The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the growing public diplomacy literature as it focuses on the crucial, but so far largely unnoticed negative dimension of public…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the growing public diplomacy literature as it focuses on the crucial, but so far largely unnoticed negative dimension of public diplomacy by analyzing information campaigns targeting unwanted people as one instrument of public diplomacy.
Design/methodology/approach
Using the cases of Australia and Germany this paper analyses the public diplomacy narratives of these two countries and contrasts those with the messages both countries communicate to potential migrants/refuges through a number of information campaigns. Based on this assessment the paper highlights the negative dimension of public diplomacy and discusses how this negative dimension influences the conduct of public diplomacy.
Findings
Both cases clearly exemplify that public diplomacy is no altruistic affair and that public diplomacy is facing new challenges due to this concurrence of opposing images it aims to communicate. It further illustrates that this negative dimension not only challenges the understanding of public diplomacy, but at the same time exemplifies a communicative predicament which, it is argued, cannot be solved satisfactory and requires a trade-off between deterrence and attraction. The predicament arises from the dichotomy of presenting a positive image of a country to produce endorsement and sympathy as well as to attract tourists and investment, while at the same time communicating a negative image to deter uninvited people from entering the country.
Practical implications
Referring to this communicative predicament, the paper suggests that those campaigns are unrewarding for two reasons: first, they apparently do not achieve their objectives and at the same time undermine other public diplomacy initiatives.
Originality/value
The paper highlights the normally neglected fact that public diplomacy is not only concerned with presenting a positive image of a country and winning hearts and minds, but that public diplomacy also has a negative dimension which needs more academic analysis and practitioner’s attention.
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This research is apt to glean the underlying relationships between the perceived restorativeness (PR) and environmentally responsible behaviors (ERBs) transpiring in rice fields…
Abstract
This research is apt to glean the underlying relationships between the perceived restorativeness (PR) and environmentally responsible behaviors (ERBs) transpiring in rice fields. The study site, the Xinkaiyuan Laotian District Cultural Landscape in Eastern Taiwan, has gained its popularity due to its romantic, idyllic setting as a rice field close to Pacific Ocean. The study deploys a questionnaire survey which collects 301 valid questionnaires. For the data analysis, it uses structural equation modeling to test study hypotheses. The study reveals that the compatibility dimension of PR has a significant effect on the general behavior and specific behavior of ERB. However, the other restorativeness dimensions entailing being away, fascination, and coherence show no significant effect. Thus, the ERB is mainly influenced by the respondent's compatibility rather than fascination toward a nature environment. In the concluding section, this study furnishes theoretical and practical implications along with suggestions for future research.
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Ping Ning, Dorothy DeWitt, Hai Leng Chin and Han Wang
This study aims to investigate the impact of viewing different types of digital environment images on college students’ positive emotions, nature relatedness and environmental…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the impact of viewing different types of digital environment images on college students’ positive emotions, nature relatedness and environmental preference. This aimed to address the gap in empirical studies regarding the effects of digital environment images on these psychological constructs.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used a three-group experimental between-subjects design. Participants (48 undergraduate students) were divided into three groups, each viewing a different set of digital images (nature, city or object). Pre- and posttest measures assessed positive emotions and nature relatedness, whereas environmental preference was measured after image viewing. One-way analysis of variance and post hoc Tukey’s honestly significant difference (HSD) tests were used to analyze the data.
Findings
Viewing digital nature images elicited significantly higher positive emotions, nature relatedness and environmental preference compared to viewing city or object images. In addition, environmental preference for the digital object group was marginally higher than the city group.
Research limitations/implications
This study was limited by its relatively small sample size. Although further research is needed to investigate the underlying mechanisms behind the observed effects, this study provides valuable implications for education, economic dimensions and public policy initiatives, encouraging the development of pro-environmental attitudes and behaviors.
Practical implications
The findings suggest that incorporating digital nature images into learning activities can promote positive emotions, nature relatedness and environmental preference among college students. This has implications for the design of digital learning environments, especially for those with limited access to natural environments.
Social implications
By promoting positive emotions and nature relatedness, digital nature experiences can contribute to emotional well-being and potentially foster pro-environmental behaviors. This can have implications for promoting sustainable lifestyles and environmental conservation efforts.
Originality/value
This study provides original empirical evidence on the impact of viewing digital environment images on several psychological constructs. It highlights the potential of digital nature experiences as a complement to direct nature exposure, particularly for those with limited access to natural environments. These findings contribute to the growing body of literature on the benefits of digital nature experiences and have implications for various fields, including education, environmental psychology and human–computer interaction.
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Vanessa Apaolaza, Patrick Hartmann, Cristobal Fernández-Robin and Diego Yáñez
This paper aims to examine the effects of natural plants on satisfaction and loyalty in the hospitality servicescape and provides a theoretical framework explaining the underlying…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the effects of natural plants on satisfaction and loyalty in the hospitality servicescape and provides a theoretical framework explaining the underlying processes.
Design/methodology/approach
An experimental study (plants vs no-plants) was conducted in a restaurant with a sample of 119 individuals. Data were analyzed using ANOVA and bootstrapping moderated mediation analysis (Hayes, 2013).
Findings
The results of the study confirmed significant effects of indoor natural plants on consumers’ satisfaction and loyalty, mediated by the experiential value components of aesthetic value, service excellence and escapism. The absence of an interaction of these influences with consumers’ connectedness to nature indicates that the beneficial effects of indoor plants universally affect all individuals, independent of their personal degree of feeling connected with nature.
Practical implications
Indoor natural plants as ambient elements in restaurants can improve satisfaction and loyalty by enhancing the dimensions of aesthetics and escapism of the service experience, as well as the perception of service quality.
Originality/value
This is the first experimental study analyzing the effects of indoor plants on customer satisfaction and loyalty conducted in a real-life restaurant setting using actual plants. The findings contribute theoretically by providing an integrated conceptual model of the satisfaction and loyalty effects of atmospheric stimuli (i.e. plants) in the hospitality servicescape, which offers a process explanation based on the mediating influence of aesthetic value and the sequential mediations of aesthetic value → service excellence and aesthetic value → escapism.
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Patrick Hartmann and Vanessa Apaolaza‐Ibáñez
Given the observable increase in images of nature in advertising on a global scale, this study aims to ask whether such creative strategies should adapt imagery to the natural…
Abstract
Purpose
Given the observable increase in images of nature in advertising on a global scale, this study aims to ask whether such creative strategies should adapt imagery to the natural environment of the target audiences or could it be standardised globally.
Design/methodology/approach
Two samples of respondents living in different geographic locations with contrasted climates and natural environments were exposed to a set of experimental green advertisements visually featuring different categories of natural scenery and one urban landscape. Attitude towards each advertisement and emotional responses evoked by it were measured and compared across the range of stimuli and the two samples.
Findings
Results did not support either the hypothesis that individuals prefer advertisements showing the natural habitat in which they had grown up or the hypothesized universal preference for advertising imagery displaying savannah type landscapes. However, the observed preferences across both samples for advertisements featuring natural landscapes with abundant green vegetation and clear water are consistent with evolutionary psychology, which proposes that perception of beauty in a landscape is universal and hypothesizes preferences for landscapes with those characteristics.
Research limitations/implications
The study was experimental in nature and based on only two specific geographic locations, as well as on one product and experimental brand. Findings and conclusions must therefore be adopted with due caution. Future research should be conducted on a broader geographic scale, across a wider range of natural and cultural environments, and with a greater variety of products and brands.
Practical implications
Results discourage the adaptation of nature imagery to the geographic location of a target audience, and support a global strategy based on the standardised use of landscapes universally perceived to be beautiful, following the principles of environmental aesthetics.
Originality/value
This is the first study to apply evolutionary and environmental psychology to an investigation of the influence of a target audience's natural environment on its behavioural responses to natural imagery in advertising.