Randi L. Priluck, Stephen F. Pirog and Joseph Z. Wisenblit
The purpose of this study is to examine how children and young adults form attitudes toward food products in unbranded gaming mobile applications and the degree to which product…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine how children and young adults form attitudes toward food products in unbranded gaming mobile applications and the degree to which product category attitudes can generate responses to brands in the category through the generalization process.
Design/methodology/approach
Two experiments exposed children and young adults to mobile games featuring food products in a between-subjects treatment versus control design to examine both affective responses and belief formation toward food brands within the category.
Findings
It was found that both children and young adults favored branded food items in the product category after playing with an unbranded mobile game assembling food products. Young adults also developed specific beliefs about nonrepresented brands in the category, which were found to be stronger under high involvement. Parents and public policymakers must be vigilant in controlling access to food-related games, even when they are not commercial in nature because of the attitudes and beliefs formed in unbranded games.
Originality/value
This research demonstrates that attitudes and beliefs around food brands can be formed through unbranded game play when children and young adults generalize attitudes. Because of the emphasis on “advergames,” no studies have examined the impact of unbranded games on children and young adults through the generalization process.
Details
Keywords
Joseph Z. Wisenblit, Randi Priluck and Stephen F. Pirog
This study aims to examine parental styles based on levels of nurturing and authoritarianism to determine mothers' awareness of children's media exposure, likelihood of setting…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine parental styles based on levels of nurturing and authoritarianism to determine mothers' awareness of children's media exposure, likelihood of setting media and consumption limits and communications with children about commercial messages.
Design/methodology/approach
The research design included a survey aimed at mothers of children ages four‐eight. The researchers collected demographic, behavioral and consumption information regarding the mother's youngest child.
Findings
The results suggest that nurturing mothers are more aware of advertising aimed at children and talk more to children regarding advertising and consumption than authoritarian mothers. Mothers who are nurturing and not authoritarian are more likely to yield to requests and favor more regulation than other parents.
Research limitations/implications
The research is based on a convenience sample of mothers who were willing to provide confidential personal information about their children.
Practical implications
From a marketer's perspective, nurturing mothers represent a barrier to reaching children with persuasive messages. Such mothers not only limit access, but train children to be skeptical of advertising. Marketers who deal honestly with customers will be more successful in appealing to nurturing mothers and their market‐savvy children.
Social implications
For public policy makers, distinctions in parental style can be useful in developing and promoting policy regulating food marketing practices. Nurturing mothers are more supportive of regulation than are authoritarian mothers, and efforts to promote such regulation should target nurturing mothers. The factors that influence mothers to intervene and limit children's media and consumption behavior also affect attitudes toward regulation of food‐related advertising.
Originality/value
The paper is the first to examine mothers' parental styles and attitudes toward regulation and tie together attitudes toward consumption and policy with the same sample.
Details
Keywords
Randi Priluck Grossman and Joseph Z. Wisenblit
Marketing practitioners know that a product’s color may play an important role in a consumer’s purchase decision, but may not be familiar with the empirical research that has been…
Abstract
Marketing practitioners know that a product’s color may play an important role in a consumer’s purchase decision, but may not be familiar with the empirical research that has been conducted in this area. The purpose of this paper is to apply an associative learning framework to the color literature to help understand consumer color choices. Specifically, the principles of classical conditioning, a form of associative learning, will be used to make suggestions to practitioners who wish to create or change color associations for their products. The implications of the findings from the color literature are discussed.
Details
Keywords
Asli D.A. Tasci, Basak Denizci Guillet and William C. Gartner
The purpose of this study is to examine if consumers have substantially common color preferences in hospitality uniforms for destination brands. Employee uniforms with their…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine if consumers have substantially common color preferences in hospitality uniforms for destination brands. Employee uniforms with their dimensions of style, material and color are a crucial part of the coordinated brand message of a business or a destination; however, this has been a void in tourism and hospitality literature. Current visitors to Hong Kong were studied using intercept surveys in four different groups controlling for potential confounding factors. Although results reveal the common perception and preference for black-white-formal uniforms for Hong Kong’s hospitality industry across different treatment groups as well as different cultural groups, implications and discussions are provided as a call for further research in this venue of inquiry.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a cross-sectional study using a site intercept survey with structured questionnaires on Chinese and international travelers in Hong Kong. Four different surveys were used as different treatments for four groups of respondents that were randomly assigned into each group. Each group was presented with a different default pair of male and female uniform pictures for the initial evaluation on the first page of the survey, followed by a list of uniforms with different colors and styles on the second page of the survey to select and evaluate their own pairs of male and female uniforms.
Findings
Results revealed that consumers’ general favorite colors may not apply to their preferences for the employee uniforms for a destination they visit. Also, there were similarities in the favorite color and choice uniform color for the three general culture groups, such as Chinese, Asia-Pacific and Western consumers, included in the study. Besides, findings implied that Hong Kong may be a strong brand with a uniform color preference for hospitality uniforms for different consumer segments.
Research limitations/implications
This study needs to be considered as an exploratory attempt to bring researchers’ attention to the several questions still to be answered by future research. The results and discussions provided in this study are beyond being robust or conclusive; insights about potential brand connotations with employee uniform colors need to be taken as potential leads for future studies because there is a need for further study in this area.
Practical implications
The importance of hotel employee uniforms for quality hotel experience was the highest for the Chinese group, whereas it was the lowest for the Western group. Chinese and Asia-Pacific respondents placed more importance on uniforms as a cue for a quality hotel experience, which signal a higher level of involvement in visible cues in the consumption environment. Hence, hotels as well as destinations catering to these groups need to take their market segment preferences into consideration before making decisions about brand cues for their products.
Originality/value
There is a lack of attention to the color aspect of service encounter in tourism and hospitality literature. Therefore, color needs attention from researchers as a new venue of research in tourism and hospitality, especially in the tourism destination context. This study is a spearhead to generate interest by intriguing questions for future attention from researchers.
Details
Keywords
Ricky Yao Nutsugbodo, Sarah Blankson-Stiles-Ocran, Benjamin Appiah Osei, Bernadette Ekua Bedua Afful, Conrad-Joseph Wuleka Kuuder, Thelma Ziemah Alhassan, Josiane Akogo, Esther Obeng, Philomina Dansowaa Agyiri and Gifty Nancy Amponsah
This study examined university students’ participation in campus-based events (CBEs). Using the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) theory, the study specifically assessed the effect…
Abstract
Purpose
This study examined university students’ participation in campus-based events (CBEs). Using the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) theory, the study specifically assessed the effect of motivation on emotional attachment and experiential value and how these affect the satisfaction and subjective well-being of students.
Design/methodology/approach
An online questionnaire programmed using the Kobo toolbox was used to collect data from 840 CBE participants in August 2023. AMOS Graphics version 23 was used to establish the measurement and structural model to be validated and tested.
Findings
The study found that the organismic elements (emotional attachment and experiential value) significantly mediated stimulus (motivation) and response (satisfaction and subjective well-being). In all, the six hypotheses tested were significant.
Practical implications
The study’s findings suggest that CBE stakeholders must consider the underlying motivations of students, the emotional attachment, and experiential values likely to be derived when designing and organizing CBE activities, and use impactful advertising media to entice and arouse students’ interest in participating in CBEs.
Originality/value
The study contributes to the understanding of the factors that influence CBE participants’ satisfaction and subjective well-being. The study’s focus on motivation, emotional attachment, and experiential value provides insights into developing effective strategies for the events industry.
Details
Keywords
JungKun Park and Richard Feinberg
The paper aims to explore the structure of both normative and informational consumer conformity in an online virtual community. The purpose of this paper is to develop and test a…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to explore the structure of both normative and informational consumer conformity in an online virtual community. The purpose of this paper is to develop and test a conceptual model of e‐formity in virtual communities.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected online from consumers who belonged to at least one virtual community. A total of 2,000 customers were drawn from a list of online consumer panels maintained by an online research company. Overall, 14.8 percent of those invited replied to the survey and were analyzed with structure equation modelling.
Findings
The results from the analysis indicate that both dimensions of conformity are distinct and have separate antecedents. Normative consumer conformity is influenced by internal consumer characteristics, whereas informational consumer conformity is related to external virtual community characteristics.
Research limitations/implications
Although this paper found evidence for e‐formity, the full nature and scope of e‐formity must be held to the classic findings of experimental versions of conformity research. There are broad implications for e‐formity in consumer behaviour and retailing. Retailers or manufacturers must realize that virtual communities and consumers' e‐formity behaviour are a valuable source of helping or hurting the sale and promotion of their products.
Practical implications
At the very least, the influence of e‐formity suggests that it is crucial for them to monitor closely the purposeful and nonpurposeful influences these virtual communications may have.
Originality/value
Given the scarcity of literature in the online conformity research area, this paper shows conformity in virtual communities does not change its influences on consumers' behaviour. As in the studies of traditional communities, e‐formity has found influence on virtual communities within two aspects. Virtual communities not only have inherited the social functions of traditional communities, but also have differences in antecedents.
Details
Keywords
Asphat Muposhi and Tinashe Chuchu
This study applies the modified brand avoidance model to examine factors that influence sustainable fashion avoidance behaviour among millennial shoppers in South Africa.
Abstract
Purpose
This study applies the modified brand avoidance model to examine factors that influence sustainable fashion avoidance behaviour among millennial shoppers in South Africa.
Design/methodology/approach
A positivistic approach and a web-based online survey were employed to collect cross-sectional data from 423 millennial fashion shoppers. Standard multiple regression analysis was used to test proposed hypotheses.
Findings
Unmet expectations, materialism and symbolic incongruence emerged as major predictors of millennials' intention to avoid sustainable fashion. Sustainable fashion avoidance intention was found to have a positive effect on sustainable fashion avoidance behaviour.
Research limitations/implications
This study relied on self-reported data collected from millennial shoppers. Future studies may improve the generalizability of this study's results by conducting a comparative study with other cohorts such as baby boomers and Generation X who espouse different shopping values. Future studies may benefit from the use of longitudinal data in order to understand how millennial shoppers relate to sustainable fashion as it evolves.
Practical implications
The results of this study suggest the importance of developing value propositions that align sustainable fashion with cultural, personality and symbolic cues valued by millennial shoppers. Consumer education on the benefits of sustainable fashion is recommended as a long-term behavioural change strategy.
Social implications
The purchase behaviour of sustainable fashion should be encouraged as it enhances environmental sustainability including safeguarding the livelihoods of future generations.
Originality/value
This study contributes to literature on sustainable fashion avoidance behaviour. This is one of the pioneering studies to empirically examine the influence of unmet expectations, symbolic incongruence and ideological incompatibility in the context of an emerging market, such as South Africa.