Pub Date : 2025-12-10DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104677
Yanze Liu , Tian-Hui You , Bing-Bing Cao , Junrong Zou
This study proposes a dual-orientation framework for mining customer requirements (CRs) from online reviews to support product improvement and publicity in mobile games. Existing research often overlooks silent information embedded in unmentioned CRs, limiting the effectiveness of strategic decision-making. Our framework integrates explicit and silent information through term-level asymmetry analysis. Specifically, BERTopic and BW-CNN are used to extract CRs and sentiments, while SHAP quantifies their influence on satisfaction. A four-quadrant perception model is developed to conduct asymmetry analysis of silent information, and the Kano model is applied to perform asymmetry analysis of explicit feedback. Finally, LIME-based term contribution analysis integrates these perspectives to evaluate the priorities of CR improvement and publicity. Experiments on 72,000 reviews from eight mobile games demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method in providing a comprehensive understanding of customer perceptions and supporting more targeted product improvement and publicity strategies.
{"title":"A dual-orientation framework integrating explicit and silent information for Mobile game improvement and publicity: An asymmetry and term-level CR analysis based on online reviews","authors":"Yanze Liu , Tian-Hui You , Bing-Bing Cao , Junrong Zou","doi":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104677","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104677","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study proposes a dual-orientation framework for mining customer requirements (CRs) from online reviews to support product improvement and publicity in mobile games. Existing research often overlooks silent information embedded in unmentioned CRs, limiting the effectiveness of strategic decision-making. Our framework integrates explicit and silent information through term-level asymmetry analysis. Specifically, BERTopic and BW-CNN are used to extract CRs and sentiments, while SHAP quantifies their influence on satisfaction. A four-quadrant perception model is developed to conduct asymmetry analysis of silent information, and the Kano model is applied to perform asymmetry analysis of explicit feedback. Finally, LIME-based term contribution analysis integrates these perspectives to evaluate the priorities of CR improvement and publicity. Experiments on 72,000 reviews from eight mobile games demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method in providing a comprehensive understanding of customer perceptions and supporting more targeted product improvement and publicity strategies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48399,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services","volume":"90 ","pages":"Article 104677"},"PeriodicalIF":13.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145738238","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-10DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104601
Manuel Alonso Dos Santos , Carmen Zarco-Fernández , Francisco Liébana-Cabanillas
The objective of this study is to examine the factors associated with financial satisfaction using microdata from the Bank of Spain's Financial Competence Survey (2016 and 2021). Machine learning allows us to explore a wide range of possible predictors of financial satisfaction, overcoming the limitations of traditional approaches. The proposed methodological design combines predictive accuracy with interpretability, capturing hierarchical effects and interaction patterns that traditional approaches often overlook. The results consistently highlight household income and employment status as key structural factors, while perceived financial constraints, ability to meet expenses, and financial concerns emerge as influential perceptual correlates. The comparative analysis reveals two complementary segmentation logics: one dominated by objective resources and another focused on perceptions and planning behaviors, with evidence of a shift between 2016 and 2021 toward the growing importance of subjective assessments. This approach enables us to identify the variables most strongly associated with financial satisfaction, complementing existing models in the literature. Substantively, the results highlight that financial well-being is not only related to objective resources but also to how individuals interpret and manage them. These associations should be understood as correlational patterns rather than causal effects. From a managerial perspective, the findings underscore the need for retail financial institutions to integrate perceptual and behavioral dimensions into segmentation strategies to anticipate dissatisfaction, tailor services, and strengthen long-term consumer relationships.
{"title":"The new frontier of customer understanding: Financial satisfaction and AutoML in banking","authors":"Manuel Alonso Dos Santos , Carmen Zarco-Fernández , Francisco Liébana-Cabanillas","doi":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104601","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104601","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The objective of this study is to examine the factors associated with financial satisfaction using microdata from the Bank of Spain's Financial Competence Survey (2016 and 2021). Machine learning allows us to explore a wide range of possible predictors of financial satisfaction, overcoming the limitations of traditional approaches. The proposed methodological design combines predictive accuracy with interpretability, capturing hierarchical effects and interaction patterns that traditional approaches often overlook. The results consistently highlight household income and employment status as key structural factors, while perceived financial constraints, ability to meet expenses, and financial concerns emerge as influential perceptual correlates. The comparative analysis reveals two complementary segmentation logics: one dominated by objective resources and another focused on perceptions and planning behaviors, with evidence of a shift between 2016 and 2021 toward the growing importance of subjective assessments. This approach enables us to identify the variables most strongly associated with financial satisfaction, complementing existing models in the literature. Substantively, the results highlight that financial well-being is not only related to objective resources but also to how individuals interpret and manage them. These associations should be understood as correlational patterns rather than causal effects. From a managerial perspective, the findings underscore the need for retail financial institutions to integrate perceptual and behavioral dimensions into segmentation strategies to anticipate dissatisfaction, tailor services, and strengthen long-term consumer relationships.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48399,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services","volume":"90 ","pages":"Article 104601"},"PeriodicalIF":13.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145738243","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-10DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104676
Shuwei Mo , Yixing Yang
This study investigates the impact of cross-gender endorsements in live-streaming e-commerce on consumer behaviors, revealing the mediating pathway through engagement atmosphere and the boundary of sexually related products (e.g., intimate apparel). Based on 325,298 livestreaming records from Douyin (TikTok China), Word2Vec-RF sentiment analysis and econometric regression are employed. The findings indicate that cross-gender endorsements (e.g., male streamers promoting female-targeted products or female streamers promoting male-targeted products) reduce livestream sales. Further mechanism analysis demonstrates that the engagement atmosphere (e.g., danmaku emotion, virtual gifts and purchasing display) in live streaming mediates this relationship. Simultaneously, sexually related products activate consumers’ short-term mating motives and mitigate status quo bias, thereby weakening the negative impact of cross-gender endorsements on livestream revenue. The research uncovers the dynamic interplay between gender roles and product categories, providing theoretical support for e-commerce platforms to optimize streamer-gender matching strategies.
{"title":"The effect of cross-gender endorsement in live streaming:the moderating role of sexually related products","authors":"Shuwei Mo , Yixing Yang","doi":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104676","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104676","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the impact of cross-gender endorsements in live-streaming e-commerce on consumer behaviors, revealing the mediating pathway through engagement atmosphere and the boundary of sexually related products (e.g., intimate apparel). Based on 325,298 livestreaming records from Douyin (TikTok China), Word2Vec-RF sentiment analysis and econometric regression are employed. The findings indicate that cross-gender endorsements (e.g., male streamers promoting female-targeted products or female streamers promoting male-targeted products) reduce livestream sales. Further mechanism analysis demonstrates that the engagement atmosphere (e.g., danmaku emotion, virtual gifts and purchasing display) in live streaming mediates this relationship. Simultaneously, sexually related products activate consumers’ short-term mating motives and mitigate status quo bias, thereby weakening the negative impact of cross-gender endorsements on livestream revenue. The research uncovers the dynamic interplay between gender roles and product categories, providing theoretical support for e-commerce platforms to optimize streamer-gender matching strategies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48399,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services","volume":"90 ","pages":"Article 104676"},"PeriodicalIF":13.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145738236","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-08DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104665
Qian Bao , Guanhong Xie , Yuan Yao
The emergence of the single economy, combined with advances in artificial intelligence (AI), has given rise to AI technologies centred on romantic companion robots (RCRs). These technologies are profoundly reshaping young users' perceptions and experiences of intimate relationships. Drawing on the stimulus–organism–response (S–O–R) theoretical framework, this study employs a multi-method approach that integrates partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM), artificial neural networks (ANNs), and necessary condition analysis (NCA) to develop and validate a composite pathway model of users' psychological dependence on RCRs. Using the ‘Xingye’ RCR application as a case study, 457 valid responses were collected to evaluate the effects of six key stimulus variables – perceived personalisation, anthropomorphism, interactivity, hedonic motivation, intimacy, and moral perception – on user trust and satisfaction. Moreover, this study examined the mediating roles of trust and satisfaction in shaping psychological dependence. Results from PLS-SEM supported all hypothesised relationships, confirming trust and satisfaction as critical mediators. ANN analysis further revealed significant nonlinear effects of intimacy, moral perception, and interactivity on trust and satisfaction. In addition, NCA identified intimacy and interactivity as necessary conditions for the formation of psychological dependence. Furthermore, immersion tendency significantly moderates the relationship between interactivity and trust, while demographic factors such as gender, age, and education level exert differential influences. Overall, these findings advance empirical understanding of human–robot intimacy in the era of digital affective technologies and provide theoretical foundations and practical implications for the personalised design, ethical regulation, and market deployment of RCR products.
{"title":"Exploring psychological dependency on romantic companion robots in the single economy: Implications for digital intimacy and consumer services","authors":"Qian Bao , Guanhong Xie , Yuan Yao","doi":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104665","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104665","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The emergence of the single economy, combined with advances in artificial intelligence (AI), has given rise to AI technologies centred on romantic companion robots (RCRs). These technologies are profoundly reshaping young users' perceptions and experiences of intimate relationships. Drawing on the stimulus–organism–response (S–O–R) theoretical framework, this study employs a multi-method approach that integrates partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM), artificial neural networks (ANNs), and necessary condition analysis (NCA) to develop and validate a composite pathway model of users' psychological dependence on RCRs. Using the ‘Xingye’ RCR application as a case study, 457 valid responses were collected to evaluate the effects of six key stimulus variables – perceived personalisation, anthropomorphism, interactivity, hedonic motivation, intimacy, and moral perception – on user trust and satisfaction. Moreover, this study examined the mediating roles of trust and satisfaction in shaping psychological dependence. Results from PLS-SEM supported all hypothesised relationships, confirming trust and satisfaction as critical mediators. ANN analysis further revealed significant nonlinear effects of intimacy, moral perception, and interactivity on trust and satisfaction. In addition, NCA identified intimacy and interactivity as necessary conditions for the formation of psychological dependence. Furthermore, immersion tendency significantly moderates the relationship between interactivity and trust, while demographic factors such as gender, age, and education level exert differential influences. Overall, these findings advance empirical understanding of human–robot intimacy in the era of digital affective technologies and provide theoretical foundations and practical implications for the personalised design, ethical regulation, and market deployment of RCR products.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48399,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services","volume":"90 ","pages":"Article 104665"},"PeriodicalIF":13.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145738153","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-08DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104673
Ying Zou, David Matthews, Sally Rao Hill, Arvid O.I. Hoffmann
Checkout donation requests are increasingly common and are generally considered beneficial for both charities and retailers. In a novel contribution, we investigate potential negative effects of such requests and how they may backfire on retailers. Drawing on the Stimulus–Organism–Response (S–O–R) framework, we explore consumers’ emotional (feeling of anxiety) and cognitive (perceived intrusiveness) responses to checkout donation requests, and the subsequent effects on both donation outcomes (donation intention) and retailer-relevant non-donation outcomes (checkout satisfaction, attitude towards retailer, repurchase intention). We focus on perceived time and social pressure as triggers of negative responses and test whether donation-related warm glow and checkout charity skepticism mediate those associations. Analyzing survey data from U.S. consumers (N = 329) using partial least squares structural equation modeling demonstrates that time pressure and social pressure are associated with negative consumer responses. Anxiety reduces donation intentions via diminished warm glow and may also link to lower checkout satisfaction through warm glow. In contrast, perceived intrusiveness may be associated with donation intentions and checkout satisfaction through increased skepticism. Perceived intrusiveness influences outcomes for retailers primarily through increased skepticism rather than warm glow. These findings suggest that retailers should prioritize minimizing consumer skepticism when designing checkout donation requests to avoid potential backfire effects on both donations and customer experience. We contribute to theory by identifying antecedents of negative consumer responses and explain how they may harm retailers through dual affective and cognitive mechanisms, providing guidance for more effective checkout charity campaigns.
{"title":"Doing good but feeling bad: How checkout donation requests might backfire for retailers by eliciting negative emotional and cognitive consumer response","authors":"Ying Zou, David Matthews, Sally Rao Hill, Arvid O.I. Hoffmann","doi":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104673","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104673","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Checkout donation requests are increasingly common and are generally considered beneficial for both charities and retailers. In a novel contribution, we investigate potential <em>negative</em> effects of such requests and how they may backfire on retailers. Drawing on the Stimulus–Organism–Response (S–O–R) framework, we explore consumers’ emotional (feeling of anxiety) and cognitive (perceived intrusiveness) responses to checkout donation requests, and the subsequent effects on both donation outcomes (donation intention) and retailer-relevant non-donation outcomes (checkout satisfaction, attitude towards retailer, repurchase intention). We focus on perceived time and social pressure as triggers of negative responses and test whether donation-related warm glow and checkout charity skepticism mediate those associations. Analyzing survey data from U.S. consumers (N = 329) using partial least squares structural equation modeling demonstrates that time pressure and social pressure are associated with negative consumer responses. Anxiety reduces donation intentions via diminished warm glow and may also link to lower checkout satisfaction through warm glow. In contrast, perceived intrusiveness may be associated with donation intentions and checkout satisfaction through increased skepticism. Perceived intrusiveness influences outcomes for retailers primarily through increased skepticism rather than warm glow. These findings suggest that retailers should prioritize minimizing consumer skepticism when designing checkout donation requests to avoid potential backfire effects on both donations and customer experience. We contribute to theory by identifying antecedents of negative consumer responses and explain how they may harm retailers through dual affective and cognitive mechanisms, providing guidance for more effective checkout charity campaigns.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48399,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services","volume":"90 ","pages":"Article 104673"},"PeriodicalIF":13.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145738237","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-06DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104675
Tian tian Mu , Qiaojuan Shan , Guangyu Zhu , Yang Xu , Gomaa Agag , Osman Alipour
This research explores the dual role of artificial intelligence (AI) and its narratives in shaping environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance in China's retail industry. Drawing on the dynamic capabilities view and signaling theory, we conceptualize AI as both a substantive technological resource and a symbolic communicative mechanism, with green innovation serving as a mediating process. Using panel data of 2306 A-share listed retail firms from 2020 to 2024 (9710 firm-year observations), we employ system generalized method of moments (GMM) estimations to address dynamic panel bias, endogeneity, and unobserved heterogeneity. The findings reveal that both AI technology and AI narrative have a positive impact on ESG performance, with AI technology exerting a stronger substantive effect and AI narratives functioning as credible signals that enhance legitimacy. Moreover, green innovation significantly improves ESG outcomes and partially mediates the artificial intelligence - ESG performance relationship. Robustness checks using alternative measures, estimators, subsamples, and placebo tests confirm the stability of the findings. This research contributes to the literature by linking digital transformation and sustainability, highlighting the interplay between substantive and symbolic mechanisms, and providing insights from an emerging economy context. The findings offer theoretical, managerial, and policy implications for leveraging AI to advance sustainable development in retailing.
{"title":"Beyond technology: The dual role of AI and narratives in driving ESG performance in China's retail industry","authors":"Tian tian Mu , Qiaojuan Shan , Guangyu Zhu , Yang Xu , Gomaa Agag , Osman Alipour","doi":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104675","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104675","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This research explores the dual role of artificial intelligence (AI) and its narratives in shaping environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance in China's retail industry. Drawing on the dynamic capabilities view and signaling theory, we conceptualize AI as both a substantive technological resource and a symbolic communicative mechanism, with green innovation serving as a mediating process. Using panel data of 2306 A-share listed retail firms from 2020 to 2024 (9710 firm-year observations), we employ system generalized method of moments (GMM) estimations to address dynamic panel bias, endogeneity, and unobserved heterogeneity. The findings reveal that both AI technology and AI narrative have a positive impact on ESG performance, with AI technology exerting a stronger substantive effect and AI narratives functioning as credible signals that enhance legitimacy. Moreover, green innovation significantly improves ESG outcomes and partially mediates the artificial intelligence - ESG performance relationship. Robustness checks using alternative measures, estimators, subsamples, and placebo tests confirm the stability of the findings. This research contributes to the literature by linking digital transformation and sustainability, highlighting the interplay between substantive and symbolic mechanisms, and providing insights from an emerging economy context. The findings offer theoretical, managerial, and policy implications for leveraging AI to advance sustainable development in retailing.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48399,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services","volume":"90 ","pages":"Article 104675"},"PeriodicalIF":13.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145685902","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-05DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104663
Sanghee Kim , Hyo Jung (Julie) Chang , Bengie L. Ortiz , Jo Woon Chong
The extension of luxury retailers into the fragrance segment is an emerging trend, particularly as a compelling strategy to target young consumers. In line with this shift in the luxury market, through the lens of cognitive balance theory and the Proust effect, this study explores how the congruence of scents with the luxury brand image affects consumers' positive emotions (Study 1), memory, and approach responses (Study 2). By leveraging electroencephalography (EEG) analysis, Study 1 reveals contradictory results regarding emotional reactions: scent incongruence with the luxury brand image increases joy, while scent congruence elicits liking. Meanwhile, Study 2's findings indicate the importance of brand cues in cognitive reactions. The findings empirically demonstrate that scent congruence with the luxury brand image has a greater effect on consumer preference and memory, thereby leading to satisfaction, brand resonance, and purchase intention. The paradoxical findings from the EEG and quantitative analyses highlight that immediate brain responses and cognitive evaluations differ in consumer decision-making regarding luxury fragrances. This research enhances knowledge of luxury retailing concerning sensory experience and brand extension, providing practical insights for luxury retailers as they foray into the fragrance category as an effective strategy to strengthen consumer–brand relationships and drive potential luxury product purchases.
{"title":"The role of scent congruence with luxury brand image in consumers’ emotions, memory, and brand resonance: A mixed-methods approach using EEG and quantitative analyses","authors":"Sanghee Kim , Hyo Jung (Julie) Chang , Bengie L. Ortiz , Jo Woon Chong","doi":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104663","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104663","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The extension of luxury retailers into the fragrance segment is an emerging trend, particularly as a compelling strategy to target young consumers. In line with this shift in the luxury market, through the lens of cognitive balance theory and the Proust effect, this study explores how the congruence of scents with the luxury brand image affects consumers' positive emotions (Study 1), memory, and approach responses (Study 2). By leveraging electroencephalography (EEG) analysis, Study 1 reveals contradictory results regarding emotional reactions: scent incongruence with the luxury brand image increases joy, while scent congruence elicits liking. Meanwhile, Study 2's findings indicate the importance of brand cues in cognitive reactions. The findings empirically demonstrate that scent congruence with the luxury brand image has a greater effect on consumer preference and memory, thereby leading to satisfaction, brand resonance, and purchase intention. The paradoxical findings from the EEG and quantitative analyses highlight that immediate brain responses and cognitive evaluations differ in consumer decision-making regarding luxury fragrances. This research enhances knowledge of luxury retailing concerning sensory experience and brand extension, providing practical insights for luxury retailers as they foray into the fragrance category as an effective strategy to strengthen consumer–brand relationships and drive potential luxury product purchases.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48399,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services","volume":"90 ","pages":"Article 104663"},"PeriodicalIF":13.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145685901","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-05DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104650
Li Hengyu , Man Jiahe , Gegen Tana , Chai Junwu
Contemporary retailers face a critical marketing decision in managing out-of-season products: whether to introduce them into low-end markets or to dispose of them entirely. This paper characterizes three pricing mechanisms free pricing, differentiated pricing, and uniform pricing to investigate how retailers strategically select among these options alongside the scrapping alternative. Our principal findings are as follows. First, when scrapping costs are low, retailers are inclined to adopt a scrapping strategy; however, when scrapping costs are high, the decision depends on factors such as sales rate, negative brand effects, and the size of the low-end market. Specifically, when the low-end market is small and the sales rate is moderate, retailers tend to prefer a free pricing strategy, whereas an expanding low-end market supports a uniform pricing strategy. Additionally, increases in the sales rate and negative brand impact drive firms toward a differentiated pricing approach to mitigate adverse brand perceptions and attract price-sensitive consumers. Second, selling out-of-season products can be environmentally beneficial under conditions of low scrapping costs with minimal environmental impact, or in scenarios where both scrapping costs and associated pollution are comparatively high. Finally, and counterintuitively, our results indicate that profitability, consumer surplus and social welfare do not necessarily increase with the sales rate; instead, they may decrease when the sales rate exceeds a relatively high threshold. An important implication for the retailer is that pursuing an excessively high sales rate may be detrimental to both retailer profit and social welfare.
{"title":"Is entering the low-end market better? The implication of managing out-of-season product with pricing strategies","authors":"Li Hengyu , Man Jiahe , Gegen Tana , Chai Junwu","doi":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104650","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104650","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Contemporary retailers face a critical marketing decision in managing out-of-season products: whether to introduce them into low-end markets or to dispose of them entirely. This paper characterizes three pricing mechanisms free pricing, differentiated pricing, and uniform pricing to investigate how retailers strategically select among these options alongside the scrapping alternative. Our principal findings are as follows. First, when scrapping costs are low, retailers are inclined to adopt a scrapping strategy; however, when scrapping costs are high, the decision depends on factors such as sales rate, negative brand effects, and the size of the low-end market. Specifically, when the low-end market is small and the sales rate is moderate, retailers tend to prefer a free pricing strategy, whereas an expanding low-end market supports a uniform pricing strategy. Additionally, increases in the sales rate and negative brand impact drive firms toward a differentiated pricing approach to mitigate adverse brand perceptions and attract price-sensitive consumers. Second, selling out-of-season products can be environmentally beneficial under conditions of low scrapping costs with minimal environmental impact, or in scenarios where both scrapping costs and associated pollution are comparatively high. Finally, and counterintuitively, our results indicate that profitability, consumer surplus and social welfare do not necessarily increase with the sales rate; instead, they may decrease when the sales rate exceeds a relatively high threshold. An important implication for the retailer is that pursuing an excessively high sales rate may be detrimental to both retailer profit and social welfare.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48399,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services","volume":"90 ","pages":"Article 104650"},"PeriodicalIF":13.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145685900","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-04DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104655
Daniel K. Maduku , Joyce I. Mxinwa
As retailers increasingly adopt augmented reality (AR) to enhance shopping experiences, consumer resistance remains a critical barrier to its widespread adoption. This research extends innovation resistance theory (IRT) by introducing a dual-pathway model of resistance, distinguishing between active (deliberate opposition) and passive (non-engagement) forms. Based on a survey of South African consumers (n = 516), we investigate how usage, value, risk, tradition, and image barriers drive passive and active resistance and examine the moderating role of individual-level uncertainty avoidance (UA). The results establish image and value as universal drivers of both resistance forms. However, the pathways diverge: risk and tradition barriers uniquely predict passive resistance, whereas usage complexity specifically fuels active resistance. Furthermore, UA acts as a critical contingency, amplifying the effects of usage and tradition barriers while paradoxically attenuating the influence of value barriers. These findings reveal that AR resistance is a multifaceted phenomenon shaped by the interplay of innovation barriers and cultural predispositions. The study contributes a reconceptualized, culturally moderated model of AR resistance and provides novel insights from an under-explored emerging market context.
{"title":"An innovation resistance theory perspective on augmented reality in retail: The moderating role of culture in active and passive resistance","authors":"Daniel K. Maduku , Joyce I. Mxinwa","doi":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104655","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104655","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>As retailers increasingly adopt augmented reality (AR) to enhance shopping experiences, consumer resistance remains a critical barrier to its widespread adoption. This research extends innovation resistance theory (IRT) by introducing a dual-pathway model of resistance, distinguishing between active (deliberate opposition) and passive (non-engagement) forms. Based on a survey of South African consumers (<em>n</em> = 516), we investigate how usage, value, risk, tradition, and image barriers drive passive and active resistance and examine the moderating role of individual-level uncertainty avoidance (UA). The results establish image and value as universal drivers of both resistance forms. However, the pathways diverge: risk and tradition barriers uniquely predict passive resistance, whereas usage complexity specifically fuels active resistance. Furthermore, UA acts as a critical contingency, amplifying the effects of usage and tradition barriers while paradoxically attenuating the influence of value barriers. These findings reveal that AR resistance is a multifaceted phenomenon shaped by the interplay of innovation barriers and cultural predispositions. The study contributes a reconceptualized, culturally moderated model of AR resistance and provides novel insights from an under-explored emerging market context.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48399,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services","volume":"90 ","pages":"Article 104655"},"PeriodicalIF":13.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145659087","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-04DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104660
Sreejesh S, Souvik Singha
Consumers increasingly rely on AI recommenders, yet often resist their advice when it conflicts with “what feels right.” We theorize Algorithmic Intuition Conflict (AIC), the subjective misfit when algorithmic advice contradicts a user's gut choice, and show that AIC depresses satisfaction not because of perceived inaccuracy, but by eroding decision confidence and felt autonomy. Across six studies, including a field experiment with a music-streaming platform, we (1) establish AIC's causal effect on satisfaction above and beyond accuracy; (2) demonstrate dual mechanisms via reduced confidence and autonomy; (3) identify explanation quality as a system-side remedy that restores confidence; (4) reveal identity relevance as a boundary condition and show that a brief identity-anchoring prompt neutralizes AIC's confidence loss; and (5) translate mechanism to practice with a dual-track interface that presents a “logic-best” and an “intuition-friendly” option with commensurate reasons. The dual-track design improves satisfaction, reduces choice deferral, increases acceptance, and critically sustains adoption, repeat usage, and word-of-mouth in the field. We contribute a fit-based account of consumer–AI collaboration, clarify why contradictions hurt even when quality is held constant, and offer deployable interface guidance for platforms seeking to reconcile machine insight with human intuition.
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