the determinants of FRP acceptance or resistance, integrating theoretical frameworks and empirical findings. The model emphasizes the context-dependency of user acceptance, highlighting the importance of addressing both technological and psychological factors. It incorporates usage characteristics, user characteristics, and privacy and security concerns, which are mediated by attitudes and evaluations. The proposed model provides a comprehensive framework for understanding and addressing the factors influencing acceptance of and resistance to FRP, guiding FRP service providers in developing effective strategies to increase user adoption, with future research needed to refine and assess the model further.