Search results

Prior research has demonstrated that reference prices can affect consumer responses, but the reference prices examined have been presented along with semantic cues [e.g. manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) and Compare At]. This study is unique in investigating the effects of reference prices that do not include a semantic cue (i.e. “cue-less”) on consumers’ responses. It also studies consumers’ beliefs about factory outlet stores, a seldom-studied store type in which cue-less reference prices are used.

One qualitative study and one experiment were carried out in this research.

The qualitative study revealed that a price tag including cue-less reference prices was unlikely to be viewed as a seller mistake or with suspicion, but nonetheless did confuse some respondents. The experiment demonstrated that while consumers find cue-less reference prices to be somewhat less believable that high MSRPs, these beliefs do not appear to come into play when consumers judge attractiveness (e.g. perceived value). Additionally, the results suggest that consumers believe that a product available for sale in a factory outlet store is likely to have been previously available at a different type of store.

This research advances the theory of the effects of reference prices on consumers’ responses by examining the common practice of not labeling reference prices with semantic cues. It also extends the literature regarding consumer beliefs about factory outlet stores.

The purpose of this chapter is to summarize and integrate a body of psychological literature regarding an individual difference related to the experience of anxiety that largely, and somewhat surprisingly, has been overlooked by organizational scientists. This variable, most often called social anxiety or social phobia, reflects a strong fear that one is in danger of behaving inappropriately, inadequately, or ineptly, with impending disastrous consequences such as rejection, humiliation, or ouster from a group (Trower & Gilbert, 1990). In providing a summary of the construct and ongoing investigations, the chapter offers ideas for future research into how this important variable may influence behaviors at work.

That being face‐to‐face in business communication remains important in the face of low cost electronic options raises interesting questions. In an earlier article in this Journal, I pointed to innovation as one reason why being physically close is important. Here the probe is broadened. Special attention is given to non economic behavior and the conditions under which knowledge spills over effectively in a face‐to‐face setting. Forthcoming are added reasons for believing that face‐to‐face communication will remain important, but also provide a basis for arguing that, in time, this importance will diminish with consequences that are not now very clear.

Service delays are of significant concern to both consumers and companies – delays cost both groups billions of dollars and lead to consumer frustration and switching activity. Therefore, determining means of overcoming negative consumer reactions to delays is important, and the authors propose that anthropomorphic facial expressions could be one of those means. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to test the effects of anthropomorphic cues (namely, happy and sad faces) on consumer responses to service delays, depending on whether service providers are at fault for those delays.

Three experimental studies test the proposed effects.

Happy faces alongside messages about delays appear to provide no significant benefit to repatronage intentions compared to a non-anthropomorphic (control) condition, whether the service provider is or is not to blame. Meanwhile, sad faces are harmful when the provider is not to blame but can somewhat bolster repatronage intentions when the provider is at fault. Further, perceived sincerity of the facial expression and patience with the provider mediate these effects.

The findings offer important insights into how anthropomorphic cues, including emojis, can influence consumer responses to service delays. The work, thus, offers clarity around instances in which anthropomorphism might lead to negative consumer responses.

Managers can use the findings to increase patience and mitigate potentially negative consumer responses when service delays occur.

This work adds clarity to the literature on anthropomorphism by showing how blame attributions for service delays can lead to different consumer responses to anthropomorphic cues. The findings also show how anthropomorphism can help to mitigate negative consumer responses to service delays.

Service robots can offer benefits to consumers (e.g. convenience, flexibility, availability, efficiency) and service providers (e.g. cost savings), but a lack of trust hinders consumer adoption. To enhance trust, firms add human-like features to robots; yet, anthropomorphism theory is ambiguous about their appropriate implementation. This study therefore aims to investigate what is more effective for fostering trust: appearance features that are more human-like or social functioning features that are more human-like.

In an experimental field study, a humanoid service robot displayed gaze cues in the form of changing eye colour in one condition and static eye colour in the other. Thus, the robot was more human-like in its social functioning in one condition (displaying gaze cues, but not in the way that humans do) and more human-like in its appearance in the other (static eye colour, but no gaze cues). Self-reported data from 114 participants revealing their perceptions of trust, anthropomorphism, interaction comfort, enjoyment and intention to use were analysed using partial least squares path modelling.

Interaction comfort moderates the effect of gaze cues on anthropomorphism, insofar as gaze cues increase anthropomorphism when comfort is low and decrease it when comfort is high. Anthropomorphism drives trust, intention to use and enjoyment.

To extend human–robot interaction literature, the findings provide novel theoretical understanding of anthropomorphism directed towards humanoid robots.

By investigating which features influence trust, this study gives managers insights into reasons for selecting or optimizing humanoid robots for service interactions.

This study examines the difference between appearance and social functioning features as drivers of anthropomorphism and trust, which can benefit research on self-service technology adoption.

This paper argues that, by focusing on the use of the Internet for one‐to‐one communications, marketers are in danger of ignoring the many‐to‐many communications that are taking place as consumers interact with one another. The authors explore the increasing proliferation of Internet discussion groups and chat rooms that are often market‐orientated in their focus and discuss how the study of virtual communities can provide rich insights for marketers. Detailing how ethnographic research methods can assist the understanding of such online environments, they consider the theoretical and methodological differences between offline and online ethnographic research.

The increased use of distributed work arrangements across organizational and national borders calls for in‐depth investigation of subgroup dynamics in globally distributed teams (GDTs). The purpose of this paper is to focus on the social dynamics that emerge across subgroups of onsite‐offshore teams and affect the process of knowledge sharing.

A qualitative study of eight GDTs working around the clock is conducted. These GDTs are part of organizations involved in offshoring of knowledge intensive work.

The evidence shows that the specific status cue of being onsite drives status differentials across subgroups; these differentials are reduced when the client is directly involved with the activities of the team. The negative effect of high status differentials on knowledge sharing is mitigated by the presence of straddlers, who assist in the transfer of codified knowledge. Conversely, when status differentials are low, straddlers hamper spontaneous direct learning between onsite members and offshore members.

This work has practical implications for organizations that want to use GDTs to achieve a faster (and cheaper) development of products and services. Managers should carefully design the organizational structures of GDTs and consider upfront the trade offs related to client involvement in teamwork and the use of straddlers across sites.

The paper contributes to the literature on subgroup dynamics, applying and extending the theory of status characteristics theory.

The purpose of this paper is to address an overarching question: Does matching consumer place–brand associations with stereotype-consistent messaging affect consumer perceptions of an advertisement?

This paper presents two experiments that examine participants’ differing evaluations of advertisements under various experimental conditions. Study 1 examines the match of place–brand warmth versus competence stereotypes and the use of symbolic versus utilitarian advertising messaging for both new foreign and domestic brands. Study 2 examines this match for global brands.

The paper reveals that stereotype-consistent messaging increases the perceived fit between the advertisement and the brand for new foreign brands but not for new domestic or global brands. Furthermore, in a post-hoc analysis, this congruence is found to improve attitude towards the brand, purchase intentions and brand response, through the mediating effect of attitude towards the ad.

Place–brand stereotypes impact consumer attitudes and opinions regarding brands from different countries. This paper applies two universal social judgment dimensions from social psychology—warmth and competence—to the novel context of advertising messaging to examine previously unexplored facets of the place–brand image.

This paper aims to outline a decision process for how consumers choose among two‐part tariffs which consist of a flat fee plus a per unit charge for usage over an allowance. The paper also seeks to examine what types of decision aids help consumers choose lower cost tariffs.

The approach used is two experimental studies.

Most consumers do not choose a tariff by calculating an expected cost because of usage uncertainty. They instead rely on simple comparisons of the overage rate, usage allowance, and flat fee attributes. These heuristics lead to systematic biases, beyond what actual true cost justifies, for favorable comparisons on these attributes. An online calculator improved choice of the lower cost option from 65 percent to 80 percent, yet this increased to 91 percent if people were also forced to consider a range of usage levels.

Consumers struggle to choose the lowest cost tariff, especially with uncertain usage. Consumers should realize the biases in their decision shortcuts and use the presented decision aids. Firms can leverage these biases by offering larger usage allowances (often done) and smaller overage rates (often not done), or correct them with decision aids.

Much work on tariffs assumes consumers calculate a cost, but the authors question this assumption, and show that consumers instead use simple attribute comparisons to deal with uncertain usage. An understanding of the specific heuristic consumers use allows the authors to better account for past effects, predict and establish new effects, and design effective decision aids. Results indicate tariff biases largely result from information processing shortcomings.