Branding beyond the gender binary Cooke, Angelica; Russell‐Bennett, Rebekah; Wang, Di ...
Psychology & marketing,
August 2022, Letnik:
39, Številka:
8
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Gender is a fundamental pillar of personal identity, and as such, gendered brand personality is an equally important aspect of brand identity, as it enables consumers to express their gender identity ...through consumption. However, as gender attitudes and identities change to reflect the broader culture, marketers must continuously re‐evaluate how changing gender attitudes and identities will impact consumers' responses to gendered brands. This paper examines the effect of congruence between Gendered Brand Personality and consumer psychological gender on brand outcomes using two online experiments with USA and UK samples. Our findings indicate that congruence between brand gender and psychological gender increases brand equity and purchase intention in brand gender communication contexts including through logo, model, and usage setting. This congruence effect is driven by consumer self‐referencing. A follow‐up qualitative study using a focus group adds additional insights for the congruence effect in terms of potential boundary conditions and alternative underlying mechanisms beyond self‐referencing. These findings suggest that marketers should design their own brand personality to be in line with target consumers' psychological gender.
Despite investigating digital gaming for commercial purposes, less scholarly attention exists on digital gaming for societal purposes such as sustainability (“serious games”). The current study ...investigates whether a serious game can enhance sustainability marketing outcomes, including knowledge, value‐in‐behavior, and behavioral intentions longitudinally (pre‐gameplay to post‐gameplay). Further, the study seeks to understand the influence of reward‐based and meaningful game mechanics on these sustainability marketing outcomes. We recruited 387 participants for a week‐long field study using a serious game which encourages household energy conservation. The findings show that the serious game significantly increased sustainability knowledge, value‐in‐behavior, and sustainable behavioral intention after one week. Reward‐based game mechanics (badges and trophies) significantly influenced sustainability knowledge and indirectly influenced value‐in‐behavior via sustainability knowledge, whereas reward‐based (points) and meaningful (educational messages) game mechanics had little impact. The results empirically support the conceptual model theorization—underpinned by a “do–learn–feel” behavioral learning approach—which possessed superior fit to a “do–feel–learn” rival model. This study provides novel insights regarding eliciting value‐in‐behavior longitudinally within serious games. Our multidimensional approach to assessing reward‐based game mechanics extends prior studies and suggests that higher‐tier rewards are more influential than lower‐tiered rewards to achieve sustainability marketing outcomes. We further demonstrate that reward‐based game mechanics outperform meaningful game mechanics at influencing desired outcomes, challenging existing gaming literature.
Food and nutrition insecurity occurs when healthy and safe food cannot be obtained by socially acceptable means and arises as a result of complex interactions between socioeconomic and demographic ...determinants. These factors contribute to discrepancies in health and well‐being between men and women and may also explain differential rates of food insecurity. The objectives of this cross‐sectional study were to investigate the intersection between gender, education, nutrition knowledge and food security status within a high‐income country context. Australian adults over 16 years of age who identified as having primary responsibility for food in their household were recruited via social media and a panel. Respondents completed a self‐administered survey that included sociodemographic data, nutrition‐related knowledge and food security status. Food security was measured using the Australian Household Food and Nutrition Security Scale an adapted version of the United States Department of Agriculture Household Food Security Survey. Among the 1010 survey respondents, household food insecurity (HFI) was highly prevalent (43% were food insecure, with 26% of these severely food insecure). Gender may affect associations between education, nutrition knowledge and HFI. Education was significantly associated with HFI among women but not among men. Conversely, nutrition knowledge was significantly inversely associated with food security among men but not among women. Differences in determinants of HFI exist between men and women, and programs aimed at addressing food insecurity may be more effective if tailored accordingly to account for the social and demographic factors associated with HFI.
PurposeThe human service triad (i.e. the relationship between the customer, frontline employee (FLE) and managerial employee) experiences a range of well-being challenges when faced with the ...introduction of service robots. Despite growth in service robot scholarship, understanding of the well-being challenges affecting the human service triad remains fragmented. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to synthesise the literature and offer a research agenda aligned with the proposed Robotic-Human Service Trilemma. By taking a job performance approach (which considers the actions, behaviours and outcomes linked to organisational goals), the Robotic-Human Service Trilemma conceptualises three well-being challenges (intrusion, sideline and interchange). These challenges are realised via the realistic capabilities and constraints of service robot implementation.Design/methodology/approachThis research relies on a systematic review of all disciplines concerning service robots. In total, 82 articles were analysed using thematic coding and led to the development of the Robotic-Human Service Trilemma and research agenda.FindingsThe analyses reveal the Robotic-Human Service Trilemma consists of three challenges: intrusion, sideline and indifference. The findings demonstrate that FLEs are required to counterbalance the constraints of service robots, leading to an uneven well-being burden within the human service triad. This paper suggests a research agenda for investigation of the challenges that underpin the Robotic-Human Service Trilemma.Originality/valueThrough the conceptualisation of the Robotic-Human Service Trilemma, this study is the first to explore how states of well-being equilibrium exist within the human service triad and how these states are challenged by service robots. The authors present a balanced centricity perspective to well-being that contrasts previous trade-off approaches and that enhances the body of service robot literature with a well-being lens.
Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to highlight important issues in the study of dysfunctional customer behavior and to provide a research agenda to inspire, guide, and enthuse. Through a ...critical evaluation of existing research, the aim is to highlight key issues and to present potentially worthy avenues for future study.Design methodology approach - In reviewing recent and past advances in the study of customers behaving badly, an overview of existing research into customers behaving badly and addressing issues of terminology and definition is provided. Thereafter, three perspectives that provide the most opportunity and insight in studying the darker side of service dynamics are outlined. This leads to a review of some of the research design and methodological problems and issues that are faced when rigorously studying these issues. Subsequently, the paper devotes a section to the provocative idea that while dysfunctional customer behavior has many negative influences on customers, employees, and service firms, there are actually some positive functions of customers behaving badly.Findings - A research agenda is provided that is believed to identify and discuss a range of projects that comprises not only insightful theoretical contributions but is also practically relevant.Originality value - The paper identifies a range of issues about which managers should be aware and proactively manage.
ABSTRACT
Despite the increasing use of technology, there is little research in the marketing literature that examines how games can encourage households to achieve socially responsible behaviors such ...as energy efficiency. Social marketing is a subdiscipline of marketing that applies technology such as serious games in the pursuit of socially responsible behaviors. We investigate in this study how a serious mobile game (m‐game) (Reduce Your Juice) can encourage households to perform energy‐efficient behaviors by conducting group interviews with six households (n = 17) in Brisbane, Australia. The findings reveal that households gained knowledge and were motivated and persuaded to engage in energy‐efficient behaviors as the result of the customer experience of playing the serious m‐game. We provide practitioners with implications for game design and evidence that serious m‐games can encourage group level behaviors such as household energy efficiency.
These studies draw on evolutionary psychology and intrasexual female competition to examine why female shoppers often prefer working with gay male (GM) sales associates over heterosexual female (HF) ...sales associates. Study 1 finds that female shoppers often attribute trustworthiness to GM sales associates. Study 2 draws on theories of intrasexual competition and shows that female shoppers are more likely to trust product recommendations from a GM sales associate than an HF sales associate when they feel a sense of competitiveness with the female associate. Study 3 reveals that female shoppers’ trust in GM sales associates is limited to situations in which they are intending to purchase products that are meant to enhance their physical appearance. Study 4 extends these findings by showing that women are more likely to trust GM sales associates (vs. HF sales associates) when the objective of their purchase is to attract a desirable mate. The findings suggest that retailers should hire a diverse workforce and consider the role of e‐commerce in helping some female shoppers avoid potentially uncomfortable situations.
PurposeA transformative service aims to improve wellbeing; however, current approaches have an implicit assumption that all wellbeing dimensions are equal and more dimensions led to higher wellbeing. ...The purpose of this paper is to present evidence for a new framework that identifies the paradox of competing wellbeing dimensions for both the individual and others in society – the transformative service paradox (TSP).Design/methodology/approachData is drawn from a mixed-method approach using qualitative (interviews) and quantitative data (lab experiment) in an electricity service context. The first study involves 45 household interviews (n = 118) and deals with the nature of trade-offs at the individual level to establish the concept of the TSP. The second study uses a behavioral economics laboratory experiment (n = 110) to test the self vs. other nature of the trade-off in day-to-day use of electricity.FindingsThe interviews and experiment identified that temporal (now vs. future) and beneficiary-level factors explain why individuals make wellbeing trade-offs for the transformative service of electricity. The laboratory experiment showed that when the future implication of the trade-off is made salient, consumers are more willing to forego physical wellbeing for environmental wellbeing, whereas when the “now” implication is more salient consumers forego financial wellbeing for physical wellbeing.Originality/valueThis research introduces the term “Transformative Service Paradox” and identifies two factors that explain why consumers make wellbeing trade-offs at the individual level and at the societal level; temporal (now vs. future) and wellbeing beneficiary.
Social marketing by Western governments that use fear tactics and threatening information to promote anti‐drinking messages has polarized ‘binge drinking’ and ‘moderate drinking’ through a continuum ...that implies benefits and harms for both individuals and society. With the goal of extending insights into social marketing approaches that promote safer drinking cultures in Australia, we discuss findings from a study that examines alcohol consumers' moderate‐drinking intentions. By applying the theory of planned behaviour and emotions theory, we discuss survey results from a sample of alcohol consumers, which demonstrate that positively framed value propositions that evoke happiness and love are more influential in the processing of an alcohol moderation message for alcohol consumers. The key limitations of this study are the cross‐sectional nature of the data and the focal‐dependent variable being behavioural intentions rather than behaviours. Research insight into the stronger influence of positive emotions on processing an alcohol moderation message establishes an important avenue for future social marketing communications that moves beyond negative, avoidance appeals to promote behaviour change in drinkers. These research findings will benefit professionals involved in developing social change campaigns that promote and reinforce consumers' positive intentions, with messages about the benefits of controlled, moderate drinking.
Issue Addressed: Colorectal cancer (CRC) screening through fecal occult blood testing (FOBT) has saved thousands of lives globally with multiple countries adopting comprehensive population wide ...screening programs. Participation rates in FOBT based CRC screening for the socially and economically disadvantaged remains low. The aim of this systematic review is to explore empirical evidence that will guide targeted interventions to improve participation rates within priority populations.
Methods: PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Cinahl and PsycInfo were systematically searched from inception to 22 June 2022. Eligible studies contained qualitative evidence identifying barriers to FOBT based CRC screening for populations impacted by the social determinants of health. An inductive thematic synthesis approach was applied using grounded theory methodology, to explore descriptive themes and interpret these into higher order analytical constructs and theories.
Results: A total of 8,501 publications were identified and screened. A total of 48 studies from 10 countries were eligible for inclusion, representing 2,232 subjects. Coding within included studies resulted in 30 key descriptive themes with a thematic frequency greater than 10%. Coded themes applied to four overarching, interconnected barriers driving inequality for priority populations: social, behavioural, economic and technical/interfaces.
So What?: This study has highlighted the need for stronger patient/provider relationships to mitigate barriers to FOBT screening participation for diverse groups. Findings can assist health professionals and policy makers address the systemic exclusion of priority populations in cancer screening by moving beyond the responsibility of the individual to a focus on addressing the information asymmetry driving low value perceptions.
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