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In daily marketing practices, when launching and promoting new products, marketers often induce consumers’ awe of nature via exposing consumers to beautiful natural scenes. Does this marketing practice really facilitate consumers’ subsequent new product choice? Existing awe research and new product research have not examined this issue yet. The purpose of this study is to study whether the marketing practice of awe induction faciliates consumers' new product choice.

This paper examines the double-edged sword effect of different types of awe on consumers’ adoption of new products. The authors conducted five experiments using various product categories (soft drinks, juices, cookies and watches), various many sources of sample types (college student samples and adult samples) and various manipulation of awe. The authors also focused on both new products with incongruent visual appearance (Experiment 1a, Experiment 1c, Experiment 2 and Experiment 3) and new products with incongruent conceptual attributes (Experiment 1b) to enhance the rigor of the experiments and the generalizability of the conclusions.

The authors find that when consumers perceive awe of threatening natural phenomena, they decrease their choice of moderately incongruent new products (positive effect), while when consumers perceive awe of beautiful natural phenomena, they increase their choice of moderately incongruent new products (negative effect). Also, this paper finds that the emergence of the positive of the double-edged sword effect is driven by the sequential mediation of the need for accommodation and openness to new experiences, while the emergence of the negative of the double-edged sword effect is driven by the uncertainty reduction motive.

This research has important theoretical implications. First, this paper advances existing awe research by reconciling the inconsistent findings in existing awe research by categorizing awe of nature. Second, this paper advances existing research on new products and moderate incongruity effects by exploring when the moderate incongruity effect exists and when it reverses in the new products field through the classification of awe of nature.

This study has rich implications for marketing management. First, marketers can facilitate consumers’ adoption of moderate incongruent new product via priming consumers’ awe of beautiful nature. Second, this paper suggests that marketers and brand managers should carefully choose the timing of new product launches to avoid inducing consumer awe of threatening nature (e.g. immediately after a severe natural disaster). Finally, the results of Experiment 3 in this paper suggest that when marketers want to launch new products with moderate incongruity, they need to target consumers with high cognitive flexibility.

This paper discusses how different types of awe affect consumers’ attitudes and choice of moderately new products. This research question has its social value in helping marketers, companies, consumers and society know the power of awe of nature on the behaviors and decision-making.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this paper is among the first ones to examine the double-edged sword effect of different types of awe of nature on consumers’ new product adoption.

This paper aims to explore the relationship between prudence in risk attitudes and patience of time preference of Chinese apple growers regarding off-farm cold storage of production and marketing in non-harvest seasons. The authors also consider the effect of farmer participation in cooperative-like organizations known as Farm Bases (FBs).

The authors use multiple list methods and elicitation strategies to measure Chinese apple farmers' risk attitudes and time preferences. Because these farmers can either sell their apples immediately to supermarkets or intermediaries or place them in storage, the authors assess correlations between their storage decisions and their preferences regarding risk and time. The authors also differentiate risks involving gains and losses and empirically examine individual risk attitudes in different scenarios.

Marketing decisions are moderately associated with risk attitudes but not time preference. Farmers with memberships in local farmer cooperatives are likely to speculate more in cold storage. Thus, risk aversion behavioral and psychological motives affect farmers' decision-making of cold storage and intertemporal marketing activities. However, membership in cooperatives does not always result in improved income and welfare for farmers.

The research confirms that behavioral factors may strongly drive vulnerable smallholder farmers to speculate into storage even under seasonal and uncertain marketing volatility. There is the need to think deeper about the rationale of promoting cooperatives and other agricultural forms, because imposing these without careful consideration can have negative impacts.

Do risk and time preferences affect the decision of farmers to utilize storage facilities? This question is important because it is not clear if and how risk preferences affect the tradeoff between consuming today and saving for tomorrow, especially for farmers in developing countries.

Smart farming technologies (SFTs) can increase yields and reduce the environmental impacts of farming by improving the efficient use of inputs. This paper is to estimate farmers' preference and willingness to pay (WTP) for a well-defined SFT, smart drip irrigation (SDI) technology.

This study conducted a discrete choice experiment (DCE) among 1,300 maize farmers in North China to understand their WTP for various functions of SDI using mixed logit (MIXL) models.

The results show that farmers have a strong preference for SDI in general and its specific functions of smart sensing and smart control. However, farmers do not have a preference for the function of region-level agronomic planning. Farmers' preferences for different functions of SDI are heterogeneous. Their preference was significantly associated with their education, experience of being village cadres and using computers, household income and holding of land and machines. Further analysis show that farmers' WTP for functions facilitated by hardware is close to the estimated prices, whereas their WTP for functions wholly or partially facilitated by software is substantially lower than the estimated prices.

Findings from the empirical study lead to policy implications for enhancing the design of SFTs by integrating software and hardware and optimizing agricultural extension strategies for SFTs with digital techniques such as videos.

This study provides initial insights into understanding farmers' preferences and WTP for specific functions of SFTs with a DCE.

This study aims to illustrate the mechanisms underlying the effect of stress on flow states in the context of a multilevel organization, in which case employees' perseverative cognition and reactions to challenge–hindrance stressors are affected by leader mindfulness.

Study 1 employed a three-wave time-lag survey, and study 2 conducted a diary study across 10 workdays to replicate the results of study 1. Multilevel structural equation modeling and Monte Carlo simulation were performed using Mplus 8.0 software to test all hypotheses.

Problem-solving pondering transmits the nonlinear effect of challenge stressors on flow, and affective rumination mediates the negative effect of hindrance stressors on flow. Leader mindfulness amplifies the tendency of followers to ruminate on the positive aspects of challenge stressors, consequently increasing their positive reactions and flow. Although leader mindfulness fails to influence followers to ruminate less on hindrance stressors, it negates the harmful effect of affective rumination on the flow experience.

This study is one of the first to examine the associations between stressor types and flow in the workplace. The authors also develop a new theory that highlights the ability of leader mindfulness to shape subordinates' stress, cognitions and reactions through social modeling and the authors identify the boundaries of its beneficial effects.

Hospitality and tourism research lags in using experimental designs. This study aims to reveal prestigious scholars’ opinions and suggestions on how to effectively design and execute experimental research.

The authors conducted an open-ended survey on 187 editors and editorial board members from 22 top hospitality and tourism journals. Their answers were coded following an inductive method of coding, and a list of themes and categories was synthesized.

The results summarize common problems of this method and indicate significant barriers to making experimental studies publishable. The review criteria for experimental studies are presented from four aspects: overall design, stimuli and manipulations, data collection and reporting results.

The results provide valuable suggestions for researchers interested in experimental design in the hospitality and tourism field. The study contributes to a shift toward well-designed and well-executed experimental research in hospitality and tourism.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the study is the first to survey editorial board members of impactful hospitality and tourism journals to reveal their insights into the experimental methodology. The study makes significant theoretical and methodological contributions by addressing calls to understand common problems and barriers to experimental research in our field.

This study aims to evaluate the efficiency of various techniques for enhancing indoor air quality (IAQ) in construction. It analyzed the alterations in the concentration of indoor air pollutants over time for each product employed in controlling pollution sources and removing it, which included eco-friendly substances and adsorbents. The study will provide more precise and dependable data on the effectiveness of these control methods, ultimately supporting the creation of more efficient and sustainable approaches for managing indoor air pollution in buildings.

The research investigates the impact of eco-friendly materials and adsorbents on improving indoor air quality (IAQ) in Dubai's tall apartment buildings. Field experiments were conducted in six units of The Gate Tower, comparing the IAQ of three units built with “excellent” grade eco-friendly materials with three built with “good” grade materials. Another experiment evaluated two adsorbent products (H and Z) in the Majestic Tower over six months. Results indicate that “excellent” grade materials significantly reduced toluene emissions. Adsorbent product Z showed promising results in pollutant reduction, but there is concern about the long-term behavior of adsorbed chemicals. The study emphasizes further research on household pollutant management.

The research studied the effects of eco-friendly materials and adsorbents on indoor air quality in Dubai's new apartments. It found that apartments using “excellent” eco-friendly materials had significantly better air quality, particularly reduced toluene concentrations, compared to those using “good” materials. However, high formaldehyde (HCHO) emissions were observed from wood products. While certain construction materials led to increased ethylbenzene and xylene levels, adsorbent product Z showed promise in reducing pollutants. Yet, there is a potential concern about the long-term rerelease of these trapped chemicals. The study emphasizes the need for ongoing research in indoor pollutant management.

The research, while extensive, faced limitations in assessing the long-term behavior of adsorbed chemicals, particularly the potential for rereleasing trapped pollutants over time. Despite the study spanning a considerable period, indoor air pollutant concentrations in target households did not stabilize, making it challenging to determine definitive improvement effects and reduction rates among products. Comparisons were primarily relative between target units, and the rapid rise in pollutants during furniture introduction warrants further examination. Consequently, while the research provides essential insights, it underscores the need for more prolonged and comprehensive evaluations to fully understand the materials' and adsorbents' impacts on indoor air quality.

The research underscores the importance of choosing eco-friendly materials in new apartment constructions for better IAQ. Specifically, using “excellent” graded materials can significantly reduce harmful pollutants like toluene. However, the study also highlights that certain construction activities, such as introducing furniture, can rapidly elevate pollutant levels. Moreover, while adsorbents like product Z showed promise in reducing pollutants, there is potential for adsorbed chemicals to be rereleased over time. For practical implementation, prioritizing higher-grade eco-friendly materials and further investigation into furniture emissions and long-term behavior of adsorbents can lead to healthier indoor environments in newly built apartments.

The research offers a unique empirical assessment of eco-friendly materials' impact on indoor air quality within Dubai's rapidly constructed apartment buildings. Through field experiments, it directly compares different material grades, providing concrete data on pollutant levels in newly built environments. Additionally, it explores the efficacy of specific adsorbents, which is of high value to the construction and public health sectors. The findings shed light on how construction choices can influence indoor air pollution, offering valuable insights to builders, policymakers and residents aiming to promote public health and safety in urban living spaces.

This study examines the effects of scent arousal on consumers' time perception in retail service environments and further explores how the effect is moderated by consumer-perceived stress.

A laboratory experiment (Study 1) and a field experiment (Study 2) were conducted to examine the relationship between scent arousal and time perception and the mediating effect between scent arousal and consumers' store evaluations. Another laboratory experiment (Study 3) was conducted to explore how consumers' stress modifies the scent arousal effect.

Consumers in a low-arousal scent condition perceived a shorter duration of time than those in a high-arousal scent condition. This finding was verified in a field experiment, whereas scent arousal affects consumers' store evaluations through the mediating effects of time perception. However, the impact of scent arousal on time perception was attenuated in high-stress conditions.

Time duration perception is an important indicator in the retail service marketing process. Evidence shows that underestimating time duration in the shopping process represents positive responses. This study extends prior research by examining how scent arousal influences time perception and how consumers' stress moderates scent arousal’s effect.

Seekers who visit professional virtual communities (PVCs) are usually motivated by knowledge-seeking, which is a complex cognitive process. How do seekers search for knowledge, and how is their search linked to prior knowledge or PVC situation factors? From the cognitive process and interactional psychology perspectives, this study investigated the three-way interactions between seekers’ expertise, task complexity, and perceptions of PVC features (i.e. knowledge quality and system quality) on knowledge-seeking strategies and resultant outcomes.

A field experiment was conducted with 119 seekers in a PVC using a 2 × 2 factorial design of seekers’ expertise (i.e. expert versus novice) and task complexity (i.e. low versus high).

The study reveals three significant insights: (1) For a high-complexity task, experts adopt an ask-directed searching strategy compared to novices, whereas novices adopt a browsing strategy; (2) For a high-complexity task, experts who perceive a high system quality are more likely than novices to adopt an ask-directed searching strategy; and (3) Task completion time and task quality are associated with the adoption of ask-directed searching strategies, whereas knowledge seekers’ satisfaction is more associated with the adoption of browsing strategy.

We draw on the perspectives of cognitive process and interactional psychology to explore potential two- and three-way interactions of seekers’ expertise, task complexity, and PVC features on the adoption of knowledge-seeking strategies in a PVC context. Our findings provide deep insights into seekers’ behavior in a PVC, given the popularity of the search for knowledge in PVCs.

Storytelling through virtual reality (VR) combines the strengths of cutting-edge technology with traditional informational campaigns. As a tool for climate change mitigation, VR has been shown to educate individuals and stimulate both emotional and cognitive responses that promote pro-environmental behavior. This paper aims to investigate whether these benefits extend to the field of green investing through an experiment conducted with a sample of small business entrepreneurs.

The experimental design involved making choices between bonds varying in maturity dates, annual interest and environmental classification (regular versus green). To identify potential impacts of the immersive experience on investment decisions, these choices were made both before and after exposure to VR videos illustrating the devastating effects of climate change. A multiple price list was employed to elicit subjects' risk preferences, enabling the joint estimation of the treatment effect and the risk and time preference parameters.

The findings indicate that, when risk and time preference parameters are controlled for, a VR experience can nudge toward green investment choices. This effect is more profound among those who already exhibit a greater propensity to opt for green investments.

Previous research shows that negative emotions, such as guilt, affect pro-environmental intentions, as well as actions, while message vividness through immersive experiences is effective in nudging greener behavior. Since analogous results in the framework of financial investments are not currently available, this paper seeks to test whether VR videos depicting the adverse effects of climate change can generate negative emotions associated with experiencing these effects and make them salient in subsequent investment decisions made by small business entrepreneurs.

Building on the theory of brand psychological ownership, this paper aims to explore the mediating role of brand psychological ownership in the relationship between brand personality (innocence/coolness) and consumers’ preferences, as well as identify the boundary conditions of this relationship.

To test the hypotheses, a series of four experiments were conducted in Wuhan, a city in southern China, using questionnaires administered at two universities and two supermarkets. Hypotheses were tested using PLS-SEM in SmartPLS 4.

The results indicate that brand personality, specifically the dimensions of innocence and coolness, has a significant impact on consumers’ brand preferences. Brands with a cool personality are preferred over those with an innocent personality. Moreover, the relationship between brand personality and consumers’ brand preferences is moderated by power motivation and identity centrality.

This study contributes to the literature by differentiating between brand personality of innocence and coolness as two separate constructs and proposing brand psychological ownership as a mechanism through which brand personality affects brand preferences. The study’s samples were drawn from universities and supermarkets in southern China, providing evidence for the significant moderating effects of power motivation and identity centrality on consumers’ brand preferences.