Liangqiang Li, Boyan Yao, Xi Li and Yu Qian
This work aims to explore why people review their experienced online shopping in such a manner (promptness), and what is the potential relationship between the users’ review…
Abstract
Purpose
This work aims to explore why people review their experienced online shopping in such a manner (promptness), and what is the potential relationship between the users’ review promptness and review motivation as well as reviewed contents.
Design/methodology/approach
To evaluate the customers’ responses regarding their shopping experiences, in this paper, the “purchase-review” promptness is studied to explore the temporal characteristics of users’ reviewing behavior online. Then, an aspect mining method was introduced for assessment of review text. Finally, a theoretical model is proposed to analyze how the customers’ reviews were formed.
Findings
First, the length of time elapsed between purchase and review was found to follow a power-law distribution, which characterizes an important number of human behaviors. Within online review behaviors, this meant that a high frequency population of reviewers tended to publish relatively quick reviews online. This showed that the customers’ reviewing behaviors on e-commerce websites may have been affected by extrinsic motivations, intrinsic motivations or both. Second, the proposed review-to-feature mapping technique is a feasible method for exploring reviewers’ opinions in both massive and sparse reviews. Finally, the customers’ reviewing behaviors were found to be mostly consistent with reviewers’ motivations.
Originality/value
First, the authors propose that the “promptness” of users in posting online reviews is an important external manifestation of their motivation, product experience and service experience. Second, a semi-supervised method of review-to-aspect mapping is used to solve the data quality problem in mining information from massive text data, which vary in length, detail and quality. Finally, a huge amount of e-commerce customers’ purchase-review promptness are studied and the results indicate that not all product features are responsible for the “prompt” posting of users’ reviews, and that the platform’s strategy to encourage users to post reviews will not work in the long term.
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Giacomo Del Chiappa, Maximilian Tafel and Gergely Szolnoki
At present, the whole hospitality and tourism sector is severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and related lockdowns have been producing severe transformations in the…
Abstract
At present, the whole hospitality and tourism sector is severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and related lockdowns have been producing severe transformations in the industry. Several business reports and academic studies have highlighted that, compared to before the COVID-19 outbreak, tourists will likely choose to visit less crowded tourism destinations, and will tend to prefer accommodation facilities that can deliver their services with reduced face-to-face interactions and guaranteeing fair levels of physical and social distancing. This said, there is only a limited number of scientific studies dealing with this topic so far. This, coupled with the extremely dynamic and turbulent environment we are currently experiencing, urges scholars to further intensify the academic discussion on this area of research. Further examination would give practitioners knowledge to assist them in their decision-making in an era of tourism where everyone seems to be moving towards a ‘new normal’ of unknown duration. The present study was thus conducted to make a contribution to this debate by providing and discussing the results of a factor analysis on a sample of 200 German respondents, to dig into the criteria that travellers use to select the destination and the accommodation for their vacation. Findings contribute to deepen the scientific debate about how tourist behaviour is transformed by the COVID-19 pandemic and, potentially, by any other type of virus that could replicate a similar emphasis on hygiene and safety, as well as on social distancing. Meanwhile, our results will provide policy makers, destination marketers, and accommodation managers with useful information on effectively planning and implementing their service design in order to meet tourists' expectations and needs.
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Naeem Akhtar, Umar Iqbal Siddiqi and Tahir Islam
The authors proposed a conceptual model by examining the influence of threats to their freedom on tourists’ psychological distance including social distance, spatial distance…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors proposed a conceptual model by examining the influence of threats to their freedom on tourists’ psychological distance including social distance, spatial distance, and temporal distance, which effect psychological reactance and the consequent online Airbnb booking intentions. Furthermore, media intrusiveness as a moderator determines the boundary conditions between perceived threats to their freedom and social distance, spatial distance, and temporal distance.
Design/methodology/approach
Data was gathered from 491 Chinese travelers to provide empirical evidence. The authors performed data analysis in Amos 26.0 using structural equation modeling (SEM) and Hayes (2013) PROCESS macro.
Findings
The findings positively reinforced all the structural relationships of the study. Notably, media intrusiveness significantly moderates the association between perceived threats to their freedom and psychological distance (i.e. social distance, spatial distance, and temporal distance).
Research limitations/implications
The findings contribute significantly to the field of social psychology, advertising, and consumer behavior derive prolific implications for policymakers and sharing economy platforms. Lastly, by identifying limitations, this research opens doors for future scholars.
Originality/value
Governments' acute precautionary measures in response to the COVID-19 outbreak have confined individual freedom across the globe. This study illuminates how tourists conceive these preventative measures as perceived threats to their freedom, and subsequently engage psychological reactance.
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Alaa Eddine El Moussaoui and Brahim Benbba
This paper aims to determine the factors that influence the consumer’s online shopping intention in the current pandemic context (COVID-19). For this purpose, a conceptual model…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to determine the factors that influence the consumer’s online shopping intention in the current pandemic context (COVID-19). For this purpose, a conceptual model has been developed by introducing the constructs “attitude,” “perceived utility,” “intention” as well as the variable “perceived risk of contagion.”
Design/methodology/approach
After collecting data from the questionnaire diffused in Moroccan e-commerce websites, this study used various statistical analyses with the multiple regression model on the SPSS statistical software to confirm or refute the research hypotheses.
Findings
The results indicate that attitude and perceived utility positively affect online shopping intention. However, the variable “perceived risk of contagion” has a weak effect on such intention, which can be explained by the period in which the survey was started (a few months after the confinement).
Originality/value
The scientific contribution of this study lies in the insertion of a new factor that will be called “perceived risk of contagion” in the research model. This factor has been inspired by the perceived risk theory of Bauer (1960). Furthermore, all studies dealing with this topic have been carried out in developed countries, such as France, Great Britain, Germany and the USA. For this reason, the researcher believe that it is more appropriate to study the intention to buy online during the COVID-19 pandemic in one of the developing countries, such as Morocco. This is based on the fact that to develop theories, it is necessary to examine a given problem in several countries. The context plays a determining role in such situations.
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Lifu Li, Kyeong Kang and Osama Sohaib
This study aims to present the Chinese entrepreneurial environment and explore Chinese tertiary students’ online-startup motivation on live streaming platforms. Based on the COM-B…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to present the Chinese entrepreneurial environment and explore Chinese tertiary students’ online-startup motivation on live streaming platforms. Based on the COM-B behaviour changing theory, this paper discovers various influencing factors from environmental opportunity and personal capability aspects. It analyses their effects under the cooperative system established among official departments, industries and universities. Meanwhile, considering social and cultural control, it also refers to the uncertainty-avoidance dimension from the Hofstede cultural theory and re-evaluates its influence on Chinese tertiary students’ online-startup motivation.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors analyse 474 responses from online questionnaires through partial least squares path modelling and variance-based structural equation modelling. The paper claims that environmental opportunity and personal capability factors positively affect students’ online-startup motivation, but uncertainty-avoidance thinking plays a negative role. The study also measures the importance-performance map analysis to explore additional findings and discuss managerial implications.
Findings
Both platform support and official department support positively impact Chinese tertiary students’ online-startup motivation and entrepreneurial skills learned from universities are beneficial for them to build online-startup confidence. Meanwhile, influenced by the cooperative system implemented among official departments, industries and universities, official department support positively affects platform support and entrepreneurial skills. Conversely, influenced by Chinese traditional Confucian culture, uncertainty-avoidance thinking negatively affects tertiary students’ online-startup motivation.
Originality/value
This paper demonstrates the analysis of Chinese tertiary students’ online-startup motivation drawing on the COM-B behaviour changing and Hofstede cultural theories. Specifically, this study divides influencing factors into three specific aspects as follows: environmental opportunity, personal capability and social and cultural control. Unlike existing research applying traditional research models, the combination of the COM-B behaviour changing theory and the Hofstede cultural theory could be conducive to making the research model reflect influencing factors and present their different relationships.
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Ivan-Damir Anić, Ivana Kursan Milaković and Mitsunori Hirogaki
Based on the stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) model, this study examines how safety measures, related assistance and tangible benefits affect consumers' emotional and cognitive…
Abstract
Purpose
Based on the stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) model, this study examines how safety measures, related assistance and tangible benefits affect consumers' emotional and cognitive states, leading to behavioural responses in an uncertain store environment.
Design/methodology/approach
The proposed model was tested with the survey data collected from grocery shoppers in Japan and Croatia (n = 314 in each country) and analysed using structural equation modelling.
Findings
Safety measures and related assistance decreased perceived threat in Croatia, enhanced arousal in both countries and caused fear in Japan. Tangible benefits reduced fear in Japan and increased arousal in Croatia. In a crisis, perceived threats push unplanned buying and motivate consumers to protect themselves. Arousal drives unplanned buying but diverts consumers from health-focussed behaviour. Loyalty can be gained if fear is controlled.
Practical implications
To retain consumers, retailers should secure a safe shopping environment that reduces fear and provides enough benefits to outweigh the threat.
Originality/value
Using the S-O-R framework, this study enriches the literature on consumer behaviour in a pandemic by contributing new insights into (1) the impact of safety measures and tangible benefits as stimuli, (2) the organismic response through affective and cognitive states, (3) health-focussed behaviour as a novel outcome and (4) comparing the effects in the two countries.
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Ananya Bhattacharya, Ambika Zutshi and Ali Bavik
This paper aims to propose a “Four-F (finding facts, fostering alternates, fulfilling implementation and feasibility testing)” action plan to global food service businesses (FSB…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to propose a “Four-F (finding facts, fostering alternates, fulfilling implementation and feasibility testing)” action plan to global food service businesses (FSB) such as restaurants (dine-in/take away) to build resilience during times of global crises. The 2019 Coronavirus disease and FSBs apply as working examples elaborating the proposed Four-F action plan with several managerial implications for the internal and external stakeholders of FSBs.
Design/methodology/approach
The method involves reviewing and coding 108 articles using the PRISMA approach, then applying findings to develop the Four-F action plan integrating multiple theoretical concepts (such as stakeholder, crisis management and dynamic capabilities).
Findings
There are two key findings. First, though all four crisis phases should be considered by decision-makers as part of their contingency planning process, the pre and post-crisis stages need higher attention. Second, the Four-F action plan provides specific recommendations to FSBs stakeholders (consumers, suppliers and government) for each crisis phase (pre-crisis, crisis emergence, crisis occurrence and post-crisis).
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper that has incorporated multiple theoretical frameworks (stakeholder theory, crisis management and dynamic capabilities) within the FSBs context and provided the Four-F action plan for decision-makers to understand and manage crisis phases.
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Ruchi Gupta, Kiran Nair and Lakshmi Radhakrishnan
The current study investigates how consumers are reacting to the COVID-19 pandemic. The study aims to explain consumers' stockpiling and impulse buying behaviour during the…
Abstract
Purpose
The current study investigates how consumers are reacting to the COVID-19 pandemic. The study aims to explain consumers' stockpiling and impulse buying behaviour during the current crisis.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on the scope and focus of this study, our primary data collection tool was an online survey questionnaire that was sent to 1,000+ people and the results were computed from 417 responses received. The study employed Exploratory Factor Analysis to substantiate the construct validity of the constructs. Unidimensionality, validity and reliability of the model were assessed using confirmatory factor analysis. The effect of the COVID crisis on consumer stocking and impulse buying behaviour was investigated using structural equation modelling.
Findings
The findings show that the COVID pandemic did have a significant impact on consumer behavioural patterns indicated by the stocking and impulse buying behaviour of consumers.
Practical implications
These results have consequences for policymakers and practitioners in terms of adjusting inventory and response policies, especially in terms of efficient supply chain management processes and actively reaching out to customers to reduce their fear and anxiety levels, which contribute to such panic activity.
Originality/value
This paper adds value to the literature on consumer behaviour during COVID-19 pandemic in case of Indian consumers. The findings of the paper will help in doing a comparison of the said behaviour of consumers in other parts of the world. The paper also helps in explaining the underlying theories elucidating such behaviour of consumers.
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Nadia A. Abdelmegeed Abdelwahed and Bahadur Ali Soomro
The COVID-19 pandemic severely affected business and entrepreneurship activities worldwide. This study aims to investigate the factors influencing entrepreneurship development in…
Abstract
Purpose
The COVID-19 pandemic severely affected business and entrepreneurship activities worldwide. This study aims to investigate the factors influencing entrepreneurship development in an emerging economy’s small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Design/methodology/approach
The researchers applied a quantitative approach to this study, which used cross-sectional data as the basis of its findings. The researchers used a questionnaire to obtain responses from general managers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s (KSA) manufacturing industries.
Findings
Using structural equation modeling, the findings of the study suggest that, on the one hand, the fear of the COVID-19 pandemic and perceptions about its arrival had a negative impact on entrepreneurship development. On the other hand, stress and anxiety had no significant effect on entrepreneurship development.
Practical implications
This study’s findings guide policymakers, KSA’s government agents and industry owners to adopt preventive measures to limit fear, stress and anxiety associated with the expected complications of the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings also offer better solutions to controlling severe disturbances to the economic and social entrepreneurship of vulnerable startup companies, various SMEs and large-scale companies.
Originality/value
This study’s results reveal the severe complications of the COVID-19 pandemic and its remarkably devastating impact on entrepreneurship development.
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Rizwana Hameed, Naeem Akhtar and Anshuman Sharma
Utilizing the theoretical foundation of the stimulus-organism-response framework, the present work developed and investigated a conceptual model. The work explores the effects of…
Abstract
Purpose
Utilizing the theoretical foundation of the stimulus-organism-response framework, the present work developed and investigated a conceptual model. The work explores the effects of perceived risk of COVID-19 on tourists' choice hesitation and choice confidence. Furthermore, it examines the impacts of choice hesitation and choice confidence on psychological distress, which, in turn, influences purchase intentions and risk-protective behavior. Additionally, the study assesses the boundary effects of vulnerability on the association between choice hesitation, choice confidence, and psychological distress.
Design/methodology/approach
An online survey was administered in China during COVID-19 to assess the postulated hypotheses. We collected 491 responses using purposive sampling, and covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) was performed to investigate the relationships.
Findings
Results show that the perceived risk of COVID-19 positively influences the choice hesitation and negatively impact choice confidence. It was also found that choice hesitation and choice confidence positively developed psychological distress, which, in turn, negatively triggered purchase intentions and positively developed risk-protective behavior. Additionally, perceived vulnerability had a significant moderating impact on the proposed relationships, strengthening psychological distress.
Originality/value
In the current context, this study measures bipolar behavioral outcomes using the S-O-R model. Because cognitive processes influence participation in health preventative behavior during the spread of diseases, we highlighted how the perception of risk and vulnerability to a pandemic serves as a reliable indicator of certain behaviors. This study advances understanding of how the psychological mindset of tourists copes with such circumstances. Due to the pandemic, tourists face limitations in their choices and are placing greater emphasis on adopting protective measures to mitigate associated risks.