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The purpose of this paper is to explore whether people’s intuitions regarding the social consequences of word of mouth (WOM) match the actual consequences. The authors investigate the expectations people have about how sharing WOM (positive or negative) will change others’ perceptions of them and then compare these expectations to the actual impact of WOM.

Six studies were conducted. Study 1 predicted how sharing their experiences with various products or services would change others’ opinion of them. Studies 2a/2b contrasted participants’ intuitions about the potential social consequences of sharing WOM with the consequences. Studies 3a/3b and 4a/4b tested for the hypothesized mediating mechanism. Studies 5a/5b focused on negative WOM and used participants’ own reviews to compare intuitions with impact. Study 6 explored whether considering one’s own consumption experience mitigates the negative social impact of WOM.

Consumers expect positive WOM to improve perceptions as it conveys only positive cues about the communicator (i.e. helping intentions and a positive personality). Negative WOM is expected to have neutral impact, as it conveys mixed cues (i.e. helping intentions but a negative personality). In contrast, the authors show that sharing negative WOM tends to be quite detrimental, whereas sharing positive WOM has little impact. People are largely unaware of these effects.

The research contributes to the literature on WOM and social transmission by comparing people’s intuitions about the social consequences of WOM with its actual consequences. The authors acknowledge that they used mostly WOM messages that were pre-written (vs spontaneously generated by participants). This may have constrained the generalizability of the results. Several potential moderators remain to be investigated, such as the role of message extremity, the interpersonal closeness between communicator and receiver, whether the WOM was solicited vs spontaneous, online vs offline, etc.

Greater effort is needed to raise consumers’ awareness about the gap between their expectations and the actual social consequences of WOM. Furthermore, marketers responsible for designing product review opportunities should be encouraged to provide consumers with more flexible options, such as the ability to easily remove an online review. Finally, consumers transmitting negative WOM in particular should be aware that their negative tone may compromise the persuasiveness of their message by making the receiver more vigilant and thus less receptive.

The authors are the first to directly contrast people’s intuitions about the social consequences of WOM with its consequences. Unlike the previous literature, the authors investigate people’s intuitions directly, and investigate the consequences of positive and negative WOM by comparing them to a neutral no-WOM condition. They also shed light on the specific personality traits people infer from WOM.

In this study, the effects of negative tourism impacts, length of residency and nativity on support for tourism development were examined.

Because understanding the attitudes of local people toward tourism support is complex, this study employed both symmetric (PLS-SEM) and asymmetric (fsQCA) approaches from a holistic perspective. A total of 336 individuals from Cappadocia, one of Turkey's most prominent tourist destinations, were surveyed.

According to the symmetric method results, respondents' negative perceptions of tourism negatively affect attitudes toward tourism support. Native-born status acts as a moderating variable in the relationship between attitudes toward tourism support and the negative economic impacts of tourism. On the other hand, this study shows that the complex interactions of nativity and the negative impacts of tourism directly affect local people's attitudes toward tourism support.

This study revealed that practitioners should adopt a comprehensive perspective to understand the attitudes of local people toward tourism support.

This study, in addition to the findings obtained via the symmetric method, reveals the complex interaction of the negative impacts of tourism, thus providing a roadmap to improve local people's attitudes toward tourism support by using asymmetric modeling.

Social media influencers have become constant companions of a large audience of young consumers, but a crucial yet underexplored area of examination relates to the implications of exposure to influencers for an individual’s self-concept. This study aims to examine if and how individuals experience self-discrepancies when exposed to influencers and the impact of such discrepancies on their affect, cognition and behaviors toward the influencers and the brands they endorse.

The authors thematically analyze 17 semistructured interviews, develop a conceptual model and present a set of hypotheses. The hypotheses are tested by analyzing survey data from 503 respondents using structural equation modeling.

Individuals actively engage in comparisons with influencers’ virtual self-presentation and treat them as emblematic of an ideal self. The associated self-discrepancy can lead to both negative and positive affect, but while the latter has a positive impact on e-word of mouth (WOM) and purchase intent, the former has a negative impact. Perceived homophily dampens the impact of exposure to influencer content on discrepancy and strengthens the link between discrepancy and positive affect. Self-acceptance and mindfulness positively moderate the impact of discrepancy on positive affect and negatively on negative affect. Perceived authenticity strengthens the impact of positive affect on e-WOM and dampens the impact of negative affect on purchase intention.

The authors contribute to the literature on self-discrepancies by identifying a consumer context where, in addition to the theoretically predicted negative affect, an individual may experience more positive emotions like feeling motivated or inspired because of the perceived attainability of an influencer as an ideal self. The authors contribute to the influencer marketing literature by examining the influencer–follower relationship and its implications for an individual’s self-concept, including the role played by perceived homophily and authenticity. The authors also contribute to the literature on consumer well-being and identify the role of self-acceptance and mindfulness in shaping consumer experiences.

The authors provide a nuanced analysis of the impact of influencer marketing on consumer behavior with a focus on its impact on an individual’s self-concept. The authors argue for the role of perceived homophily and authenticity in shaping favorable consumer behavior outcomes and offer evidence for more inclusive approaches to marketing.

The authors identify the influencer–follower relationship as a unique social exchange where the source of self-discrepancy is also a homophilic solution provider for achieving one’s ideal self and report both positive and negative effects as outcomes of experiencing a self-discrepancy induced by a target perceived as more attainable. The authors situate understandings of perceived homophily and authenticity along these relationships and identify self-acceptance and mindfulness as mechanisms used by individuals to deal with discrepancies.

Front-line employee (FLE) well-being is an under-researched field. Contrasting the prevailing view that Positive Customer Feedback (PCF) can only have ‘positive’ impacts, this study aims to answer the counterintuitive question: Could the apparently positive construct ‘Positive Customer Feedback’ have a negative impact on the well-being of front-line employees? Consequently, working within the Transformative Service Research (TSR) framework, we investigate whether PCF can negatively affect the eudaimonic and hedonic well-being dimensions of FLEs, thus decreasing their overall psychological well-being level.

A multidisciplinary literature review was conducted, particularly in the social psychology, human resources and organizational behavior fields, to examine the potential negative impacts of PCF. Subsequently, an exploratory qualitative study consisting of seven focus groups with 45 FLEs and 22 in-depth interviews with managers working across various service industries were performed. All the transcripts were analyzed via an iterative hermeneutical process.

A model describing ten negative impacts and six key contingencies of PCF was developed. The identified impacts can negatively affect the eudaimonic and hedonic well-being dimensions of FLEs. PCF can have a negative impact on the eudaimonic dimensions such as harmony, respect and support. Moreover, PCF appears to increase the negative affect by creating tension, fear, strain and stress, thus, negatively affecting the happiness level of FLEs (hedonic well-being). The identified contingencies play a crucial role in determining the direction and intensity of the negative impact of PCF. Therefore, the overall psychological well-being level of FLEs can suffer as a result of PCF. This study also discusses managerial challenges associated with PCF management.

The article discusses important managerial implications in the field of FLE well-being and PCF management and suggests directions for future research aiming to expand the boundaries of the current TSR agenda and service human resources.

This study is the first to explore the negative side of PCF from a TSR perspective. It extends the understanding of the overlooked area of PCF and FLE well-being.

The purpose of this study is to build on previous literature in this area thus, the views of professionals working with those who report institutional abuse was sought using a Delphi method.

Professionals working with those who report institutional abuse, such as psychologists, social workers and personal injury lawyers, were invited to engage in the Delphi study. Sixteen professionals completed the final round (with four rounds in total). This method was used to gain professional consensus on the considered impacts of institutional child abuse and what factors influence impacts.

Eight superordinate themes were developed, as follows: institutional abuse has lasting negative effects on well-being, functioning and behaviour; loss of trust in others and the system is a potential outcome of institutional abuse; negative impacts on future life chances; negative impacts of institutional abuse are exacerbated by numerous factors; protective factors reduced negative impacts; psychological intervention is useful for survivors; positive and negative impacts of disclosure – the response of others as important; and keep impacts individualised.

The need for an individualised approach when working with those reporting institutional abuse was a salient finding.

Institutional abuse is known to result in several negative impacts, although research into this area is limited with a need to better understand what may protect or exacerbate impacts.

The paper aims to (1) explore the positive and negative sociocultural, economic, and environmental impacts on satisfaction, and behavioral intentions; and (2) examine the changes in relationships among event impacts, satisfaction and behavioral intentions of host city residents before and after a major sporting event.

We used panel data to estimate how resident responses change over time. The data were collected three months before (N before = 266) and three months after (N after = 266) the Nanjing Youth Olympic Games. Data were analyzed by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), structural equation modeling (SEM) and invariance tests.

A significant relationship exists between negative and positive perceived sociocultural, economic, and environmental impacts, satisfaction and behavioral intentions. In addition, findings suggest that the effect of the sociocultural impacts on satisfaction and of satisfaction on behavioral intentions strengthened after the event. The relationship between positive environmental impacts and satisfaction was reduced across the two points in time. Our results indicate that residents’ assessment regarding the sporting event partially changed over the whole six-month course of the study.

This study differs from most recent research in that it examines the sociocultural, economic, and environmental event impacts in modeling residents’ satisfaction and testing the influence of negative event impacts on residents’ satisfaction and behavioral intentions. The current study contributes to the literature by emphasizing the changes that occur regarding the relationships among event impacts, satisfaction and behavioral intentions across the same respondents over time.

Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) is a controversial bill passed by the State of Indiana and signed into law in March 2015. The purpose of this paper is to look into whether there is empirical evidence that the political shock of RFRA had a negative empirical impact upon the hotel industry in Indiana’s major city, Indianapolis, and investigate how DMOs and other organizations in the tourism and hospitality industry worked in ways to counteract the threat of a great deal of loss of business caused by the national furor caused by the passing of the original bill in March 2015.

To fully examine the impact of RFRA on hospitality business in Indiana, secondary data were used in this study. The researchers used the Trend Market report created by Smith Travel Research (STR) (2016b) with a focus on the greater Indianapolis area, which include Indianapolis South East, Indianapolis Central Business District, Indianapolis Airport/Speedway, Indianapolis North Loop, and Indianapolis small towns. In the Trend Market report, hotel operation performance results are listed including occupancy percentage, average daily rate, revenue per available room, supply, demand, and revenue.

The findings from this investigation illustrate that there is no empirical reason to believe that the political shock of the RFRA controversy in Indiana in 2015 had a meaningful impact upon the hospitality and tourism industry in Indianapolis, despite concerns that it would make a big and negative impact upon the industry. While event planners may have a negative perception of the city of Indianapolis and the state, these perceptions do not seem to be enough to make a difference in terms of impacting upon the hospitality industry in Indianapolis.

There are lessons that could be learned from this, as many states in the USA continue to pass similar laws to RFRA, laws that are perceived as being problematic for those in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. The most noteworthy lesson is that the passing of laws that seem to threaten people of the LGBT community will bring a national response and will likely be accompanied with threats that are economic in nature. There is a great deal of evidence to show that passing any legislation that may be interpreted as infringing upon the rights of members of the LGBT community will result in substantial responses that may be negative in nature.

This study aims to show the impact of direct and indirect customers’ negatively valenced influencing behavior (NVIB) on other actors in online social networks.

Four experiments were conducted in an online review setting that encompasses both restaurant and hotel reviews. The first study compares the impact of direct and indirect NVIB. The second, third and fourth studies measure this impact moderated by aggregate ratings, the volume of positive reviews and managerial responses.

Drawing on recent literature of customer engagement behavior, online reviews and social influence theory, this paper provides the first empirical results of the impact of direct and indirect NVIB, revealing the significant difference in their impact and the moderating role of the aggregate ratings, number of positive reviews and managerial responses on the cause-effect relationship between direct and indirect NVIB and other actors’ attitudes and behavioral intentions toward service providers.

TripAdvisor reviews were selected for the reason of appropriateness rather than representativeness, using two service providers, hotels and restaurants.

This paper provides managers with new insights, which capture not only what customers say about service providers but also the impact of how they say it, suggesting that managers move beyond framing NVIB in generalized terms to considering the differences in the impact of its direct and indirect facets.

This paper is the first to provide empirical results about the significant difference in the impact of direct and indirect NVIB on other actors’ attitudes and behavioral intentions toward service providers, moderated by different heuristics, namely, ratings, volume of positive reviews and managerial responses.

This paper investigates the dynamics between state affect and trusting cognitive beliefs on post-adoptive information technology (IT) use behaviors in the form of intention to explore and deep structure usage. That state affect can influence behaviors is recognized in practice. In fact, some studies examine the impact of affective constructs, but the way state affect impacts how individuals use IT remains largely unexplored. The authors theorize that state affect, in the form of positive and negative affect, will influence trusting cognitive beliefs regarding an IT artifact (in terms of perceived helpfulness, capability and reliability) and, more importantly, directly influence intention to explore and deep structure usage.

The authors test the model using a sample of 357 IT users. Survey items were derived from established measures, and the data were analyzed using structural equation modeling.

Results of this study suggest that positive affect and negative affect impact trusting cognitive beliefs. Trusting cognitive beliefs positively impact intention to explore with an IT and deep structure usage of an IT. Even in the presence of trusting beliefs, though, positive affect directly impacts intention to explore. Positive affect and negative affect both also have various indirect, mediated effects on intention to explore and deep structure usage.

In order to maximize value from workplace IT, the results suggest managers foster an authentic, positive work environment in order to harness or redirect employees' emotional energies.

The aim of this study is to examine the impact of abusive supervision on employees' emotional and work-related outcomes, using a theoretical framework that integrates affective events theory (AET) and self-determination theory (SDT). The research sought to explore the effects of abusive supervision on subordinates' positive and negative affect, and the subsequent impact on customer orientation and life satisfaction.

The data for this study were collected cross-sectionally through a structured questionnaire completed by employees who have experienced abusive supervision in their current or previous jobs. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the data.

The results indicated that when subordinates experienced abusive supervision, they reported lower levels of positive affect and higher levels of negative affect. These emotions, in turn, impacted their customer orientation and life satisfaction. Positive affect was found to positively influence both customer orientation and life satisfaction, while negative affect had a negative effect on life satisfaction. Surprisingly, customer orientation was positively impacted by negative affect.

Therefore, the findings of this study suggest that positive and negative affects mediate the relationship between abusive supervision and life satisfaction, but not with customer orientation. This study advances prior research by linking the impact of an abusive supervisor to employees' customer behavior and life satisfaction, using positive and negative affects as mediators, and building upon the theories of AET and SDT.