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Product performance measurements have been used to explain other business performance variables. The purpose of this paper is to propose that, regarding Mexican consumers, the “comparison-based perceived attribute performance” (CAP) approach is a better predictor of outcomes, such as satisfaction, value and loyalty, compared with the traditional measurement of “non-comparison-based perceived attribute performance” (NCAP). These two forms of assessing attribute-level performance may be considered as different constructs.

Using these two approaches, empirical tests were performed to attribute performance measurement and were conducted on products from two different categories: tequila and liquid dishwashing detergent. Regression analyses were performed using Mexican consumer samples of n=295 and n=239, respectively.

As opposed to NCAP, CAP measurements yielded higher statistical levels of satisfaction, value and loyalty for both product categories. In the case of tequila, factor analysis indicated a clear separation between the two types of measurements, suggesting that they should be considered distinct constructs. However, this was not found for the other product category.

CAP, which has better potential to predict outcomes than NCAP, could have relevant implications in brand positioning assessment and importance-performance analyses.

Up until now, some internet shopper profiles based on certain findings have been generally accepted. It is widely believed that internet shoppers tend to be more innovative, less averse to risk, more variety-seeking, more information-seeking, more impulsive and more interested in pursuing convenience. This paper aims to discuss some of these assumed characteristics by contrasting and comparing customers of three different types of pharmacies.

Three exploratory-descriptive design studies are conducted to profile customers from three different types of pharmacies in Mexico. Data from three samples are assessed, including 198 customers of physical drugstores without an e-channel, 150 customers of physical pharmacies with an e-channel and 271 customers of online pharmacies.

Shoppers from physical pharmacies purchase more food and drinks than actual medicine. Shoppers from physical pharmacies with e-channels tend to use the internet to acquire information about pharmaceutical products but do not make purchases online; they prefer to obtain products immediately from a physical drugstore instead of waiting for delivery from an e-channel. Contrasting with the two former customer types, shoppers who use e-pharmacies are specific in the numbers and types of products they purchase, medicines being the main priority.

The three types of customers and their preferred shopping platforms may show important profile differences. Despite the evidence in previous literature, shoppers at physical pharmacies are not necessarily non-convenience oriented (time and effort), noninformation analyzing, non-price conscious or less positive in their attitude about shopping; instead, they may simply be averse to technology.

This work proposes a framework that attempts to explain the connection between the dimensions of consumer perceived corporate social responsibility (social, environmental, economic), firm trustworthiness and firm reputation, using market level of development as a moderating factor.

Mexico and Spain were selected as the emerging and developed markets; a cross-cultural study with 1173 consumers (521 from Mexico and 652 from Spain) was undertaken. In each country, participants evaluated one of two well-known companies (one making consumer products and one providing retail services). The hypotheses were tested through SEM.

The results showed that, in the emerging market, perceived environmental actions did not influence consumers' perceptions and, in the developed market, perceived social actions had no effect.

The study identifies two mechanisms through which consumers' perceptions of a company's CSR influence company reputation, offering evidence that the level of development of a country can have a moderating effect on how the mechanisms operate.

The purpose of this study is to conceptually address the understanding of certain consumers and businesses that show new dynamics, including a heightened interest in quality and the concomitant development of entities and mechanisms designed to ensure certain standards as well as an increased level of involvement of the consumer with the product. These segments are identified and labeled as sophisticated markets.

Through a literature review following a conceptual model methodology, this study poses eight research propositions to seek a more profound and comprehensive understanding of this type of market that could potentially benefit several industries. This study explores and discusses some of the essential differences of sophisticated markets with a twofold purpose: to recognize the existence of sophisticated markets as a distinct category and suggest issues that may constitute interesting further research works.

The process of sophistication might occur in different industries. This study poses implications of sophisticated markets to better understand consumers and business through research propositions that can be classified into two main domains: consumer–firm relationships and communicational implications.

Previous studies addressing luxury or specialized markets have not considered these terms to be sufficient to describe what we propose be labeled as a sophisticated market. This study addresses this gap in literature and proposes a streamline of research that pursues a deeper understanding of this phenomenon.

Este estudio aborda de forma conceptual dinámicas novedosas que se están presentando en el ámbito de ciertos segmentos de consumidores y de ciertos sectores empresariales. Estas nuevas dinámicas incluyen elementos como un mayor interés en la calidad y en el desarrollo de satisfactores encaminados al aseguramiento de ciertos estándares, así como un mayor nivel de involucramiento del consumidor con el producto. Estos segmentos son identificados y etiquetados aquí como mercados sofisticados.

A través de una revisión de la literatura, siguiendo una metodología de modelo conceptual, este estudio plantea ocho proposiciones científicas dirigidas a la búsqueda de una comprensión más profunda y completa de este tipo de mercados. Este artículo explora y discute algunas de las diferencias esenciales de los mercados sofisticados, con respecto a los mercados tradicionales, con un doble propósito: (1) reconocer la existencia de los mercados sofisticados como una categoría distinta de negocio y (2) sugerir elementos y relaciones que pueden constituir trabajos interesantes de investigación a futuro.

Este proceso de sofisticación puede ocurrir en diferentes industrias. A través de estas proposiciones de investigación, este trabajo plantea elementos que pueden ayudar a incrementar el entendimiento que tenemos de este tipo de consumidores y empresas en dos grandes vertientes: la relación consumidor-empresa, y las implicaciones de la comunicación hacia estos segmentos sofisticados.

Estudios previos enfocados en bienes de lujo o mercados especializados no logran explicar lo que proponemos aquí como el fenómeno de mercados sofisticados. Este estudio busca cubrir este vacío en la literatura proponiendo líneas de investigación encaminadas a profundizar en el entendimiento de este fenómeno.

Este estudo aborda de forma conceitual dinâmicas inovadoras que estão surgindo no âmbito de certos segmentos de consumidores e setores empresariais. Essas novas dinâmicas incluem elementos como maior interesse na qualidade e no desenvolvimento de satisfatores voltados para garantir determinados padrões, bem como maior envolvimento do consumidor com o produto. Esses segmentos são identificados e rotulados aqui como mercados sofisticados.

Através de uma revisão da literatura, seguindo uma metodologia de modelo conceitual, este estudo apresenta oito proposições científicas voltadas para a busca de uma compreensão mais profunda e completa desse tipo de mercados. Este artigo explora e discute algumas das diferenças essenciais dos mercados sofisticados em relação aos mercados tradicionais, com um duplo propósito: (1) reconhecer a existência dos mercados sofisticados como uma categoria distinta de negócios e (2) sugerir elementos e relações que podem constituir trabalhos interessantes de pesquisa no futuro.

Este processo de sofisticação pode ocorrer em diferentes indústrias. Através dessas proposições de pesquisa, este trabalho apresenta elementos que podem ajudar a aumentar a compreensão que temos desse tipo de consumidores e empresas em duas grandes vertentes: a relação consumidor-empresa e as implicações da comunicação para esses segmentos sofisticados.

Estudos prévios focados em bens de luxo ou mercados especializados não conseguem explicar o que propomos aqui como o fenômeno de mercados sofisticados. Este estudo busca preencher essa lacuna na literatura propondo linhas de pesquisa com o objetivo de aprofundar a compreensão desse fenômeno.

This study assesses how “green behaviour” influences the switching intention towards remanufactured products in sustainable consumers by introducing the possibility of an innovation diffusion approach for promotion efforts.

This study utilises a mixed-method approach. First, a study with a non-experimental causal design was performed with 248 cell phone users characterised by exhibiting sustainable consumption behaviours. Subsequently, 13 in-depth interviews were conducted to obtain a better understanding of the switching intention.

For sustainable consumers, green purchase behaviour and attitude towards remanufactured products have a significant effect on their switching intention. These results contrast with previous literature, where it was found that price differences, government incentives and environmental benefits were significant for consumers in general.

Switching intention towards remanufactured products in sustainable consumers may be encouraged by influencing factors related to green behaviour, rather than factors related to the market (e.g. reducing price, specific labelling or governmental regulations). Moreover, sustainable consumers could be regarded as the first adopters of remanufactured products.

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study to introduce green purchase behaviour to predict sustainable consumers' switching intention towards remanufactured products.

The present study examines the potential association between the company's efforts on consumer education and consumer engagement and addresses the implications of this link in strategic decision-making.

The coffee shop industry serves as the context for testing the probable effect of education on creating more engaged consumers. To achieve this objective, regular coffee drinkers were asked to evaluate the education efforts of their favourite coffee shop and their level of engagement was assessed. Education and engagement were assessed using previously developed scales constituting a 32-item scale. The responses of 122 subjects were used in the analysis.

Consumer education, both firm specific and market related, are found to be related to engagement within a coffee shop context. Findings might suggest alternative strategies within coffee shop brands to enhance their educational efforts to increasing their consumer's engagement levels, which might ultimately result in more loyal customers.

The association between consumer education and consumer engagement is relevant when engagement is identified as a powerful predictor of several desired behavioural outcomes, such as satisfaction, word of mouth and loyalty. The possibility of education influencing consumer engagement might highlight an alternative strategy for companies pursuing higher engagement levels.

Although both constructs, education and engagement, have been previously used to analyse a set of different phenomena, the present study is perhaps the first to address a potential correlation between the two.

When selecting manufactured foods, customers consider several product features. Given the contemporary trends of food consumption, the purpose of this paper is to determine the influence that some demographic and psychographic key variables have on the chances of a consumer belonging to a market segment characterised by health-related food preferences.

The food choice scale is revised to develop a multidimensional measure of the factors underlying consumer food choices. Data of 288 sampled consumers were used to validate the scale and to group consumers into four segments based on the value assigned to several food-product meta-attributes. Depending on these food choice values, the study identified four dissimilar clusters: utilitarian, protecting, toning and highly demanding.

Consumers use multiple attributes when choosing food products. However, emerging segments tend to prefer health-related attributes over utilitarian or conventional attributes, such as price, flavour or accessibility. The consumers of these segments tend to be older, more health conscious and more prone to psychological health risks.

Demographic and psychographic traits tend to drive trade-offs between health- and non-health-related attributes when considering food products. Several multivariate methodologies were innovatively coupled to characterize consumers based on their healthy food preferences and individual traits.

The authors thought of the idea for this exploratory paper for Drugs and Alcohol Today after visiting a local prison on the outskirts of Madrid from which these field notes are taken. The authors have also had informal conversations with the contacts working in the Spanish Prison service. When the authors looked at some of the literature around the relationships between drugs and prisons in Spain, the authors found lots of statistics, and material which either said there were lots of drugs in prison or literature which presented over-medicalised processes of drug treatment. In short, the authors found few studies which could bring to life the kind of problems drugs bring to the prison and how the dynamics of the prison are not only directly impacted by drug use but also as drug dealing/trafficking. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

What the authors offer is only really to draw your attention to the issue. The authors have no real methodology to reflect on other than one of us is an experienced participant observer and the other is a lawyer and criminologist who has worked with numerous clients processed for drug offences in and around prisons in Madrid. Between us, we have undertaken six visits to Madrileñas prisons.

In this explorative paper the authors want to do three things. First, draw attention to the extent of problem of drugs in prison in Spain. Second, the authors want to suggest that the role drugs needs reconsideration as it plays a pivotal role in the functioning of the prison. Lastly, the authors push for more research into this issue which goes beyond conventional surveys and unnecessary complex regression analyses and instead takes a qualitative approach using observational data and informal conversations to explore these dynamics in more detail.

First, that there is an urgent need to go beyond these official statistics and explore in some nuanced detail about the prison experience in Spain. The existing research is limiting in that it talks tiresomely about the numbers incarcerated and fails to admit the significance of drugs not only as a motivating factor for incarceration but also the role drugs play in the prison environment. The authors need to consider as much the changing demography of Spanish prisons – for example more immigrants, different drugs, etc. – as the everyday experience of drugs, debt, disagreements and violence and how they intersect as a lived experience rather than consider them as separate issues of analysis, dormant from the interconnectedness of the micro-interactions of the prison environment and the respective institutional power structures. The key to this debate, and the general messages of this paper, is to realize a study which can explore the nuances of the role and function of drugs play in Spanish prisons.