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The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of symbolic product information (symbolic product design) on consumers’ perceived brand evaluations. In an experimental setting, the authors consider as key factors the congruence between symbolic product design and product category, the level of product involvement as well as brand strength.

In an experiment of 490 participants, consumers are confronted to different symbolic product designs connotations. Based on the cognitive process model “SARA” (selective activation, reconstruction and anchoring), the authors examined how symbolic product design associations are used as heuristics in the working memory when making brand judgement.

The results show that product design associations are used in consumers’ information processing as anchor for brand evaluations. This effect is stronger if symbolic design associations are incongruent to the product category because of consumers’ deeper elaboration process. Furthermore, the impact of symbolic product design is higher for weak compared to strong brands.

This research supports the cognitive process model “SARA” being an appropriate foundation explaining the effects of symbolic product design. Further research should extend this experiment, using a field study in a more realistic setting and/or a choice situation between different alternative product designs at the point of sale. Furthermore, the consumers’ elaboration process should be manipulated differently, e.g. in a mental load condition.

Symbolic product design is important to enhance brand association networks in the consumers’ mind, particularly if the brand is weak. Marketers should use incongruent symbolic product information to differentiate from competitors who use “stereotype” product designs.

Research about product design in the marketing discipline is still limited. The authors analyse the impact of symbolic product design on brand evaluations in an experimental setting of 490 respondents in four product categories. The findings support that consumers use product design as heuristics to evaluate brands.

This paper aims to investigate the influence of map design characteristics on users’ cognitive load and search performance. Two design conditions (symbolic vs non-symbolic) were used to evaluate users’ ability to locate a place of interest.

A total of 19 students (10 male and 9 female, 20-23 years old) participated in this study. The time required for subjects to find a place in the two conditions was used to estimate their searching performance. An electroencephalogram (EEG) device was used to examine students’ cognitive load using event-related desynchronization percentages of alpha, beta and theta brain wave rhythms.

The results showed that subjects needed more time to find a place in the non-symbolic condition than the symbolic condition. The EEG data, however, revealed that users experienced higher cognitive load when searching for a place in the symbolic condition. The authors found that the design characteristics of the map significantly influenced users’ brain activity, thus impacting their search performance.

Outcomes from this study can be used by cartographic designers and scholars to understand how certain design characteristics can trigger cognitive activity to improve users' searching experience and efficiency.

Value co-creation is known to increase innovation, but it can backfire under certain conditions. The purpose of this study is to investigate co-creation activities for their effects on consumer perceptions of symbolic designs and to investigate the mediation effect of psychological distance and the moderation effect of peer feedback.

Three studies were designed by using a survey (Study 1) and two controlled laboratory experiments (Study 2 and 3). Study 1 had a sample size of 160 respondents and examined whether innovative ideas and behavior intensity had different impact on symbolic design. Study 2 had a sample size of 204 respondents and verified the interaction effect between innovativeness and intensity and to show that psychological distance is the underlying internal mechanism. Study 3 examined peer feedback as a critical moderator by using a sample of 235 participants.

Results show that idea innovativeness positively influences perceptions of symbolic design, while behavior intensity has a negative influence. The studies verify that innovativeness interacts with intensity to affect perceptions of symbolic design. Psychological distance explains why it is difficult to co-create luxury goods. Peer feedback is revealed to be a new moderator.

This research uniquely develops an extensive theory-based conceptual model and highlights two dimensions of value co-creation that interact with product design. The article emphasizes the theoretical and practical importance of studying both direct and indirect moderating effects.

The objective of this paper is to develop a better understanding of brand engagement by examining two of its antecedents: design benefits and consumer emotions. The authors explore the relationship between design and brand engagement and advance a model with emotional responses as mediator.

This paper integrates a range of theoretical works across design and marketing, including concepts of product design, types of design benefits, brand engagement, and brand communities.

The authors propose a conceptual model where emotional arousal, which differs across design benefits, mediates the relationship between design benefits and brand engagement. Brand engagement intensifies with emotional arousal as design benefits change from functional, to hedonic, to symbolic.

The conceptual model proposed in this paper can have significant applications in the areas of product design, branding strategies, and brand communications. However, it has not been tested empirically.

The resulting model improves understanding of how marketers can use design to elicit different forms of brand engagement. Implications for marketers include planning brand engagement outcomes early in the product or service development process; involving consumers in that process, clearly communicating the benefits of the design; and supporting venues where brand engagement of different types can be practiced.

Brand engagement is unique brand-related behavior that has received limited attention in the design and marketing literatures. The proposed model offers a look at brand engagement from a design perspective, while emphasizing the role of consumers' emotional responses to design benefits.

The purpose of this paper is to propose an approach for aircraft taking off control in wind shear, which is a challenging issue for an aircraft.

Aircraft control in wind shear needs an anti-jamming controller. Symbolic control is an effective and adaptive method for complex dynamic system. In this paper, wind shear flight control laws are developed for the dynamics of a B-747 aircraft by using symbolic control. The problem of efficiently steering dynamical systems with disturbance by using symbolic control is considered, and theoretical analysis on the proposed approach is also conducted. The implementation of an altitude scheduling strategy with symbolic controller makes it possible for aircraft to escape serious wind shear.

This work improved symbolic control algorithm so that it can be applied to aircraft control problem. A series of comparative experimental results with proportional-integral-derivative controller demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed approach.

The symbolic control method developed in this paper can be easily applied to another aircraft control problems.

An improved symbolic control method is proposed for solving aircraft taking off problem in wind shear.

Considers the concept of symbolic interactionism within the context of consumer behaviour. Examines the implications for market strategy through segmentation variables, consumer and group characteristics, and general exemplary concepts. Surmises that marketers can create a product′s symbolic image, and should manage that image through a clear and consistent marketing program.

Notes how many products are purchased due to their symbolic significance to important reference groups. Discusses the concept of symbolic interactionism and considers this with regard to consumerbehaviour. Suggests that marketing practitioners can develop symbolic relevance via marketing strategy. Makes recommendations for target market definition and marketing mix options.

This study aims to provide a holistic understanding of how visual storytelling influences the objective and subjective cognitive responses of consumers, namely objective aesthetic impression and subjective aesthetic association, and aesthetic judgments in response to differing levels of novelty in design innovations.

A mixed-factorial experimental study manipulating the novelty of chair designs (moderate/high) and visual design stories (present/absent) was conducted among 263 female US consumers to test the proposed research model.

With respect to the main effects of novelty and visual design stories, consumers had more positive cognitive responses and aesthetic judgments to: product designs with moderate (vs high) novelty; and products with visual design stories than without. A significant interaction effect uncovered that visual design stories particularly aided products with high (vs moderate) design novelty with respect to objective aesthetic impressions. Examination of the structural relationships between the variables revealed that subjective aesthetic associations mediate the relationship between objective aesthetic impressions and aesthetic judgments.

To mitigate risk in radical design innovations, marketers should use visual storytelling to communicate product form associations and enable consumers to successfully decode the meaning of novel designs during initial encounters.

By examining a holistic model involving both perceptual and conceptual product concepts, this study fills a critical research void to develop insightful implications on bridging the gap between novel product designs and consumer understanding.

This paper aims to examine how visual elements used in packaging design relate to diasporic consumer identity and influence aesthetic appreciation.

Drawing on social identity theory, research on aesthetic principles and using a mixed methods approach, two studies are conducted. Study 1 involves a qualitative exploration of the nature of diasporic consumer identity and its relation with visual design in packaging. Study 2 involves quantitative testing and calibration of this relationship and its subsequent influence on aesthetic appreciation.

Diasporic consumers from the Middle East appreciate hybrid visual designs and prefer packaging that strikes an optimum balance of visual elements (colour, shapes, patterns) from the heritage aspects of their ancestral homeland and more contemporary aspects from their culture of living. Preference for balance elicits an overall positive diasporic identity feeling that mediates the relationship with aesthetic appreciation of visual design in packaging.

These findings offer new knowledge about the role of visual design in packaging in delivering symbolic value to diasporic consumers, evidencing how diasporic consumers’ dual identities shape aesthetic appreciation and preferences for hybrid visual designs.

Provides marketing practitioners and packaging designers with a concise and contextual directive for creating visual designs that appeal to a growing segment of diasporic consumers.

This research draws on social identity theory to uncover an aesthetic cultural precept – heritage, yet contemporary – that can inform the development of packaging designs targeting diasporic consumers.

The purpose of this study was to explore the determinant factors of the adaptive clothing market for disabled customers and to identify the influential elements in the fashion industry, with the aim of establishing the influential factors that drive the adaptive apparel business in the local market. The study developed a path model of relationships incorporating the disabled consumer background, consumer purchase intention and demand and elements of the fashion industry. This model can be used as a reference for fashion practitioners.

A quantitative approach was adopted for this empirical study. A survey was designed to investigate the connections between the consumer-related and industry-related variables. A set of measurements was developed and validated for the survey. The data were collected from a sample of 175 local wheelchair users, with a response rate of approximately 6.6 per cent. The data were analysed using SmartPLS, and structural equation model analysis was applied to identify the relationships between the variables.

The results of this study demonstrated that consumer purchase intention for adaptive apparel was affected closely by environmental factors, and consumer demand was significantly related to industry aspects including the product complexity and the business operations along with all elements of the industrial practice. The findings also revealed that the disability level was related to the users' purchase intentions, but the financial capability of the disabled consumers did not affect the intention to purchase adaptive clothes products. These results could suggest that economic issues are not the consumer's prior concern when purchasing apparel, but rather the disability condition. Those who demand adaptive apparel require advanced performance levels of product design, technology application and service.

The study originated from the situation that the Hong Kong fashion market lacks an adaptive market specifically for the minority group of disabled consumers. Why such a niche market has not been developed is unclear to the practitioners. It is necessary to investigate from both consumer-related and industry-related factors. Specifically, the research explored the consumer background and industry elements to identify the factors that influence disabled consumers to purchase apparel, in order to inform fashion practitioners who are interested in the niche market of disabled consumers in Hong Kong. It is anticipated that the determinants of adaptive market development can be extended to wider areas of the Chinese or other Asian markets.