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Article
Publication date: 28 April 2022

Paula Dootson, Dominique A. Greer, Kate Letheren and Kate L. Daunt

The purpose of this research is to understand whether service robots can safeguard servicescapes from deviant consumer behaviour. Using routine activity theory, this research…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this research is to understand whether service robots can safeguard servicescapes from deviant consumer behaviour. Using routine activity theory, this research examines whether increasing the perceived humanness of service robots reduces customer intentions to commit deviant consumer behaviour and whether this negative relationship is mediated by perceived empathy and perceived risk of being caught.

Design/methodology/approach

Five hundred and fifty-three US residents responded to a hypothetical scenario that manipulated the humanness of a service agent (from self-service technology, to robot, to human employee) across seven conditions and measured the likelihood of deviant consumer behaviour, empathy towards the service robot, perceived risk of being caught and punished and negative attitudes towards robots.

Findings

The results indicate that replacing human service agents with different types of service robots does inadvertently reduce customer perceptions of capable guardianship (i.e. the human element that deters potential offenders from committing crimes) in the servicescape and creates conditions that allow customers to perpetrate more deviant consumer behaviour.

Practical implications

When investing in technology such as service robots, service providers need to consider the unintended cost of customer misbehaviour (specifically deviant consumer behaviour) in their return-on-investment assessments to optimise their asset investment decisions.

Originality/value

Moving beyond research on customer adoption and use, this research examines the unintended consequences that might arise when deploying service robots in a technology-infused service environment. Humanised service robots offer more guardianship than self-service technology but do not replace human employees in preventing deviant consumer behaviour, as they remain more capable of deterring customer misbehaviour.

Details

Journal of Services Marketing, vol. 37 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0887-6045

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 January 2023

Denitsa Dineva and Kate L. Daunt

Research into the dark side of online brand-managed communities (OBCs) and, specifically, consumer-to-consumer (C2C) conflicts within this context are scarce. This paper aims to…

Abstract

Purpose

Research into the dark side of online brand-managed communities (OBCs) and, specifically, consumer-to-consumer (C2C) conflicts within this context are scarce. This paper aims to explore the different forms of C2C conflicts in OBCs, measure their direct impact on observing consumers and brands and investigate their appropriate moderation by exclusively focusing on two actors: brands versus consumers.

Design/methodology/approach

This research adopts a sequential exploratory approach. First, the authors capture different forms of C2C conflict via netnographic observations of five brand-managed communities. Second, the identified forms of C2C conflict are used in an online experiment to examine their impact on OBCs’ social and commercial outcomes. Third, further two online experiments were used to assess how brand versus consumer conflict moderators impact perceived credibility and conflict de-escalation.

Findings

The authors uncover three prominent forms of C2C conflict based on whether conflict occurs between supporters, non-supporters or outsiders of the OBC. The authors further show that these affect consumers’ engagement behaviours and emotional responses, while brands suffer from diminished credibility and could be targets of unfavourable electronic word-of-mouth. Finally, for managing C2C conflict, the findings confirm that brands are perceived as more suitable, while under certain conditions consumers can also be viewed as appropriate moderators.

Research limitations/implications

This research used a range of participant self-selected brands and is limited to brand-managed (as opposed to consumer-managed) communities on Facebook. While beyond the scope of this paper, the dynamics for consumer-managed communities may differ.

Practical implications

This article offers guidance to marketing practitioners on the different nuances of undesirable consumer interactions in brand-managed communities on social media, their impact on customer engagement and brand perceptions and when/whether brands or consumers may be suited to moderating these.

Originality/value

This paper makes novel contributions to the literature on consumer (mis)behaviours and OBC management. The findings are among the first, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, to examine the direct social and commercial consequences of C2C conflicts and to provide comparative insights into the appropriateness of two different moderators in OBCs.

Details

European Journal of Marketing, vol. 57 no. 10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0566

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 March 2021

Hayley Cocker, Rebecca Mardon and Kate L. Daunt

This paper aims to elucidate instances whereby celebrity endorsements by social media influencers (SMIs) embedded within online consumption communities are perceived as…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to elucidate instances whereby celebrity endorsements by social media influencers (SMIs) embedded within online consumption communities are perceived as transgressive by their fellow community members. In doing so, this study provides insights into the new challenges and considerations that such community contexts present for celebrity endorsement.

Design/methodology/approach

The research team conducted a longitudinal, netnographic study of the YouTube beauty community, involving an initial phase of netnographic immersion followed by an investigative netnography that examined community members’ response to celebrity endorsements by 12 SMIs within the community.

Findings

This study identifies five recurring celebrity endorsement transgressions, each violating an established moral responsibility within the community. The paper explores how community members attribute responsibility for transgressive endorsements and identifies consequences for both the SMI and the endorsed brand.

Research limitations/implications

This study focused on a single consumption community, developing a deep understanding of the distinct moral responsibilities that shape the reception of celebrity endorsements within this context.

Practical implications

The paper presents managerial recommendations that will aid both SMIs and brands in implementing celebrity endorsements that avoid communal perceptions of transgression.

Originality/value

The analysis extends prior study on celebrity endorsement by SMIs by explaining when and why SMI endorsements are likely to be perceived as transgressive by the community and providing new insights into community member responses to transgressive SMI endorsements. It also extends wider theories of celebrity endorsement by highlighting the influence of consumption community contexts upon endorsement reception and examining consumer responses to celebrity endorsements perceived as transgressive in and of themselves.

Article
Publication date: 29 August 2023

Kate L. Daunt, Dominique A. Greer, Hyun Seung Jin and Isabella Orpen

Understanding individual susceptibility to political fake news is critical because fake news can target specific psychological profiles of vulnerable individuals. Consequently…

Abstract

Purpose

Understanding individual susceptibility to political fake news is critical because fake news can target specific psychological profiles of vulnerable individuals. Consequently, this research examines five individual risk (i.e. susceptibility) and resilience (i.e. protective) factors, conspiracy mentality, patriotism, perceived threat to freedom, media literacy and concern for disinformation, to determine if they inform belief in political fake news and subsequently, to what degree belief impacts private engagement with political fake news.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a fictional political fake news stimulus, the authors conducted a deductive thematic analysis of 10 semi-structured interviews and an online survey of 722 United Kingdom (UK) citizens analysed using structural equation modelling.

Findings

Conspiracy mentality and patriotism were positively associated with belief in political fake news, while media literacy and concern for disinformation were negatively associated with belief in political fake news. Perceived threat to freedom was a strong theme in the qualitative data but had no statistical effect on belief in political fake news. Belief in political fake news was positively associated with further engagement with the fake news story, acting as a mediator in the model.

Originality/value

Distinct from previous research that focuses on partisanship and sharing behaviour, this research forwards a model underpinned by social identity theory to build an integrated understanding of political fake news belief. The results demonstrate that political identity motivations beyond partisanship are salient when examining individual susceptibility to political fake news and that belief in political fake news plays a core role in understanding subsequent private engagement with the story.

Details

Internet Research, vol. 33 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1066-2243

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 July 2017

Andrew Rogers, Kate L. Daunt, Peter Morgan and Malcolm Beynon

The theory of double jeopardy (DJ) is shown to hold across broad ranging geographies and physical product categories. However, there is very little research appertaining to the…

Abstract

Purpose

The theory of double jeopardy (DJ) is shown to hold across broad ranging geographies and physical product categories. However, there is very little research appertaining to the subject within an online environment. In particular, studies that investigate the presence of DJ and the contrasting view point to DJ, namely, that of negative double jeopardy (NDJ), are lacking. This study aims to contribute to this identified research gap and examines the presence of DJ and NDJ within a product category, utilising data from Twitter.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 354,676 tweets are scraped from Twitter and their sentiment analysed and allocated into positive, negative and no-opinion clusters using fuzzy c-means clustering. The sentiment is then compared to the market share of brands within the beer product category to establish whether a DJ or NDJ effect is present.

Findings

Data reveal an NDJ effect with regards to original tweets (i.e. tweets which have not been retweeted). That is, when analysing tweets relating to brands within a defined beer category, the authors find that larger brands suffer by having an increased negativity amongst the larger proportion of tweets associated with them.

Research limitations/implications

The clustering approach to analyse sentiment in Twitter data brings a new direction to analysis of such sentiment. Future consideration of different numbers of clusters may further the insights this form of analysis can bring to the DJ/NDJ phenomenon. Managerial implications discuss the uncovered practitioner’s paradox of NDJ and strategies for dealing with DJ and NDJ effects.

Originality/value

This study is the first to explore the presence of DJ and NDJ through the utilisation of sentiment analysis-derived data and fuzzy clustering. DJ and NDJ are under-explored constructs in the online environment. Typically, past research examines DJ and NDJ in separate and detached fashions. Thus, the study is of theoretical value because it outlines boundaries to the DJ and NDJ conditions. Second, this research is the first study to analyse the sentiment of consumer-authored tweets to explore DJ and NDJ effects. Finally, the current study offers valuable insight into the DJ and NDJ effects for practicing marketing managers.

Details

European Journal of Marketing, vol. 51 no. 7/8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0566

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 September 2015

Kate L. Daunt (née Reynolds) and Dominique A. Greer

This study aims to use opportunity as a theoretical lens to investigate how the spatio-temporal and social dimensions of the consumption environment create perceived opportunities…

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Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to use opportunity as a theoretical lens to investigate how the spatio-temporal and social dimensions of the consumption environment create perceived opportunities for consumers to misbehave.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on routine activity theory and social impact theory, the authors use two experiments to demonstrate that spatio-temporal and social dimensions can explain consumer theft in retail settings.

Findings

Study 1 reveals mixed empirical support for the basic dimensions of routine activity theory, which posits that the opportunity to thieve is optimised when a motivated offender, suitable target and the absence of a capable formal guardian transpire in time and space. Extending the notion of guardianship, Study 2 tests social impact theory and shows that informal guardianship impacts the likelihood of theft under optimal routine activity conditions.

Originality/value

The study findings highlight important implications for academicians and retail managers: rather than focusing on the uncontrollable characteristics of thieving offenders, more controllable spatio-temporal and social factors of the retail environment can be actively monitored and manipulated to reduce perceived opportunities for consumer misbehaviour.

Details

European Journal of Marketing, vol. 49 no. 9/10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0566

Keywords

Content available
Article
Publication date: 14 September 2010

Kate L. Daunt

440

Abstract

Details

Journal of Services Marketing, vol. 24 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0887-6045

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 29 June 2012

Kate L. Daunt and Lloyd C. Harris

This paper aims to examine the associations between individual factors (personality and demographic variables) and contextual factors (servicescape and situation‐specific…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the associations between individual factors (personality and demographic variables) and contextual factors (servicescape and situation‐specific variables), and the motives that drive episodes of dysfunctional customer behavior.

Design/methodology/approach

Self‐report data were collected from a survey of bar, hotel, and restaurant customers (n=380). Confirmatory factor analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis were utilized to analyze the data.

Findings

Analysis of the data revealed three clusters of motives labelled: financial egotists, money grabbers, and ego revengers. Statistically significant differences were revealed across the personality, servicescape, and situation specific variables for each motive. However, no differences were found concerning demographic variables.

Research limitations/implications

This research emphasizes the primacy of three customer behavior motivations. Future research might investigate the motives for dysfunctional customer behavior across different organizational contexts and the dynamics between such motivations.

Practical implications

The findings of the study indicate that service managers can proactively control and manipulate servicescape and situation‐specific variables that relate to customer misbehavior motives.

Originality/value

No existing scholarly research has developed a data‐grounded understanding of the motivations of dysfunctional customer behaviors. Moreover, to date, no study has explored the associations between customer's motives to misbehave and personality, situation specific, servicescape, and demographic variables.

Details

Journal of Services Marketing, vol. 26 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0887-6045

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 September 2010

Ray Fisk, Stephen Grove, Lloyd C. Harris, Dominique A. Keeffe, Kate L. Daunt, Rebekah Russell‐Bennett and Jochen Wirtz

The purpose of this paper is to highlight important issues in the study of dysfunctional customer behavior and to provide a research agenda to inspire, guide, and enthuse. Through…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to highlight important issues in the study of dysfunctional customer behavior and to provide a research agenda to inspire, guide, and enthuse. Through a critical evaluation of existing research, the aim is to highlight key issues and to present potentially worthy avenues for future study.

Design/methodology/approach

In reviewing recent and past advances in the study of customers behaving badly, an overview of existing research into customers behaving badly and addressing issues of terminology and definition is provided. Thereafter, three perspectives that provide the most opportunity and insight in studying the darker side of service dynamics are outlined. This leads to a review of some of the research design and methodological problems and issues that are faced when rigorously studying these issues. Subsequently, the paper devotes a section to the provocative idea that while dysfunctional customer behavior has many negative influences on customers, employees, and service firms, there are actually some positive functions of customers behaving badly.

Findings

A research agenda is provided that is believed to identify and discuss a range of projects that comprises not only insightful theoretical contributions but is also practically relevant.

Originality/value

The paper identifies a range of issues about which managers should be aware and proactively manage.

Details

Journal of Services Marketing, vol. 24 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0887-6045

Keywords

Content available
Article
Publication date: 14 September 2010

Lloyd C. Harris and Rebekah Russell-Bennett

543

Abstract

Details

Journal of Services Marketing, vol. 24 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0887-6045

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