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Despite the growing importance of facial expressions in online brand communications, little is known about the positive and negative effects of replacing human facial expressions with emojis. To address this gap, this research examines how facial expressions (emojis versus human faces) shape consumers' emotional contagion and brand fun. Findings from three experimental studies (two online and one with eye-tracking) demonstrate that the presence of emojis increases brand fun due to the underlying mechanism of emotional contagion. However, although emojis might foster positive brand outcomes, they reduce credibility compared to brand communications using human faces. Finally, this research provides relevant managerial implications for brands that wish to create communications using facial expressions since emojis can positively impact product engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent technological advances have allowed businesses to adopt emojis when interacting with consumers. To gain in‐depth theoretical and managerial insight into this trend, five pre‐registered studies (1 field observation and four controlled experiments) indicate that emojis in digital communication work as heuristic cues that might have a differential effect depending on elaboration likelihood and outcome valence. Drawing on the Heuristic Information Processing and elaboration likelihood model, this research reveals that emojis can systematically influence consumers' elaboration. Findings indicate that low elaboration in positive encounters results in a positive heuristic cue boost (emojis improve customer evaluation). In turn, high elaboration on negative service outcomes makes the heuristic content relevant, such that positive (vs. negative) emojis will bring attention to and reinforce the interaction's positive (vs. negative) aspects. This research contributes to emerging studies on the role of emojis in digital communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although prior research indicates that crowdsourcing is primarily beneficial for companies, this work reveals, across three studies, that quality perceptions of crowd‐sourced (vs. company‐generated) products are shaped by relationship norms: communal norms (vs. exchange norms). Study 1 indicates that developing a communal (vs. exchange) relationship with the company enhances quality perceptions of crowdsourced (vs. company‐generated) products. Study 2 shows that firms' innovation ability works as an underlying mechanism: when consumers develop a communal (vs. exchange) bond with the company, they attribute greater innovation competence to crowdsourcing (vs. company‐generated innovations). Finally, study 3 reveals that the beneficial effects of communal (vs. exchange) norms on perceived quality crowdsourced products only hold when the product innovation lacks complexity, and the effect is mitigated with high‐complexity tasks. By demonstrating the importance of relationship norms and their interaction with innovation complexity, we resolve mixed findings on consumers quality perceptions towards crowdsourcing, contributing to recent studies and further offering important implications for firms seeking to leverage crowdsourcing strategies effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While previous research suggests that nostalgia can stimulate future‐oriented motivation and goal pursuit, the presence of conflicting findings complicate our understanding of the psychological and behavioral consequences of nostalgia. This study introduces and empirically validates a theoretical framework for nostalgia through a meta‐analysis of 90 effect sizes and 9757 aggregate samples from 22 experimental studies. Our findings enrich understanding of the effects of nostalgia, showing that compared to a control, nostalgia enhances consumers' sense of pleasantness, self‐continuity, attitudes, and behavioral intentions. We also identify several moderators that shape the effects of nostalgia, namely nostalgia activators, culture, and individual characteristics. Intriguingly, stronger behavioral intentions manifest in response to nostalgic events (rather than objects), realistic (over nonrealistic) scenarios, visual (as opposed to textual) priming, and female‐majority (vs. male‐majority) samples. However, we observe that long‐term (vs. short‐term) oriented cultures exhibit diminished nostalgia effects. Furthermore, we find no significant variations in responses based on age (older vs. younger), type of nostalgic experience (personal vs. collective), and sample type (students vs. nonstudents). Collectively, our meta‐analysis reveals the intricate dynamics of nostalgia, emphasizing its profound impact on consumer behavior as shaped by moderators such as nostalgia activators, culture, and individual characteristics, thereby providing a multifaceted and nuanced understanding of nostalgia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Business ethics research has long been interested in understanding the conditions under which ethical consumption is consistent versus context-dependent. Extant research suggests that many consumers fail to make consistent ethical consumption decisions and tend to engage in ethical decisions associated with ingroup (vs. outgroup) identity cues. To fill this gap, four experiments examine how construal levels moderate the influence of ingroup versus outgroup identity cues in ethical consumption. The studies support the contention that when consumers use concrete construal to process information, they will focus on ingroup cues and make ethical consumption decisions that are aligned with ingroup biases. However, when consumers use abstract construal, they will act more consistently with their inner goals rather than focusing on ingroup and outgroup cues. Social goodwill, which indicates desires to give back to society, is identified as mediating the effects. The findings have important implications for ethical consumption and social influence literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to examine how the relationship norms established between customers and brands influence customer perceptions of crowdsourcing (vs firm-generated) cues. Design/methodology/approach: Four studies (N = 851) examine the moderating role of relationship norms on product labeling cues (crowdsourcing vs firm-generated) effects on brand engagement, and the underlying mechanism of self-brand connection. Findings: The findings suggest that crowdsourcing (vs firm-generated) cues lead to higher brand engagement (Studies 1A–1B), mediated by self-brand connection (Studies 2–3). In addition, relationship norms moderate the effects (Study 3), such that under exchange brand relationships crowdsourcing (vs firm-generated) cues yield higher brand engagement, whereas communal brand relationships reverse such effects. Practical implications: The findings provide valuable managerial implications by highlighting the importance of using relationship norms as diagnostic cues to successfully implement crowdsourcing initiatives. Originality/value: This research adds to the customer-brand relationship literature by revealing an accessibility-diagnosticity perspective of consumers' reactions to crowdsourcing (vs firm-generated) cues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This research examines how construal level shapes the effectiveness of rational (vs emotional) messages for inducing cessation behaviors. Concrete mindsets foster self-improvement goals, whereas abstract mindsets boost self-relevance goals. Design/methodology/approach: In four studies, this research examines the moderating role of construal level on health messages and the underlying mechanism of goal pursuit. Findings: Results demonstrate that concrete (vs abstract) mindsets increase consumers' intent to engage in cessation behaviors when exposed to rational (vs emotional) messages. Consistent with this study's theorizing, the authors found that self-improvement goals underlie the effects for concrete mindsets, whereas self-relevance goals mediate the effects for abstract mindsets. Research limitations/implications: The reported effects are limited to health messages focusing on cessation behaviors. Practical implications: This research can help public policymakers to design more effective health messages to foster specific cessation behaviors – quitting smoking and reducing drinking – focusing on concrete (vs abstract) mindsets and rational (vs emotional) messages. Originality/value: This investigation highlights construal level as an important moderator for message appeals (rational vs emotional) on cessation behaviors, along with the underlying mechanism of goal pursuit, thus contributing to health marketing literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the documented benefits of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to the service industry, the service employees' fear of being replaced by AI continues to be a major concern as we transition to the Feeling Economy. This paper builds upon the Feeling Economy framework and the social comparison theory to examine how different service-related tasks (thinking vs feeling) distinctively impact the service employees' feelings and behavior. Five studies reveal that the presence of AI increases negative outcomes for employees engaging in thinking (vs. feeling) tasks due to its adverse effects on their perceived ability (i.e., relative performance). Findings further indicate that these detrimental effects only happen when service employees compare their abilities with those of AI. This research provides important theoretical and managerial implications, helping to mitigate AI's negative outcomes on employees' fear of replacement and reduced job performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to explore the association between over-indebtedness and two facets of well-being – life satisfaction and emotional well-being. Although prior research has associated over-indebtedness with lower life satisfaction, this study contributes to the extant literature by revealing its effects on emotional well-being, which is a crucial component of well-being that has received less attention. Besides subjective well-being (SWB), reported health, and sleep quality were also assessed. The findings suggest that over-indebted (compared to non-over-indebted) consumers have lower life satisfaction and emotional well-being, as well as poorer (reported) health and sleep quality. Furthermore, over-indebtedness impacts life satisfaction and emotional well-being through different mechanisms. Consumers decreased perceived control accounts for the impact of over-indebtedness on both facets of well-being (as well as on reported health and sleep). Financial well-being (a specific component of life satisfaction), partly mediates the impact of indebtedness status on overall life satisfaction. The current study contributes to research focusing on the relationship between indebtedness, well-being, health, and sleep quality, and provides relevant theoretical and practical implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This research aims to develop and test the traditionscapes framework in which consumers appropriate local traditions as a resource to foster cultural identity in emerging markets. Design/methodology/approach: A multi-level research approach with qualitative (n = 38) and quantitative data (n = 600) was employed in the context of gaucho traditions in the southern part of Brazil (Rio Grande do Sul state). Findings: The findings indicate that traditionscapes operate in a fluid process that engenders local culture attachment into tradition value through the consumer identification process. Traditionscapes build a sense of local cultural attachment that functions as a source of social, cultural, and local identification. Findings also support our three-stage traditionscapes framework, emphasizing the identification process that depends on consumers' global culture resistance. Originality/value: This research provides a novel viewpoint to the well-established relationship between tradition and globalization in consumption studies. We contribute to this debate by shifting the discussion to the fluid process of traditionscapes in which tradition value is engendered through consumer appropriation and identification with local traditions, even in a globalized context. Although recent research suggests that global culture can disrupt local traditions, traditionscapes operate as an extended perspective that coexists with other global cultural flows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research examines customer engagement in social media (CESM) using a meta-analytic model of 814 effect sizes across 97 studies involving 161,059 respondents. Findings reveal that customer engagement is driven by satisfaction, positive emotions, and trust, but not by commitment. Satisfaction is a stronger predictor of customer engagement in high (vs. low) convenience, B2B (vs. B2C), and Twitter (vs. Facebook and Blogs). Twitter appears twice as likely as other social media platforms to improve customer engagement via satisfaction and positive emotions. Customer engagement is also found to have substantial value for companies, directly impacting firm performance, behavioral intention, and word-of-mouth. Moreover, hedonic consumption yields nearly three times stronger customer engagement to firm performance effects vis-à-vis utilitarian consumption. However, contrary to conventional managerial wisdom, word-of-mouth does not improve firm performance nor does it mediate customer engagement effects on firm performance. Contributions to customer engagement theory, including an embellishment of the customer engagement mechanics definition, and practical implications for managers are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to extend the model of goal-directed behavior, by deepening its emotional path and including new variables to predict tourist behavioral intention: hedonism, destination experience, and tourism innovativeness. Based on a final sample of 457 European tourist nationals, the findings showed the significant influence of hedonism and tourism innovativeness on tourist desire. In addition, findings uncover the mediating role of hedonism on the emotional path. The findings also extend previous research by revealing that not all destination experience dimensions (sensory, affective, behavioral, and intellectual) equally influence tourist behavioral intention. Indeed, only sensory and intellectual destination experience dimensions were found to affect behavioral intention. The findings have important implications for tourism managers crafting destination experiences and contribute to tourism research by presenting a more comprehensive framework of goal-directed behavior applied to tourism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By analyzing three experimental studies, this research tests how and when sophisticated service environment designs (compared to modest service designs) can minimize consumers' negative emotions and increase repurchase intentions after a failure. Drawing on part‐list cueing literature, this research proposes that when a service failure occurs in a sophisticated (vs. modest) environment, consumers will rely on the sophisticated style of design as cues for service quality. We argue that sophisticated (vs. modest) service designs work as strong cues for quality that restrict the retrieval of negative information by consumers and can minimize the negative impacts of service failure, reducing consumers' negative emotions and increasing repurchase intentions. We further advance our theorizing by showing how choice failure consequences (i.e., the risk or consequence related to the service choice) moderate the effects via associative pathways of retrieval. The findings contribute to theory and practice by revealing how service designs can serve as cues to mitigate adverse consequences of service failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to reconcile previous research that has provided mixed results regarding motivation for sustainable behaviors: pure altruism (cooperation) or competitive altruism (status). Drawing on evolutionary altruism and identity-based motivation, the authors propose that a match between pure (competitive) altruism and individualistic (collectivistic) identity goals enhance consumers' motivations to engage in recycling (green buying). Design/methodology/approach: Three experimental studies show how pure and competitive altruism are associated with specific sustainable consumption (Study 1) and how altruism types should be matched with identity goals to motivate sustainable consumption (Studies 2 and 3). Findings: Study 1 shows that pure altruism is associated with recycling but not with green buying. Studies 2 and 3 show that pure (competitive) altruism and individualistic (collectivistic) goals lead to higher recycling (green buying) intentions. Research limitations/implications: The present research extends previous findings by showing that pure and competitive are indeed associated with specific sustainable behaviors. The authors suggest that the interaction between motives and identity goals can lead to a greater impact on recycling and green buying intentions. Practical implications: Public policymakers and companies will benefit by better understanding how specific combinations of altruism types and identity goals can foster recycling or green buying intentions. Originality/value: This research is the first to show how matches between pure and competitive altruism types and individualistic and collectivistic identity goals affect consumers' motivations to engage in recycling and green buying. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to explore the effects of gender and salient identity on sustainable consumption. In particular, this research investigates how gender effects on sustainable consumption may be contingent to the identity that is salient to the consumer during the evaluation process (personal vs. social). According to identity-based motivation theory, the salience of personal identity means that people temporarily think about themselves as individuals, whereas social identity salience means that people see themselves as part of a group. The results from an experimental study indicated that when personal identity was salient, female participants declared higher levels of sustainable consumption compared with male participants. However, when social identity was salient, male participants increased their sustainable consumption intentions to the same level as female participants. Finally, this research discusses the theoretical and managerial implications on identities, gender and sustainable consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present research analyses how personal values influence environmentally responsible water consumption in Brazil. This research reports a four-part study that is focused on both the influence of demographics (1a and 1b) and the influence of personal values (2 and 3). In general, environmental awareness has an effect on wasteful habits. Regarding demographics, we found that green consumers tend to be older and have lower levels of education. Our results also suggest that personal values influence responsible water consumption. Responsible consumers usually attach more importance to personal values such as conformity and personal virtues. Socially oriented values were seen to increase responsible consumption. Finally, the study demonstrates that environmental awareness and personal values could predict wasteful habits, enabling a broader comprehension of green consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]