Samantha N. N. Cross, Meng-Hsien (Jenny) Lin and Terry L. Childers
The authors broaden the scope of consumer identity by introducing individuals’ olfactory abilities and discussing its impact on perception of the self, consumption behaviors, and…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors broaden the scope of consumer identity by introducing individuals’ olfactory abilities and discussing its impact on perception of the self, consumption behaviors, and consumer well-being.
Methodology/approach
The authors took a mixed-method approach by embedding smell tests during in-depth interviews. A total of 36 interviews were conducted, involving individuals with varying olfactory sensitivity levels, from decreased sensitivity, normal sensitivity, to heightened sensitivity to smell.
Findings
Emergent themes from the interviews include compensation, perception of self and control under three key areas: levels of olfactory sensitivity, the impact of olfactory sensitivity, and the coping strategies used by participants and their families. These findings show that olfactory sensitivity can either enhance or detract from the consumption experience or trigger memories of people, locations or experiences, indirectly affecting consumer well-being and quality of life.
Practical/social implications
Findings reveal that olfactory abilities not only shape and form an individual’s identity but also have a profound impact on (1) consumption behavior: time spent browsing or lingering, purchase order, product choice, or shopping venue which has immense practical implications for marketers; and (2) consumer well-being: developing coping strategies at both the individual and family level to mitigate the issues faced in consumption.
Originality/value
Unlike the other senses, olfactory abilities are often overseen and neglected. The authors show that olfactory abilities are both relevant and salient. The paper is forefront in demonstrating how sensory abilities shape individuals’ identities and in turn influence consumption practices and experiences.
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Meng-Hsien (Jenny) Lin, Samantha N.N. Cross and Terry L. Childers
The purpose of this paper is to explore the mediating role of emotions in processing scent information in consumer research, using event-related potential (ERP)-based neuroscience…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the mediating role of emotions in processing scent information in consumer research, using event-related potential (ERP)-based neuroscience methods, while considering individual differences in sense of smell.
Design/methodology/approach
Prior research on olfaction and emotions in marketing has revealed mixed findings on the relationship between olfaction and emotion. The authors review earlier studies and present a neuroscience experiment demonstrating the benefits of ERP methods in studying the automatic processing of emotions.
Findings
Results demonstrate how emotional processes occurring within 1s of stimulus exposure differ across individuals with varying olfactory abilities. Findings reveal an automatic suppression mechanism for individuals sensitive to smell.
Research limitations/implications
Scent-induced emotions demonstrated through the use of ERP-based methods provide insights for understanding automatic emotional processes and reactions to ambient scents by consumers in the marketplace.
Practical implications
Findings show an automatic suppression of emotions triggered by scent in individuals sensitive to smell. Marketers and retailers should consider such reactions when evaluating the use of olfactory stimuli in promotional and retail strategies.
Originality/value
The authors review past literature and provide an explanation for the disparate findings in the olfaction–emotion linkage, by studying individual differences in response to scent in the marketplace. This is one of the first papers in marketing to introduce the application of ERP in studying consumer-relevant behavior and provide technical and marketing-specific considerations for both academic and market researchers.
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Meng-Hsien (Jenny) Lin, Samantha N.N. Cross, William J. Jones and Terry L. Childers
This paper aims to review past papers focused on understanding consumer-related topics in marketing and related interdisciplinary fields to demonstrate the applications of…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to review past papers focused on understanding consumer-related topics in marketing and related interdisciplinary fields to demonstrate the applications of electroencephalogram (EEG) in consumer neuroscience.
Design/methodology/approach
In addition to the review of papers using EEG to study consumer cognitive processes, the authors also discuss relevant decisions and considerations in conducting event-related potential (ERP) studies. Further, a framework proposed by Plassmann et al. (2015) was used to discuss the applications of EEG in marketing research from papers reviewed.
Findings
This paper successfully used Plassmann et al.’s (2015) framework to discuss five applications of neuroscience to marketing research. A review of growing EEG studies in the field of marketing and other interdisciplinary fields reveals the advantages and potential of using EEG in combination with other methods. This calls for more research using such methods.
Research limitations/implications
A technical overview of ERP-related terminology provides researchers with a background for understanding and reviewing ERP studies. A discussion of method-related considerations and decisions provides marketing researchers with an introduction to the method and refers readers to relevant literature.
Practical implications
The marketing industry has been quick to adopt cutting edge technology, including EEG, to understand and predict consumer behavior for the purpose of improving marketing practices. This paper connects the academic and practitioner spheres by presenting past and potential EEG research that can be translatable to the marketing industry.
Originality/value
The authors review past literature on the use of EEG to study consumer-related topics in marketing and interdisciplinary fields, to demonstrate its advantages over-traditional methods in studying consumer-relevant behaviors. To foster increasing use of EEG in consumer neuroscience research, the authors further provide technical and marketing-specific considerations for both academic and market researchers. This paper is one of the first to review past EEG papers and provide methodological background insights for marketing researchers.
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Highlights the importance of ensuring the highest possible returnrates when using mail surveys. Describes a study investigating thedifference in return rates between a parent…
Abstract
Highlights the importance of ensuring the highest possible return rates when using mail surveys. Describes a study investigating the difference in return rates between a parent company and a fictitious consulting firm. Reports that there was no difference between response rates for two different return addresses, and that response bias was not a problem. Concludes therefore that great cost savings can be made as a result of developing and mailing the materials in‐house. Summarizes research literature on response rate surveys.
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Ed Chung and Kim Whalen
This article is premised on the idea that social networks represent an important, but often overlooked, unit of analysis in management and entrepreneurship studies. The concept of…
Abstract
This article is premised on the idea that social networks represent an important, but often overlooked, unit of analysis in management and entrepreneurship studies. The concept of embeddedness, emphasizing the significance of social relationships, is of particular relevance as more and more frequently minorities and immigrants engage in small businessownership. This article borrows from the ethnicity and social network traditions, and offers that an analysis of the ethnic homogeneity of an entrepreneur's strong and weak social ties would be fruitful in gauging entrepreneurial success.
Michael S. LaTour and Scott D. Roberts
Examines a new addition to thinking on adoption and diffusion ofservice innovations – the Cultural AnchoringDiffusion/Assimilation Model. Suggests that certain service…
Abstract
Examines a new addition to thinking on adoption and diffusion of service innovations – the Cultural Anchoring Diffusion/Assimilation Model. Suggests that certain service innovations may encourage a type of psychological dependence that leads an individual′s self‐concept to become linked to his or her usage of a new service. Recommends, as a result of this model, several strategies for service marketing managers.
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Rui Carlos Estrela, Francisco Costa Pereira and Jorge Bruno Ventura
– The purpose of this paper is to intend to understand how children organize their representational heritage of brands and what influences they may have had to build it.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to intend to understand how children organize their representational heritage of brands and what influences they may have had to build it.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors carried out a research divided into two parts, one with a questionnaire in which the authors characterized children and identify their behaviours when they are watching TV and surfing the net with an open question which asked them to list which brands they knew. Another qualitative research in which two focus groups were followed with the parents on the consumption habits of their children. The sample includes 602 children between eight and 11 years old. Regarding the parents, 19 participated in the two focus groups, a first in a middle-class area and a second in a lower-class area.
Findings
Children spend many hours during the week and the weekend watching TV and on the internet. As for the representation of consumption, the data were processed by gathering the brands per product categories with specific software that showed the authors, through a lexicographical analysis, a mental representation that anchors on two cores. One regards food and gathers in a star a wide range of product categories and other regarding clothing, more cognitively complex, forming stars and circles.
Research limitations/implications
It was not possible to isolate two samples of children in middle class and lower class as was done with the parents, which did not allow checking this symbolic dimension of brands between these two groups. Parents’ occupations did not allow the authors to clearly identify social classes and in the attempts the authors made that were not reliable by combining the occupation of the father and of the mother.
Practical implications
Children are an important group to be studied, since their attitudes towards products and brands are still in a formative stage and their current experiences will affect their preferences for brands and their behaviours on the market as suggest the authors. This study may contribute to the development of marketing strategies for children by identifying the meanings of food and clothing brands that they own.
Social implications
This research offers the authors clues so that in the future it can be confirmed that lower-classes children are more attentive to the symbolic dimension of brands as a way of self-expression.
Originality/value
A new research method using mental maps which allows for a sharper, more specific analysis, where the distinction between genders and age groups can be detected very clearly.