Search results

This paper aims to assess retail shopping avenues for young consumers based on the type of guidance and assistance they pursue (social media vs professional service provider) in purchasing situations judged to be important. Young consumers consider themselves pet parents and pets represent an extension of self. Thus, pet-related products, by their importance, represent an excellent area of analysis for this inquiry.

Data collection was completed in a way that is contextually relevant and gives the results ecological validity with the assistance of a major supplier of pet food. A total of 470 Gen Z owners of small companion animals were obtained. The partial least squares structural equation modeling testing method is considered appropriate for the model analysis due to the structure and homogeneity of the sample and due to the precision of the method.

Results indicate that, in accordance with social media engagement (SME) theory, high SME elevated social commerce purchase intentions while professional advice seekers reported increased brick-and-mortar shopping. Thus, context-dependent, young consumers may purchase from brick-and-mortar sites.

This paper draws on SME and Advice Response Theory and proposes an original model explaining channel selection preferences for young consumers based on the type of advice sought for important purchasing decisions. The model represents a steppingstone to investigate the mechanism that translates information search sources into buying through different channels.

Integrating social comparison and social identity theories, this study aims to examine students’ emotional and behavioral responses to the use of ChatGPT in academic settings, focusing on intrinsic motivation, dissonance, envy, schadenfreude and artificial intelligence (AI) usage intentions.

The research design consisted of two sequential survey-based studies with undergraduate business students. Study 1, analyzed with SmartPLS, measured students’ intrinsic motivation, cognitive engagement, dispositional envy, emotional dissonance and schadenfreude experienced in response to academic dishonesty related to ChatGPT. Study 2 explored the motivations behind students’ future use of AI tools, examining ethical considerations and emotional responses.

Study 1 determined that higher levels of cognitive engagement reduce dissonance and envy among highly motivated students. Nevertheless, driven by cognitive engagement, dissonance and envy, it was established that highly motivated students experience schadenfreude when others are caught misusing ChatGPT. In contrast, low-motivated students only feel schadenfreude as a product of dissonance and envy. The focus of Study 2 was on the adoption of ChatGPT. Results indicate that future usage is driven by ethical considerations for highly motivated students, whereas less dissonance is key for low-motivated students.

The study’s originality lies in its exploration of schadenfreude in the context of AI use among students, highlighting how cognitive engagement and motivation influence emotional responses. Drawing on social comparison and social identity theories, it sheds new light on the dynamics of academic integrity and the emotional landscape surrounding AI tools like ChatGPT, thus filling a research gap in understanding student behavior and perceptions in higher education.

The purpose of this study is to determine if regional proximity and fan club involvement could be used to predict success for brands that jointly sponsor a team and their key rival.

A brand with regional proximity to the rival teams it sponsored was identified. Fan club members of a major college sports team served as respondents. Structural equation modeling was used to test a model that predicted antecedents to purchase intentions and positive word-of-mouth based on individual fan characteristics.

Results suggest that the intrinsic and social components of fanship as well as regional proximity facilitate the success of brands jointly sponsoring rivals. The intrinsic dimension of fandom foreshadowed approval of the joint sponsorship investigated but did not directly enhance the sponsor’s brand equity. Instead, it was demonstrated that fans must first approve of the joint sponsorship arrangement before conferring elevated brand equity onto the sponsor. Increased social interaction with the fan club resulted in higher levels of purchase intentions and positive word-of-mouth of the joint sponsor.

This study differs from prior studies investigating joint sponsors in four ways. First, the intrinsic and social dimensions of fanship were measured within the context of a fan community. Second, the context of the study included a sponsor with regional proximity to both rival teams. Third, it was determined that the proclivity for social interaction within a fan community enhances the positive outcomes for joint sponsors. Fourth, unlike previous research studying joint sponsors, this study demonstrates a path to success for these brands.

Data was obtained from students from 39 universities in 24 countries, part of a large experiential exercise, X-Culture, who worked remotely in cross-cultural teams to solve business problems. The purpose of this study is to develop and test, using structural equation modeling, a conceptual model that identifies the determinants of satisfaction with teamwork.

Data was obtained from participants, students from universities from 39 universities in 24 countries, in a large experiential exercise, X-Culture, who worked remotely in cross-cultural teams to solve business problems. A conceptual model that identifies determinants of satisfaction with teamwork was developed and tested using structural equation modeling.

Satisfaction with teamwork is related to cultural intelligence (CQ), team identity and team climate. Interestingly, CQ of individual team members does not directly impact satisfaction with teamwork. Team identification and team climate, variables that require personal engagement and goodwill, mediate the effects of CQ on satisfaction.

Results suggest that team identification and team climate are important antecedents and explanatory mechanisms for developing satisfaction with teamwork. Having culturally intelligent team members is a necessary, but insufficient condition for satisfying teamwork. Therefore, to increase satisfaction with global virtual teamwork, teams need more than simply culturally intelligent team members. Increased satisfaction requires that team members identify with their team and develop a favorable team climate. The authors suggest education recommendations for global virtual teams.

This study aims to advance services marketing research by examining how credence claims, such as sustainability messaging, shape social norms and decision-making behaviors among professional service providers (PSPs). It introduces a typology of PSPs based on their integration of sustainability expertise and normative beliefs. In doing so, the study demonstrates service providers’ role in influencing brand recommendations. By positioning PSPs as intermediaries who translate sustainability knowledge into actionable guidance, the research highlights how credible eco-claims drive pro-social behaviors, underscoring the importance of services marketing in promoting pro-environmental actions and fostering societal change.

A sample of 467 veterinarians were contacted from across North America with the assistance of a major pet food supplier. Structural equation modeling measured the degree to which social norms, a belief in eco-claims and sustainability expertise shaped sustainability importance for professionals. A post hoc 2 × 2 typology placed professionals in quadrants based on eco-related factors, with sustainability-based brand recommendations analyzed based on their quadrant placement.

Social norms and sustainability expertise were instrumental in predicting the importance of professionals’ environmental stewardship. The typology determined that each quadrant of professionals reported significantly different likelihoods of recommending eco-friendly products to their clients.

This study introduces a novel perspective in services marketing by linking sustainability messaging to social norms and decision-making. It presents a unique typology of PSP profiles based on sustainability expertise and normative influences. By positioning PSPs as intermediaries who translate sustainability knowledge into actionable guidance, the research emphasizes the service sector’s capability of driving pro-environmental behaviors and advancing sustainable practices.

This investigation builds on two domains. First, professional service providers, such as dentists and veterinarians, represent an understudied link in the distribution channel. Their recommendation of products, such as toothpaste and pet food, are impactful to their clientele. Second, for consumers, sustainability is growing as a motivating factor in product consideration. Consequently, brands committed to sustainability want to promote their products accordingly to connect with the consumer. The purpose of this study is to determine how to trust in sustainable brands is built in the mind of professional service providers, as they are influential in their clients’ decision process.

Structural equation modeling was used to test the conceptual model that predicted how brand trust of sustainable products is built in the mind of the professional service provider using a sample of 457 veterinarians.

Results revealed that trust in sustainable brands is built via professionals’ expertise in sustainability and their perception of the importance of sustainability. Additionally, the perception of altruistic motivations had a positive impact on brand trust while the perception of strategic motivations had no influence on trust in sustainable brands.

Previous studies typically examine sustainability in an organizational context or as a brand consideration factor for consumers. This research focuses on professional service providers, who operate independently of the organization, alongside the formal distribution channel. The study examines how their perception of sustainability importance and their perceived motives of brands engaging in sustainability activities impacts their trust in sustainable brands.

This study aims to offer a bibliometric analysis of the already substantial and growing literature on global virtual teams (GVTs).

Using a systematic literature review approach, it identifies all articles in the Web of Science from 1999 to 2021 that include the term GVTs (in the title, the abstract or keywords) and finds 175 articles. The VOSviewer software was applied to analyze the bibliometric data.

The analysis revealed three dialogizing research clusters in the GVTs literature: a pioneering management information systems and organizational cluster, a general management cluster and a growing international management and behavioural studies cluster. Furthermore, it highlights the most cited articles, authors, journals and nations, and the network of strong and weak links regarding co-authorships and co-citations. Additionally, this study shows a change in research patterns regarding topics, journals and disciplinary approaches from 1999 to 2021. Finally, the analysis illustrates the position and centrality in the network of the most relevant actors.

The findings can guide management practitioners, educators and researchers to the most meaningful clusters of publications on GVTs, and help navigate and make sense of the vast body of the available literature. The importance of GVTs has been growing in the past two decades, and Covid-19 has accelerated the trend.

This study provides an updated and comprehensive systematic literature review on GVTs. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, it is also the first systematic literature review and bibliometry on GVTs. It concludes by suggesting future research paths.

Examines the concept of adaptation as it relates to the start‐up and survival of small businesses over time. Adaptation is approached as the making of appropriate adjustments to the business and its strategic focus, as the venture evolves from an initial idea to a successful business. It is proposed that adaptation has three relevant components: the firm’s capacity to adapt, how much it actually adapts, and the strategies it relies upon to adapt. A conceptual model and hypotheses are proposed, relating the entrepreneur, the organizational context and the external environment to these three components of adaptation, and relating the components of adaptation to performance. Results from a cross‐sectional survey of small business founder/owners suggest that characteristics of the entrepreneur and levels of environmental change are especially important determinants of the three components of adaptation, and that levels of and strategies for adapting are related to organizational performance. A number of implications are drawn from the findings and suggestions are made for ongoing research.

Romania was a centrally planned economy until 1990. Over 1950 to 1975 large-scale government investments were made into heavy industry and hence productivity increased. Performance was measured against required production quotas rather than quality products that could be exported (Bacon, 2004). Compared to most other Central and Eastern European countries, Romania had little prior experimentation with market practices, so when the change occurred it was even more significant (Bacon, 2004). Romanians initially enjoyed their new economic freedoms and imported consumables previously not permitted. Inflation increased and workers sought higher wages, with consequential negative effects on output (Daianu, 2004). The government also expended large amounts, particularly foreign exchange reserves, prior to elections. Meanwhile, supranationals, such as the International Finance Corporation (IFC), World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), all funded Romania's burgeoning market economy. In 1993, a pyramid-type scheme offering huge returns for money invested for 3 years blossomed and became so large it rivalled gross domestic product (GDP) at the time. Hence the 1990s was a period of instability despite efforts to transform the economy to market practices.