Summaries of prescribed articles of previous years for Economic and Consumer Psychology - UL

Summaries of prescribed articles of previous years for the course Economic and Consumer Psychology at the University of Leiden

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Still preoccupied with 1995: The need to belong and preference for nostalgic products - Loveland et al. (2010) - Article

Still preoccupied with 1995: The need to belong and preference for nostalgic products - Loveland et al. (2010) - Article

What is nostalgia?

The word nostalgia is based on two Greek words, namely ‘nostos’ (“return to one´s native land”) and ´algos´ (“pain, suffering, grief”). Only during the twentieth century the term began to take on both its positive and negative associations. It is now defined as a preference towards objects that were more common when one was younger. In the current research nostalgia is limited to the preference for things, instead of people and places as well. The preferences are often shaped by objects that were popular in one´s youth and they persist throughout one´s life.

How does nostalgia relate to product production?

Many consumers are interested in products that generate favorable childhood memories. Early experiences help shape preferences and consumption decisions throughout an individual´s life. There has been a resurgence of toys and characters that used to be popular years ago. Marketers count on the strong pull of nostalgia from parents to sell their products.

How does the need to belong drive human behavior?

Human beings are very social and experience a social drive to feel socially connected. Forming and maintaining emotional bonds with others drive a variety of human behaviors. Individuals are constantly monitoring how others respond to their actions and make judgements about their rejection or exclusion. When they experience rejection or exclusion, they experience lower levels of belongingness and self-esteem. That often leads to behaviors that are aimed at restoring those feelings of belongingness.

What is the sociometer hypothesis?

The sociometer theory is a theory of self-esteem from an evolutionary psychological perspective which proposes that self-esteem is a sociometer (or gauge) of interpersonal relationships. Self-esteem is a measure of effectiveness in social relations and interactions that monitors acceptance and/or rejection from others. Alarming the sociometer causes behavior that restores the balance by restoring belongingness and an individual’s selfworth.

How can the goal to belong be activated?

The goal to belong can be activated in several threatening and nonthreatening ways. Research indicates that especially negative affect increases feelings of nostalgia (think of loneliness, threat of mortality, and ostracism). When people feel that they have been rejected, they experience a drop in feelings of belongingness, which results in a need to reconnect and restore adequate levels of belonging. The need to belong can also be activated in non-threatening manners, for example through the activation of the interdependent self.

Why does the independent self not activate the goal to belong?

The independent self refers to aspects of the self that make a person stand out from others. It is more concerned with individual self-efficacy and the need to feel connected is not a primary focus. When the independent self is active, we would not expect the social connection provided by nostalgic products to provide any additional value to consumers.

Why does the interdependent self activate the goal to belong?

The interdependent self refers to aspects of the self in connection with others (such as significant others and social groups). The interdependent self is more concerned with belonging and fitting in, and this is where the need to connect to others becomes most relevant. When the interdependent self is activated, consumers will feel a heightened need to belong, which will lead them to seek out means to enhance their sense of social belonging. Nostalgic products offer a means by which people can achieve this sense of belonging.

How is the need to belong related to nostalgia?

The need to belong is a basic driver of human behavior. It is possible that people can satisfy the need to belong through the consumption of nostalgic products. When the goal of belonging is activated, individuals consistently show an increased preference for nostalgic products. Nostalgic recollections often involve interactions with close others. Consuming formerly popular brands can help people feel reconnected with important people from their past with whom they consumed those brands.

How does the need to belong relate to product consumption?

People have a very strong drive to make and maintain lasting and positive interpersonal relationships. They may try to achieve these through nostalgic product consumption. Through consumption of music, movies, or other products, people may feel closer to their former friends, reconnect with their pasts and social communities. The nostalgic products help create a tangible link to the past by providing a point of focus for nostalgic thoughts.

What can be concluded of the results of the current research?

  • Individuals who have an active goal to belong express a stronger preference for nostalgic products than individuals who do not have an active goal to belong.
  • Individuals who have are socially excluded express a stronger preference for nostalgic products compared to individuals who are not socially excluded.
  • The need to belong mediates the relationship between social exclusion and preference for nostalgic products.
  • Individuals express a stronger preference for nostalgic products when the interdependent, as opposed to the independent, self is activated.
  • The need to belong mediates the relationship between the activated self and preference for nostalgic products.
  • The consumption of nostalgic products reduces or eliminates the need to belong for individuals for whom the need to belong has been activated. Only exposure to or selection of nostalgic products is not enough to bolster feelings of belongingness. Individuals must actually consume the nostalgic products in order to satisfy the belongingness goal.
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Fundamental motives: How evolutionary needs influence consumer behavior - Griskevicius & Kenrick (2013) - Article

Fundamental motives: How evolutionary needs influence consumer behavior - Griskevicius & Kenrick (2013) - Article

How can studying evolutionary needs inform us about consumer behavior?

Understanding evolutionary needs can provide insight into consumer preferences and decision processes. The decisions made by modern consumers are strongly connected to the same motivations that drove our ancestor´s choices about every day decisions. How different people allocate their limited resources in different circumstances can inform us about which needs they prioritize.

What is the evolutionary perspective?

An evolutionary perspective believes that all living organisms evolved to behave in ways that give those organisms an evolutionary advantage. This implies that modern humans have psychological mechanisms that help them to process information and make decisions in ways that have enabled our ancestors to survive, thrive, and replicate. Cognition, motivation, and behavior are all intertwined and part of an adaptive system designed to solve recurrent ancestral problems. 

What is the difference between proximate and ultimate motives?

A distinction needs to be made between proximate and ultimate motives when looking at the function and causes of behavior. Proximate motives relate to up-close and immediately present influences (to what people are currently feeling and thinking). They only tell part of the story, but don´t address the deeper question of why. Ultimate explanations focus on its evolutionary function. For example, eating a pizza tastes good and relieves hunger (proximate motive), but also salty and fatty foods help us survive (ultimate motive). Proximate and ultimate motives can be closely connected, but most of the time the connection is not that clear. Even though we are not always aware of our ultimate motives, the evolutionary perspective implies that there are always proximate and ultimate causes for our behavior.

What is the Fundamental Motives Framework?

The Fundamental Motives Framework maintains that humans have inherited psychological adaptations for solving a set of specific ancestral social challenges. These fundamental challenges are evading physical harm, avoiding disease, making friends, attaining status, acquiring a mate, keeping that mate, and caring for family. These challenges are considered fundamental because of the important implications they have had for reproductive fitness and human evolution. Each challenge is qualitatively different. A good solution to one of the challenges may be incompatible with the solution of another problem. Humans possess different psychological systems for managing the different evolutionary challenges.

Which three tenets of the framework can be identified?

The implications of fundamental motives for consumption and choice can be summarized in these three tenets:

  • A fundamental motive can be activated by external (our environment) or internal (our biology) cues. For example, the mate acquisition system can be activated by the physical presence of a suitable partner (external), or by hormonal fluctuations (internal).
  • The currently active fundamental motive shapes preferences. For example, when the self-protection system is activated it can motivate us to conform to the norm and stick with the group, but when the mate-acquisition system is activated we may want to stand out from the group and be different.
  • The currently active motive guides decision processes. Fundamental motives can alter preferences, but also decision-making processes (how we go about maximizing our preferences).

What are the fundamental motives, their triggers, and examples of behavioral tendencies?

What is the evolutionary motive of self-protection?

The motive of self-protection pertains to evade physical danger to remain safe. Cues that can trigger this system are angry faces or expressions, darkness and loud noises, and interacting with threatening people. The activation of this system may lead to behaviors such as increased aversion to losses, increased tendency to conform and preference for the status quo, and decreased risk-seeking.

What is the evolutionary motive of disease avoidance?

This motive refers to avoid infections and staying healthy. People have evolved a psychological behavioral immune system that helps avoid infection through our behaviors. Cues that can trigger the disease-avoidance system are coughing, sneezing, bad smells, dirtiness, and interacting with sick people. It can cause people to become more introverted, to avoid used and second-hand products, and to seek clean products, and eat familiar foods.

What is the evolutionary motive of affiliation?

This motive is about forming and maintaining cooperative alliances. In order to survive successfully people needed to form coalitions and get along with other people. Having friends provides a natural insurance against starvation and difficult times. Cues that can activate this system are social rejection, loneliness, and concerns about fairness. It can cause people to be susceptible to gossip, and to seek reviews from others.

What is the evolutionary motive of status?

The evolutionary motive of status points to gaining and maintaining respect and prestige. Cues that can trigger this system are threats of competition and success, prestigious people, and interacting with rivals. When this system is activated it causes people to want to acquire products that signal prestige and status, and increase their prosocial choices. Another route to achieving status is through dominance and an activated status motive can increase aggressive behavior. However, status in groups can also be enhanced through self-sacrifice and can lead to behaviors of competitive altruism.

What is the evolutionary motive of mate acquisition?

This motive pertains to acquiring a desirable romantic partner. Cues that can trigger this system are images or products of desirable members of the opposite sex, romantic stories, and interactions with potential mates. When this system is activated it can cause increased male impulsivity, risk-taking, conspicuous consumption, and increased public altruism by females (it leads people to want to be noticed).

What is the evolutionary motive of mate retention?

This motive refers to fostering a long-term mating bond. This system can be activated by anniversaries, reminiscing old times, and interacting with the spouse. It may cause people to buy gifts for their partners, and for men and women to pay attention to other men´s and women´s statuses. It involves behaviors designed to maintain current relationships, as well as behaviors to manage threats of potential romantic competitors.

What is the evolutionary motive of kin care?

This motive causes people to want to invest in and care for family and kin. It can be triggered by vulnerable babies and children, suffering family members, and interactions with family members. It causes people to have increased trust in others, and also increases nurturance.

Which key factors influence people´s motives?

All humans possess the same evolutionary motives, but the strengths of the motives differ across individuals. The factors that influence the strengths of the motives are:

  • Life stage. People go through three stages in life, namely the somatic growth stage (from birth to puberty), the mating stage (from puberty until parenthood), and the parenting stage (parenthood and grand-parenthood). Different motivational systems start working at different life stages, because each life stage is associated with solving different evolutionary challenges.
  • Biological sex. Many behavioral sex differences are rooted in the biological sex differences of minimum parental investment, as females are required to invest more biologically than males.
  • Individual differences in life history strategy. Life history strategies vary on a fast-slow continuum. Fast and slow strategists systematically differ in their psychological orientations and the activation of specific fundamental motives may produce different responses for the individuals. Fast strategists start puberty earlier, have sex earlier, and have more sexual partners. Slow strategists start puberty later, have sex later, and have fewer sexual partners.
  • Culture. Preferences and behavior are a product of the interaction of evolved psychological mechanisms and requisite cultural inputs. Culture may influence the threshold at which the fundamental motives will be activated and also in what way.
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The influence of selective attention and inattention to products on subsequent choice - Janiszewski et al. (2012) - Article

The influence of selective attention and inattention to products on subsequent choice - Janiszewski et al. (2012) - Article

How does the processing fluency literature differ from previous models on consumer choices?

Many models, such as the decision heuristics and the non-compensatory choice model, assume that products are valued for the benefits they provide. The processing fluency literature challenges this fundamental assumption. It shows that the ease of processing an option can influence the preference for an option independent of the benefits the option provides. There may be other cognitive processes that contribute to preference formation, such as attentional processes.

What is the biased competition model?

The biased competition model is a model of selective attention. Selective attention involves both the enhanced perception of attended material and the degraded perception of unattended material. According to this model, attention localizes to certain stimuli in a display because of an increased/decreased firing rate of the visual cortex neurons that are associated with the features of the target/non-target stimulus. The entire stimuli are more likely to be repeatedly selected/neglected for attention, as the feature-based screening processes generalize from the individual features of a stimulus to the other features of a stimulus. Because of this, selective (in)attention to a product the first time, can influence attention at the second time of viewing. The increased attention to a product during choice will increase/decrease the likelihood that it is chosen.

What is the stage model of information processing?

The stage model of information processing specifies a sequence of three stages information goes through to become encoded in long-term memory, namely sensory memory, short-term/working memory, and long-term memory. It conceptualizes attention as a support activity for higher-order information processing executed in working memory. Attention is used to select information that is necessary in following judgements. Marketers thus strive to control consumer attention in shopping environments, as they assume that increased attention to a product encourages consumers to buy it.  

What is the paintbrush metaphor with regards to attentional processes?

Visual attention can be thought of as relying on a collection of paintbrushes (neurons) that are trying to paint stimuli (the environment) on a canvas (the visual cortex). Perceptual processes can then interpret the canvas. When the visual environment is complex, there aren´t enough paintbrushes to paint everything in detail. In that case, either the whole environment can be painted with few details, or a certain area can be painted with a lot of detail. Neural excitation is when the attention to detail is increased in certain areas, while neural inhibition occurs in the other areas.

What are perceptual feedback connections?

Perceptual feedback connections are a method of understanding how decisions are made about adding and removing detail from the environment. Neurons can be specialized to react to specific stimuli characteristics (like color and shape). Perceptual feedback connections encourage increases in the speed of some of the neurons that are creating the picture, while decreasing the speed of the neurons that are painting the other parts of the picture.

What is attentional blindness?

Attentional blindness is a perceptual phenomenon in which people fail to see irrelevant information when attending to competing information in the same scene.

What is the biased competition model of attention?

According to this model attention localizes to certain objects in a display via an increased/decreased firing rate of visual cortex neurons that are associated with the characteristics of the target/non-target stimulus. The model focuses on situations where there are two or more items in a visual display. When there are two or more items, neural responses to selectively attended/unattended items are enhanced/inhibited. The model views selective attention as a consequence of the neural excitation corresponding to information in a target location and neural inhibition corresponding to information in other locations. This model makes a few assumptions:

  • The visual cortex has limits on the amount of information it can process at any instant. The enhancement/inhibition of neurons is an evolutionary adaption that helps us to aim our attention to what is most important.
  • There are three sources of influence on neural firing rates: experience, top-down goal directedness, and bottom-up environmental cues.
  • The effects of neural enhancement/inhibition are stronger when there is more visual competition, because isolating the perception of a single item becomes more difficult. There is more visual competition when items are closer together, or when they are perceived using the same neurons.
  • Neural enhancement/inhibition can be learned by the attentional system.

What are the important results of the current research?

The main conclusion is that the act of selectively attending to or neglecting an alternative influences the subsequent choices. This conclusion is supported by the following results:

  • The results indicate that excitatory and inhibitory attentional processes contribute to a mere selection and a mere neglect effect. The mere selection effect is the preference for the designated alternative (because prior selective attention to the alternative increased the preference for it). The mere neglect effect refers to the lack of preference for the neglected alternative (because prior inattention to the alternative decreased the preference for it).
  • Identifying the location of a designated alternative on a two-item search screen increased the likelihood the alternative would be chosen at a later time. Alternatives that were not identified in the search task were less likely to be chosen at a later time.
  • The mere selection/mere neglect effects became stronger as the difficulty of the initial location identification task increased.
  • The mere selection/mere neglect effects became stronger with repeated selective attention/inattention, but not with a spaced presentation schedule.
  • The mere selection effect is contingent on a location identification task that includes more than one option. This means that not only attention, but selective attention is necessary for the effect.
  • The mere selection/mere neglect effects get stronger when the location identification task varies targets/distracters across contexts.
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The effectiveness of brand placements in the movies: Levels of placements, explicit and implicit memory, and brand-choice behavior - Yang & Roskos-Ewoldsen (2007) - Article

The effectiveness of brand placements in the movies: Levels of placements, explicit and implicit memory, and brand-choice behavior - Yang & Roskos-Ewoldsen (2007) - Article

What is brand placement?

Brand placement can be defined as the paid inclusion of branded products or brand identifiers, through audio and/or visual means, within mass media programming. It is mostly used to familiarize people with brands and motivate them to buy the products. Brand placement is perceived as an effective mechanism for reaching audiences and can be seen in for example movies, primetime TV programs, video games, and novels. The role of brand placement has shifted from being a background prop to being an intrinsic part of the movie.

What are the advantages of brand placement?

  • It overcomes the problem of zapping. People are unlikely to change the channel or leave the room when a brand appears in a movie, whereas in a commercial it is very likely that they do.
  • It involves an implicit endorsement by the celebrity that is using the brand, which may have a slight influence on people´s attitude towards the brand.
  • It has a longer life span than normal advertisements.
  • Audiences like brand placements, because they improve the realism of the movies and TV series.
  • It allows advertisers to target very specific audiences, as the characteristics of the public that views the movie are well understood.

What does research say about the effectiveness of brand placement?

Generally research has shown that memory is improved for a brand that is placed within a movie, compared with the same brand that is not placed within a movie. However, some of the results varied, and researchers also started looking at the factors that moderate the effect of brand placement on brand memory.

What is the difference between high plot placement and low plot placement?

High plot placement refers to the brand placement that plays a major role in the story line or contributes to a character. Low plot placement refers to background placement. The recognition rate for products with high plot visual placement is higher than recognition for products of low plot visual placement.

What is a situation model?

What viewers do cognitively with brand placement depends among other things on the implications of the information for comprehending the movie. Comprehension involves the construction of situation models. A situation model is a dynamic mental representation of a specific story or episode that has specific temporal and spatial constraints.

What is the landscape model?

The landscape model is a specific model of how situation models are constructed during comprehension. It focuses on how the audience processes the different levels of brand placement. Greater levels of semantic activation of a particular concept result in greater explicit memory for that concept. It assumes that not all the information that is activated in memory is activated at the same level. Because of limited attentional resources, information that is central to the scene is activated at the highest level. Concepts that are necessary for the scene to make sense (such as enablers) are at the next level of activation. Then follow other objects that are visually salient (such as objects used by the character, but not central to the story), and finally other information within the scene and background information. The greater the activation of the brand while viewing the movie, the greater the likelihood that it will be part of the situation model and will be remembered.

What is the importance of implicit memory?

Most previous research has used explicit measures of memory, such as recall or recognition. Explicit memory happens when people intentionally and consciously try to remember. Implicit memory effects occur without intentional conscious recollection. Brands are often part of the background in a scene and do not receive the same level of processing as brands in the foreground. Research has indicated that implicit memory seems to survive longer than explicit memory and may influence purchase decisions.

What does the current research conclude about the landscape model?

  • Participants recognized the brand more when the brand was used by the main character or when the brand was integral to the story, more so than when the brand was featured in the background. There was however no difference in recognition memory between where the brand was used by the character and the condition in which it was related to the unfolding of the story.
  • The mere presence of the brand in the movie improved participants´ implicit memory for the products. Implicit memory is not influenced by how the memory items are originally processed, unlike explicit memory that is driven by semantic processing. It shows that explicit and implicit measures of memory are sensitive to different influences of brand placements on memory.
  • Participants who saw the target brand in the movie were more likely to choose that brand compared to the participants who did not see the brand in the movie. The levels of brand placements within the movie did not influence participants´ implicit choice behavior. Brand placement influenced the choice behavior also after controlling for participants´ brand evaluation.
  • If the purpose of brand placement is to gain recognition of the brand, the best method is to have the brand be used by the main character or play a role in the unfolding story. Placing the brand in the movie is adequate for increasing viewers´ familiarity with the brand, regardless of the level of placement.
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I am what I do, not what I have: The differential centrality of experiential and material purchases to the self - Carter & Gilovich (2012) - Article

I am what I do, not what I have: The differential centrality of experiential and material purchases to the self - Carter & Gilovich (2012) - Article

Why are experiences closer connected to the self than material possessions?

Research has shown that experiences constitute a bigger part of our sense of self than our material possessions. This is because our possessions, no matter how many we have of them, remain physically outside of our ´self´, whereas experiences live on in our memories and are part of our ´stories´. As they become parts of our autobiography, they become us.

How does declarative memory relate to our sense of self?

Declarative memory consists of episodic and semantic memory. Semantic memory is our storage of general knowledge about the world and where we ´summarize´ our sense of self (e.g. “I am a good cook”). Episodic memory consists of our first-hand recollections of experiences that confirm the summaries we have about ourselves (e.g. “Last Christmas I made a fantastic dinner for the family”). It is through our memories that we create our sense of self. Once we have lived an experience, it persists as an episodic memory that is autobiographical by nature and creates our self-concept. Someone´s memories of a possession (or the use of possessions as an extended self) do also connect material possessions to the self, but to a much lesser degree.

Why do we have to distinguish between material and materialistic purchases?

Material purchases are the tangible objects purchased with the goal of ownership. Materialistic purchases are purchases made with the intent of signaling wealth or status, either to oneself or others. Materialistic people tend to make materialistic purchases and derive much of their happiness from signaling their wealth. They often measure their success by their wealth and define themselves and others based on their purchases, status, and wealth. There are big differences in people´s interest in materialistic consumption. It is possible that these personality differences moderate the tendency for people´s experiences to constitute a bigger part of their self-image.

Can an experience be materialistic?

An experience only becomes materialistic when the additional utility one derives from the extra expense is less about the experience itself, and more about the signal it sends. Material possessions often serve the materialistic purpose better than experiences, because they are more visible and are better at signaling someone´s status and prosperity.

How does the closer connection to the self improve the satisfaction of experiences?

Experiences become especially satisfying as a result of their closer connection to the self. The first reason for that is due to the self-serving bias. It is human nature to evaluate oneself more positively, and evaluating the quality of one´s experiences is like evaluating aspects of oneself. The second reason is that the subjective nature of experiences makes it easier to find positive dimensions of evaluation. The ambiguity of experiences creates the possibility of different interpretations, whereas that is difficult of a material possession that is not good. The last reason is that accomplishing a higher order goal usually takes on special importance and is tied even closer to our sense of self. Because experiences are relatively abstract, they are more likely than possessions to be construed at a high level.

What main conclusions can be drawn with regards to the connectedness of experiences and material possessions to the self?

  • People consider their experiential purchases to be closer to their sense of self than their material purchases. Even those who were very materialistic did not place their possessions closer to their self-concept than their experiences.
  • When people tell their life story, they are more likely to draw upon their experiential purchases than their material purchases.
  • People find that experiential purchases say more about their true selves and the ´selves´ of others.
  • The greater satisfaction people derive from their experiential purchases is related to their greater connection to the self.
  • People find that their experiential memories are more important to them than their material possessions, and ´losing´ one of their experiential purchases would more significantly alter their sense of self.
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Bolstering and restoring feelings of competence via the IKEA effect - Mochon et al. (2012) - Article

Bolstering and restoring feelings of competence via the IKEA effect - Mochon et al. (2012) - Article

Why is co-creation important for consumers?

Consumers are increasingly acting as co-creators of products, rather than just passive recipients. A few reasons for this preference can be identified:

  • Functional fit. By customizing a product it is more likely to meet the needs of the consumer.
  • People like having products that are unique to them.
  • People enjoy being part of the design process.

What is the IKEA-effect?

The IKEA-effect refers to people´s willingness to pay more for self-made products than for identical ones made by others. Research has shown that people tend to overvalue their own creations, even for products that are not customized, unique, or fun to build.

How does self-assembly or products contribute to the consumers´ identity?

People have a desire to signal a competent identity to themselves and others. Assisting in the production of products fulfill that need, by letting people control and shape their environments and displaying those creations to demonstrate competence. Especially when people´s feelings of competence have been threatened will they derive utility from self-assembly. Humans also have a fundamental need for effectance. Effectance refers to the ability to successfully produce desired outcomes in one´s environment. One way of accomplishing effectance is by affecting and controlling objects and possessions. In this way, consumers actively use products to signal their identities to others.

What is the self-affirmation theory and how does it relate to the IKEA-effect?

Self-affirmation theory focuses on how people adapt to information or experiences that threaten their self-concept. It argues that people strive to keep a positive view of the self, and that when they affirm one important value to the self they temporarily reduce the weight of another value. If the IKEA-effect is driven by the ability of self-made products to signal a valued identity, this effect should be reduced/eliminated if people are first allowed to affirm the self. On the other hand, if people´s sense of competence are threatened, it should increase the value they derive from self-creation and increase their motivation to participate in self-assembly.

What is the importance of the type of product being self-assembled?

With regards to competence, a distinction needs to be made between personal feelings of pride and the desire to show off a creation to others. The type of product created can say a lot about which component of competence is at work. Some products are meant to be displayed (like watches, or clothes), whereas others can be for personal use and won´t be seen by others (like a cupboard in the bedroom).

What are the main conclusions with regards to feelings of competence and self-assembly of products?

  • The competence associated with self-created products mediates the increase in value for such products relative to products created by others. This plays a critical part in the IKEA-effect.
  • Affirming consumers´ sense of self caused self-assembly of products to be less rewarding, whereas threatening consumers´ feelings of competence increased their motivation to self-assemble products in order to restore their feelings of competence.
  • Competence is both a mediator and a moderator in creating consumer interest in self-assembly and also for those efforts to be rewarding.

What are the implications of this new information?

These results can be used by marketers to maximize customer satisfaction, but also by individuals to manage their life satisfaction. For marketers, it can be good to try and involve customers in the assembly of the products because it makes the customers feel competent and happy. The risk is that customers may attribute successful assembly to their own efforts, but assembly failures to the company. With regards to individuals´ life satisfaction, feelings of productivity serve as an important goal for many people.

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Of great art and untalented artists: Effort information and the flexible construction of judgmental heuristics - Cho & Schwarz (2008) - Article

Of great art and untalented artists: Effort information and the flexible construction of judgmental heuristics - Cho & Schwarz (2008) - Article

Does good art take effort or talent?

People appreciate objects more when they know that the maker has invested a lot of time and effort in them. People assume that good work takes time and effort, so they assume that if someone has invested a lot of effort, the work will have to be good in the end. However, we cannot predict what people will infer just by knowing what information they base their judgements on. In order to make a quality assessment based on that information, they must have background knowledge that links the input to the assessment. This is where the term naive theories arises.

What is a naive theory?

A naive theory is a coherent set of knowledge and beliefs about a specific content domain, containing ontological commitments, attention to domain-specific causal principals, and appeal to unobservable entities. A first naive theory states that high-quality products require good work, which requires a lot of effort. This is also called the effort heuristic. Another possible naive theory states that talented makers need to use less effort than untalented makers to achieve the same quality. If someone uses this naive theory, the creator's perceived high talent can lead to doubts about his effort. The effect of the effort heuristic is then no longer visible and it could even lead to a lower quality assessment.

Which naive theories are confirmed by the research?

The inferences people make based on certain information depends on the naive theory they use. A first naive theory is the effort heuristic, which states that good quality requires high effort and assesses quality based on effort. However, another naive theory is that talented creators need to invest less effort than less talented creators. The existence of both naive theories was confirmed. The application of different inference rules to the same input data resulted in different judgements.

What are the implications for future research?

After priming "high stake is high value", the effort heuristic was used. When the talent theory was primed, high stakes led to lower quality ratings. So just knowing what information people base their ratings on is not enough to predict their ratings. Instead, the rules of inference that people use must be understood. These inference rules can be seen as naive theories linking input (information) to output (quality assessment).

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An investigation of the endowment effect in the context of a college housing lottery - Nash & Rosenthal (2014) - Article

An investigation of the endowment effect in the context of a college housing lottery - Nash & Rosenthal (2014) - Article

What is the endowment effect?

The endowment effect refers to the finding that people expect more compensation to give up a product or a service that they own, than they would be willing to pay to acquire the same product or service if they did not own it. Some factors can be identified that contribute to the endowment effect, namely high involvement goods, high quality good, and attractive goods. To visualize the endowment effect a distinction is made between the selling-price and the buying-price. The selling-price is the price that the person who owns the good would want to be willing to sell it. The buying-price is the price that the person who does not own the good is willing to pay in order to acquire it.

What problems does previous research have when investigating the endowment effect?

Previous studies have problems with the ecological validity. Some of the studies used goods that were not particularly meaningful to the participants. Other studies used within-participant designs, meaning that participants were both buyer and seller. These issues are addressed by using a between-participant design and by using a meaningful good (student housing). The current study looks at whether there is an endowment effect immediately after housing selection (comparing students who were given their first choice with students who were denied their first choice), and what the effect is of experience and knowledge on the endowment effect. 

What is the effect of ownership on the endowment effect?

Previous research indicates that experience enhances the endowment effect. The valuation of goods increased with the duration of the ownership. The endowment effect was mediated by participants´ feelings of ownership. The feelings of ownership were enhanced by physical possession of the good. With regards to the current experiment and student housing, the expectation is that experiencing the first choice for a while will increase the value that the sellers place on the good and that the price will rise compared to the price that they initially wanted. With regards to the buyers, it is expected that if they have a negative experience in their second-choice student housing, they will be willing to pay more for the first-choice housing, whereas if they have a positive experience in their second-choice housing, they will reduce the price they are willing to pay for the first-choice housing.

What are the main conclusions in the research of Nash and Rosenthal?

The results show a significant endowment effect at both times (right after the housing lottery, and again after two months of living in the assigned housing). The selling-price exceeded the buying-price at both times. Also, the selling-price increased over time, whereas the buying-price did not change. This can be explained by loss aversion and how it induces a reluctance to sell something (especially after having owned the good). The experience of owning the good and the familiarity it creates, impacts the aversion to loss. It creates a tendency to increase its value over the initial valuation. Contributing to the variability of possession attachment in individuals are individual attachment styles.

In what way does the type of good/service cause differences in the endowment effect?

Some goods, like the student housing, do not have a real market and a real value. When students are then asked to assign value with no limitation, they tend to overstate their selling-price and understate the buying-price, increasing the disparity. The endowment effect should thus be bigger for non-market goods. On the other hand, when the product being sold/bought has many affordable substitutes, the values of the selling-price and the buying-price are closer to each other. A final distinction can be made between hedonic goods and utilitarian goods. Hedonic goods are those whose consumption is focused on gratification. Utilitarian goods are those with a consumption focused on function. The endowment effect appears to be greater when it concerns hedonic goods.

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When celebrities count: Power distance beliefs and celebrity endorsements - Winterich et al. (2018) - Article

When celebrities count: Power distance beliefs and celebrity endorsements - Winterich et al. (2018) - Article

What are power distance beliefs?

Power distance beliefs (PDB) refers to the degree of power disparity that people in a culture expect and accept. Research indicates that PDB influences consumers´ tendencies to listen to and respect the opinions of authority figures, including celebrities as they tend to rank higher in social hierarchies.

What is celebrity endorsement?

Celebrity endorsement refers to an advertising strategy in which a famous person uses his/her social status to promote a good, service, or idea. Using celebrity endorsement has many benefits for the brands, like raising brand awareness, defining the brand image, and increasing sales. The efficacy of celebrity endorsement can be explained by source models. Source models specify the effects of source credibility and source attractiveness for communication. If a celebrity is believed to be trustworthy and believable, the consumer will more readily accept their influence and internalize the provided information. The extent to which celebrity endorsers communicate expertise and trustworthiness may differ by culture.

How can power distance beliefs moderate celebrity endorsement?

Power distance beliefs can be manifested at the national levels, at the individual level, but also be activated temporarily. It can be expected that even though PDB can exist on different levels, the effects of PDB should be conceptually consistent. In cultures with high PDB, consumers accept inequality and obey authorities (including celebrities). Consumers view celebrities as role models and may tend to internalize celebrities´ stated beliefs. In cultures with low PDB, cultures do not automatically assign authority or credibility to celebrities. Consumers tend to seek facts and evidence and do not look to celebrities for guidance. They do not view celebrities as having authority and do not attribute them more credibility than non-celebrities.

How do source expertise and trustworthiness mediate celebrity endorsement?

Source credibility refers to whether a source appears to possess expertise that is relevant to the topic and can be trusted to give an objective opinion. A credible source has positive effects on attitudes towards the advertisement, purchase intentions, and brand credibility. In the current study the focus is on expertise and trustworthiness as important characteristics of source credibility, as source credibility represents the extent to which consumers perceive information to be informative and believable. Expertise is the extent to which a communicator is perceived to be a source of valid assertions. Trustworthiness is the degree of confidence in the communicators´ intent to communicate the assertions he considers most valid.

What are the main conclusions with regards to PDB and celebrity endorsement?

  • PDB moderates the effect of celebrity endorsement on advertising evaluations and brand attitudes. The effect is greater in high PDB-consumers. This effect exists regardless of whether the PDB are activated on an individual level, or only temporarily.
  • The effect seems stronger for durable goods, and celebrities seem less influential with regard to advertising evaluations, regardless of PDB.
  • Cultural tendencies associated with PDB that lead to respect for authority result in greater credibility of celebrity endorsers (which in turn lead to more favorable advertising evaluations and brand attitudes).
  • The characteristics of PDB that affect status consumption, price-quality judgments, and donation behavior, determine the extent to which consumers respond favorably to celebrity endorsers.
  • The effect of PDB on evaluations of celebrity endorsers arises through attributions of expertise and trust to celebrities.

How can these results be used by marketers?

Marketers use celebrities to increase brand awareness and increase sales. The results indicate that celebrity endorsers have greater effects on advertising and brand evaluations among respondents with high PDB. This offers insight into the when and why celebrities can prompt positive effects among low PWD consumers. Consumers from low PDB cultures do not automatically see celebrities as trustworthy or experts. The effectiveness of the celebrity endorser will depend on other factors (e.g. product fit). Managers should then take extra care when choosing the celebrity.  

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Is this review believable? A study of factors affecting the credibility of online consumer reviews from an ELM perspective - Cheung et al. (2012) - Article

Is this review believable? A study of factors affecting the credibility of online consumer reviews from an ELM perspective - Cheung et al. (2012) - Article

How has the credibility of online reviews become a new area of scientific research?

Before the internet people used to use traditional word-of-mouth forms of communication and product reviews. But thanks to the internet consumer reviews go far beyond the local community and people can globally access online reviews. Online reviews have become an essential source of product-related information. Online customer reviews can shape customers´ attitudes and affect their purchase decisions. But with all the different reviews online, it is more difficult to judge the credibility of reviews. Credibility is defined as the believability or the characteristic that makes people believe and trust someone or something. Reviews with high credibility positively impact the degree to which uses adopt information. 

What is the elaboration likelihood model?

The elaboration likelihood model (ELM) is a theory of informational influence. It provides a theoretical framework for understanding how people process messages that are intended to be persuasive. The ELM distinguishes two routes by which persuasive messages are processed:

  • The central route. This route involves a high level of elaboration. When someone processes a message through this route, they carefully consider the issues presented in the message and evaluate the merits of the arguments. They will use further cognitive processing and use more effort to evaluate the message.
  • The peripheral route. This route entails a low level of elaboration and it requires less cognitive work. People use simple heuristic cues or informational indicators to assess the believability of a message.

People tend to evaluate messages on both these routes. The degree of elaboration through both of these routes depend on peoples´ ability and motivation.

Which variables affect the message´s influence?

Variables related to the message, the source, and the recipient affect the influence of a message. There are many message-related and source-related variables, such as argument quality, review consistency, source credibility, and review sidedness. These variables take on either central or peripheral cues to evaluate consumer reviews. Four of these variables are discussed in more detail:

  • Argument quality refers to the person´s subjective perception of the arguments in the persuasive message as strong and cogent on the one hand versus weak and specious on the other. A review with a stronger argument should be perceived as more credible.
  • Review consistency refers to the extent to which information in a review is consistent with information in other reviews. People are more likely to accept a viewpoint that is consistent with other reviews, and more likely to be skeptical towards a viewpoint that is different from other reviews.
  • Source credibility refers to a person´s perception of the credibility of a message source, while not being concerned with the message itself. A review from a reputable source will be perceived to be more credible than one from a less reputable source.
  •  Review sidedness sees if a review is one- or two sided. A one-sided review contains either a positive or a negative comment. A two-sided review contains both positive and negative comments. A two-sided review is generally perceived as more credible than a one-sided review.

What role do the expertise and motivation of the recipient play?

How much the above-mentioned variables are able to exert influence depend on the involvement and expertise of the recipient. The expertise refers to the recipient´s prior knowledge about the issue, while the involvement refers to the personal relevance of the issue. People with expertise have the knowledge and ability to evaluate a message, and people with high involvement are engaged and motivated enough to understand a message. For them, central cues play a bigger role in their judgement and they are more likely to judge a message based on argument quality. When a person is not able or motivated to consider a message, peripheral cues play a bigger role in shaping judgement.

How can the elaboration likelihood model help investigate the credibility of online reviews?

The elaboration likelihood model can help us understand how consumers use various characteristics of online reviews to assess the credibility of individual reviews. It can help answer the questions of what the predominant central and/or peripheral variables are that are being used for credibility judgement, and how those variables function for readers at different levels of motivation and ability. The answers to these questions can help marketers to design better websites and reputation systems that enhance their credibility while increasing review quality.

Using ELM as a theoretical basis, what are the roles of different review cues in the evaluation of online customer reviews?

  • Argument quality is the most influential factor in the evaluation of online consumer reviews. The influence of argument quality did not significantly vary across different levels of expertise and involvement.
  • People who were involved and knowledgeable relied more on central cues (such as argument quality), but people who were not involved or knowledgeable did not rely more on peripheral cues (such as source credibility).
  • Consumers tend to rely more on source credibility and review consistency in the evaluation of online reviews when their expertise level is low, but their involvement is high.
  • People with a high expertise level perceived two-sided reviews more favorably. A possible explanation for that is that two-sided reviews are useful for people who are able to judge the validity of the information. A knowledgeable person is able to judge the significance of the pros and cons in a review and make their decision independently. A person with little knowledge about the product may prefer a one-sided review from a credible source, as they would find a two-sided review ambiguous.

How can these results be used by marketers?

Review websites that provide effective means that facilitate the identification and evaluation of credible reviews can attract more users. People trust a review more when it provides supportive evidence and explanations. Online consumer review providers should encourage and help reviewers to provide better reviews, for example by providing them with a review template and encouraging them to add details such as time and location and photographs. The providers can also prioritize reviews according to the quality of the review and/or the rating of the reviewers. That way they provide a more focused and targeted approach to their reputation management and highlight the reviews that are likely to have a bigger impact on user decisions.

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Nonprofits are seen as warm and for-profits as competent: Firm stereotypes matter - Aaker et al. (2010) - Article

Nonprofits are seen as warm and for-profits as competent: Firm stereotypes matter - Aaker et al. (2010) - Article

What are the two fundamental dimensions of warmth and competence?

People tend to judge others and organizations along two primary dimensions, namely warmth and competence. Warmth judgements include perceptions of generosity, kindness, honesty, sincerity, trustworthiness, thoughtfulness, and helpfulness. Demonstrating warmth tends to suggest a motivation to be other-focused and behave in line with moral codes. Competence judgements include confidence, intelligence, effectiveness, skillfulness, capability, and competitiveness. Demonstrating competence suggests the effective capacity to bring about one´s intent.

How are profit and non-profit organizations judged in their warmth and competence?

Organizations and companies are often viewed as having a reputation (a global evaluation accumulated over a period of time). These reputations often include judgements about warmth and competence. Non-profits and for-profits have distinct reputations that influence consumers´ views. Non-profits are perceived as more warm, whereas for-profits are perceived as more competent. For-profit executives are often promoted because they have shown competence and managerial skill, whereas executives of non-profits are promoted because they have shown commitment to the social good of the organization. These perceptions influence consumers´ willingness to buy from these organization. Consumers are more willing to buy a product of a for-profit organization, as it is seen as more competent. However, at the same time, for-profit organizations are often viewed as less trustworthy due to their fiscal association with the for-profit motive.

What is the consequence on consumers´ willingness to buy products from non-profits and for-profits?

The expectation is that the willingness to buy from non-profits is lower, because of relatively low perceptions of competence. Even though non-profits are judged higher in warmth, that is not a guarantee for a high-quality product. However, boosting a non-profits perceived competence should increase customers´ willingness to buy from that organization.  The results show that when non-profit organizations are perceived as both warm and competent, consumers are more willing to buy a product from them and the discrepancies in willingness to buy disappear.

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Gender stereotypes in advertising: A review of current research - Grau & Zotos (2016) - Article

Gender stereotypes in advertising: A review of current research - Grau & Zotos (2016) - Article

What are gender stereotypes?

Stereotypes are beliefs about a social category. They can become problematic when they lead to expectations about one social category over another, or when they restrict opportunities for one social category over another. With regards to gender, women have generally been presented in more decorative and family oriented roles, and less in professional roles. Men were generally shown as more independent, authoritarian, and professional, with little regard to their age and physical appearance.

What social changes have caused changes in gender stereotypes in advertising?

Three societal changes have led to changes in the gender stereotypes that were being used in advertising. The first is the rise of feminism in the 1960s. It challenged equal opportunities for men and women and caused a gradual change in occupational opportunities and domestic structures. The second societal change is characterized by changes in the labor force, bringing about significant variation in both male and female roles. Finally, the changing role structure in the family has created significant variations in the female role. Because of these changes in society, women were less and less portrayed in an inferior manner relative to their potential and capabilities.

What is the mirror versus de mold debate?

The mirror versus the mold debate concerns the disagreement about the role and social nature of advertising when it comes to stereotypes within advertising. The ´mirror´ point of view states that advertising reflect values that exist and are dominant in society. Advertising functions as a magnified lens simply amplifying a social phenomenon. They consider the impact of advertising as insignificant. The ´mold´ point of view believes that peoples´ perception of social reality is shaped by the media. Advertising is viewed as having a large impact. People are believed to incorporate stereotypes that are presented by the media into their own system of values, ideas, and beliefs about life. More realistic is to view this argument as existing on a continuum. Advertising is a system of visual representation that both reflects and contributes to culture.

What does the research between 2010-2016 say about gender stereotypes in advertising?

Recent research shows that:

  • Gender stereotyping in advertising still exists and is prevalent in many countries around the world, especially for woman. Occupational status still showed the highest degree of stereotyping, despite the education, occupation, and status changes earned by women in the last years.
  • Stereotyping seems to differ for public versus private TV channels. On public channels, stereotyping was higher for variables like role and location and occupation status. On private channels, stereotyping relates more to role behavior and physical characteristics.
  • While stereotyping exists in advertising, consumer´s perceptions about it may be less serious than expected due to the use of humor. Gender role portrayals are less serious if they are used as sources of humor. Male stereotypes are more prevalent in humorous ads, whereas female stereotypes are more prevalent in non-humorous ads.
  • Chinese advertising depicts males in more occupational and recreational roles, whereas women were depicted in more decorative roles. Another research interviewing Chinese advertising professionals revealed that the professionals believe they are simply reflecting Chinese culture (the ´mirror´).
  • Advertising professionals are more tolerant of the stereotypical depictions of men and women than are consumers.

How is the European Union trying to reduce gender stereotypes?

The EU received more and more complaints by consumers which caused them to review how marketing and advertising affects equality between men and women. They have updated their ethical guidelines on gender portrayals and approved anti-discrimination laws in several EU countries. They are also following recommendations from a scientific study that showed that less restrictive literacy programs and awards for positive advertising are more effective at reducing gender stereotyping, as opposed to increased legislation and regulation.

How has the portrayal of men in advertising changed?

Examining perceptions of how gender portrayal impacts men and women, it became clear than men are also affected by their stereotype and that they wished for more research on the negative impact of their gender stereotype. Research into the gender stereotype of men in advertising only shows minor changes in the last few years, with an increased portrayal or men as fathers, and some male characters used to portray society´s changing views of men and women´s roles. 

What should future scientific research be focused on?

A few areas can be identified that are in need of scientific research:

  • Most of the current research has been done on advertising in printed media and television advertising. Future research should find a way to examine advertising in digital formats, native advertising, and social media platforms.
  • Future research should examine the stereotypes of the LGBT consumers in advertising.
  • Recent advertising has focused on empowered women, also called femvertising. The goal of these messages are to celebrate women rather than objectifying them. However, the fear is that some companies are using femvertising to increase sales and lack authenticity.
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Feelings that make a difference: How guilt and pride convince consumers of the effectiveness of sustainable consumption choices - Antonetti & Maklan (2014) - Article

Feelings that make a difference: How guilt and pride convince consumers of the effectiveness of sustainable consumption choices - Antonetti & Maklan (2014) - Article

What is self-efficacy?

Self-efficacy is very similar to perceived consumer effectiveness. It comprises beliefs in one´s capabilities to organize and execute courses of action required to produce given attainments. The focus is on the individual´s ability to perform a relevant task, rather than necessarily influencing the underlying outcome. The difference between self-efficacy and PCE is the feeling of empowerment associated with PCE and the stable beliefs about the effectiveness of consumer choices in general.

How do self-conscious emotions regulate sustainable consumption?

Self-conscious emotions are those affected by how we see ourselves and how we think others perceive us. Self-conscious emotions, like guilt and pride, play an important part in self-regulation. They impact individuals´ ability to control personal decisions in support of long-term goals. Pride is a positive emotion associated with a sense of self-worth and achievement. Authentic pride is associated with a sense of purpose and the attainment of cherished goals. It motivates people to behave responsibly by promoting charitable donations, volunteering, and cause-related marketing campaigns. Guilt also promotes ethical consumer behavior and pro-social action by leading consumers to make choices that avoid them feeling guilty, for example by regulating over-eating, effectively using anti-drinking campaigns, and supporting fairer negotiation strategies.

Why do guilt and pride increase consumers´ sense of agency?

Guilt and pride are associated with causal attributions that lead consumers to perceive themselves as the cause of the event appraised. They activate psychological processes that increase consumers’ sense of agency. There are three areas of research that support this statement:

  • Guilt and pride are underpinned by specific cognitive appraisal processes. Guilt and pride are triggered by the evaluation of events or outcomes that are perceived as being caused by the self.
  • Pride is a form of positive reinforcement that facilitates self-regulation. The motivational effects of pride are based upon a realization that the self can control and influence positive outcomes.
  • Guilt is a negative feeling experiences by consumers when they reflect on previous behavior and realize that their behavior doesn´t match their personal goals, norms, or standards. It activates a desire to cope with this stress by repairing the wrongdoing and correcting previous behavior. This also implies a sense of effectiveness, where the consumer acknowledges that he has control over the outcome that has been caused.

How can consumers be convinced of the effectiveness of their behavior?

Research shows that information alone does not increase perceived consumer effectiveness. Ideally, after every instance of behavior, direct feedback is required. This is however not always possible, but indirect feedback through experience is possible. Consumers can learn from previous experiences of pride and guilt that follow their consumption choices. Relevant in this context are neutralization techniques. People who experience guilt or pride may be less likely to use neutralization techniques the next time they are confronted with a consumer choice.

What are neutralization techniques?

Neutralization techniques are used to deflect blame for deviant or undesirable behavior. It explains how consumers act in ways that contradict their pro-social beliefs while still preserving a positive self-image. People use five arguments to justify their bad behaviors, namely denial of responsibility, denial of injury, denial of the victim, condemnation of the condemners, and appeal to higher loyalties. This research shows however that people´s ability to use neutralization techniques can be counterbalanced by emotional reactions that enhance people´s sense of agency.

What regulatory process identifies the role of PCE as mediator of the impact of emotions on consumers’ choices?

After a single consumption episode people tend to feel either feelings of guilt or pride about their consumption. This consequential experience of emotion associated with the consumption, influences future consumer intentions to purchase sustainable products. Guilt and pride do not influence behavior directly, but provide feedback on past behavior that convinces consumers of their behavior effectiveness. Consumers´ sense of agency is reinforced and they then find it more difficult to neutralize their sense of personal responsibility. In this way these emotions activate a learning process that leads to an increase in PCE.

How can these findings promote sustainable consumption?

Providing factual information about consumers´ choices does not seem to have much effect. But by eliciting emotions of guilt or pride, consumers´ perception of effectiveness can be enhanced. It is recommended that marketers first try to promote responsible behavior by eliciting positive emotions (not guilt), as they are much less likely to generate unexpected negative consequences. It is more ethical to focus on eliciting feelings of pride after responsible consumer choices.

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When customer love turns into lasting hate: The effects of relationship strength and time on customer revenge and avoidance - Grégoire et al. (2009) - Article

When customer love turns into lasting hate: The effects of relationship strength and time on customer revenge and avoidance - Grégoire et al. (2009) - Article

What is online public complaining?

Online public complaining is a phenomenon defined as the act of using the internet to publicly complain about firms. Unlike private complaining, when customers complain directly to the firm, public complaining involves alerting the public about a failed service. Customers usually start online public complaining after their private complaints have not been addressed by the firms. There now exist many third-party organizations that offer online environments where customers can post their bad experiences. Also many user-generated content websites have areas for complaining. Online public complaining is a new and growing threat that needs managers’ attention.

What are the desire for revenge and the desire for avoidance (as characteristics of online public complaining)?

The desire for revenge and the desire for avoidance reflect the presence of a customer grudge or lack of forgiveness. They both reflect the customers’ inability to let go, but cause different customer behaviors. A desire for revenge is defined as customers’ need to punish and cause harm to the firm that has caused damaged to them. This leads to behaviors such as private complaining, public complaining, and negative word of mouth. A desire for avoidance is defined as customers’ need to withdraw themselves from any interactions with the firm. This leads to behavior that reduces support for the firm.

How does time affect the desires for revenge?

The desire for revenge is expected to decrease over time. Revenge is associated with many psychological resources and cognitions that are hard to maintain over time. The negative cognitions and retaliatory behaviors become too costly to maintain. Also, retaliatory actions require energy to plot and pursue, while there are no material gains.

How does time affect the desire for avoidance?

The desire for avoidance is expected to increase over time. After the online complaints, people may try to keep interacting with the firm to find a solution. But after time passes and no solution has been found, they will have been able to find another firm (as commercial relationships are replaceable) and they will be even more unwilling to use the services of that firm again. They will increasingly turn towards avoidance, which is less costly than revenge.

Do online complainers hold a grudge against firms over time?

Managers need to know if online complainers reduce their retaliation over time by themselves. In case online complainers persist, they may need to act to stop them. Complainers hold a grudge against firms as long as they maintain a desire for revenge and/or  desire to avoid any form of interactions with the firms. Research has shown that feelings of revenge tend to decrease over time, but feelings of avoidance may not. These feelings of avoidance may sustain complainers’ grudges.

How does a strong relationship affect the evolution of consumers’ grudge?

Research indicates that relationship strength may amplify customers’ negative responses in service contexts. Given the profitability of strong-relationship customers, it is important for firms to know whether the best customers also hold the strongest grudges. Relationship quality is defined as a second-order construct that consists of trust, commitment, and social benefits. Compared with customers who have weaker relationships, the desire for revenge of strong-relationship customers should be maintained over a longer period, and their desire for avoidance should increase more rapidly.

Why are the reactions of strong-relationship customers stronger?

Customers who perceive a high level of relationship quality are more likely to take offense if they are the victims of a service failure, even more so when they have asked for help during that period. Strong-relationship customers tend to feel more betrayed after an unfair service and it is harder for them to forget about that and let it go. Initial research indicates that the negative responses of strong-relationship customers were amplified when  service interaction was perceived as a transgression of the relational norm, when a service recovery was viewed as unfair, and when customers had sufficient time and cognitive capacity to assess the performance failure.

Can firms attenuate a love-becomes-hate effect by offering a recovery after the online complaint?

Studies have shown that the relational orientation of strong-relationship customers makes them more amenable to recovery efforts. Firms may be able to attenuate the love-becomes-hate effect by offering an apology and compensation after the complaint. This could reduce the desire of the customer for revenge. The current research however does show that a post-complaint recovery did not have any effect on the desire for avoidance.

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Gender stereotypes in advertising: A review of current research - Grau & Zotos (2016) - Article

Gender stereotypes in advertising: A review of current research - Grau & Zotos (2016) - Article

What are gender stereotypes?

Stereotypes are beliefs about a social category. They can become problematic when they lead to expectations about one social category over another, or when they restrict opportunities for one social category over another. With regards to gender, women have generally been presented in more decorative and family oriented roles, and less in professional roles. Men were generally shown as more independent, authoritarian, and professional, with little regard to their age and physical appearance.

What social changes have caused changes in gender stereotypes in advertising?

Three societal changes have led to changes in the gender stereotypes that were being used in advertising. The first is the rise of feminism in the 1960s. It challenged equal opportunities for men and women and caused a gradual change in occupational opportunities and domestic structures. The second societal change is characterized by changes in the labor force, bringing about significant variation in both male and female roles. Finally, the changing role structure in the family has created significant variations in the female role. Because of these changes in society, women were less and less portrayed in an inferior manner relative to their potential and capabilities.

What is the mirror versus de mold debate?

The mirror versus the mold debate concerns the disagreement about the role and social nature of advertising when it comes to stereotypes within advertising. The ´mirror´ point of view states that advertising reflect values that exist and are dominant in society. Advertising functions as a magnified lens simply amplifying a social phenomenon. They consider the impact of advertising as insignificant. The ´mold´ point of view believes that peoples´ perception of social reality is shaped by the media. Advertising is viewed as having a large impact. People are believed to incorporate stereotypes that are presented by the media into their own system of values, ideas, and beliefs about life. More realistic is to view this argument as existing on a continuum. Advertising is a system of visual representation that both reflects and contributes to culture.

What does the research between 2010-2016 say about gender stereotypes in advertising?

Recent research shows that:

  • Gender stereotyping in advertising still exists and is prevalent in many countries around the world, especially for woman. Occupational status still showed the highest degree of stereotyping, despite the education, occupation, and status changes earned by women in the last years.
  • Stereotyping seems to differ for public versus private TV channels. On public channels, stereotyping was higher for variables like role and location and occupation status. On private channels, stereotyping relates more to role behavior and physical characteristics.
  • While stereotyping exists in advertising, consumer´s perceptions about it may be less serious than expected due to the use of humor. Gender role portrayals are less serious if they are used as sources of humor. Male stereotypes are more prevalent in humorous ads, whereas female stereotypes are more prevalent in non-humorous ads.
  • Chinese advertising depicts males in more occupational and recreational roles, whereas women were depicted in more decorative roles. Another research interviewing Chinese advertising professionals revealed that the professionals believe they are simply reflecting Chinese culture (the ´mirror´).
  • Advertising professionals are more tolerant of the stereotypical depictions of men and women than are consumers.

How is the European Union trying to reduce gender stereotypes?

The EU received more and more complaints by consumers which caused them to review how marketing and advertising affects equality between men and women. They have updated their ethical guidelines on gender portrayals and approved anti-discrimination laws in several EU countries. They are also following recommendations from a scientific study that showed that less restrictive literacy programs and awards for positive advertising are more effective at reducing gender stereotyping, as opposed to increased legislation and regulation.

How has the portrayal of men in advertising changed?

Examining perceptions of how gender portrayal impacts men and women, it became clear than men are also affected by their stereotype and that they wished for more research on the negative impact of their gender stereotype. Research into the gender stereotype of men in advertising only shows minor changes in the last few years, with an increased portrayal or men as fathers, and some male characters used to portray society´s changing views of men and women´s roles. 

What should future scientific research be focused on?

A few areas can be identified that are in need of scientific research:

  • Most of the current research has been done on advertising in printed media and television advertising. Future research should find a way to examine advertising in digital formats, native advertising, and social media platforms.
  • Future research should examine the stereotypes of the LGBT consumers in advertising.
  • Recent advertising has focused on empowered women, also called femvertising. The goal of these messages are to celebrate women rather than objectifying them. However, the fear is that some companies are using femvertising to increase sales and lack authenticity.
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Study Guide with article summaries for Economic and Consumer Psychology at Leiden University

Study Guide with article summaries for Economic and Consumer Psychology at Leiden University

Article summaries with Economic and Consumer Psychology at Leiden University

  • Summaries with the prescribed articles of Economic and Consumer Psychology - Study year 2024-2025
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