| Abstracts |
Commentary on "Mediation analysis and categorical variablels: the final frontier" by Dawn Iacobucci
David P. MacKinnon, Matthew G. Cox
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
The commentary discusses several topics in Dr. Iacobucci's article on mediation analysis with categorical variables including the lack of equivalency of mediated effect measures, ab, and c–c', that are algebraically equivalent in ordinary least squares regression models. The commentary raises the issue of correlated mediation coefficients and presents formulas to include the correlation in the test of significance. References to new developments in causal mediation analysis for categorical variables are given and the importance of programs of research to establish a mediation theory is emphasized.
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Consumers' implicit theories about personality influence their brand personality judgments
Pragya Mathur, Shailendra Pratap Jain, Durairaj Maheswaran
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
Three studies document that consumers' implicit theories about the fixedness/malleability of personality guide brand personality updating in a brand extension context. The first two studies show that extension fit with the parent brand impacts brand personality updating only for incremental (vs. entity theorists). Specifically, for incremental theorists, brand personality is enhanced (vs. diluted) when extension fit is poor (vs. good), and only when brand personality is salient. The third study identifies conditions under which entity theorists focus on brand personality. Interestingly, overall evaluations of the parent brand and extension vary only with extension fit. Implications of our research are discussed.
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Direct and vicarious conspicuous consumption: Identification with low-status groups increases the desire for high-status goods
Phillip J. Mazzocco, Derek D. Rucker, Adam D. Galinsky, Eric T. Anderson
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
The current research examines whether direct and vicarious identification with a low-status group affects consumers' desire for objects associated with status. Experiment 1 found that individuals who belonged to and identified with a status social category associated with relatively lower status (Blacks) exhibited an enhanced desire for high-status products compared to Blacks who did not identify with their race or individuals who belonged to a social category associated with higher status (Whites). In Experiments 2 and 3, White participants led to vicariously identify through perspective taking with Blacks (Experiment 2), or a low-status occupational group (Experiment 3) exhibited an increased desire for high-status products. Experiment 4 provided meditational evidence for a status based explanation for the relationship between identification with a low-status group and a desire for high-status products. The present work makes new inroads into understanding one factor that might lead minorities to engage in greater
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How category advertising norms and consumer counter-conformity influence comparative advertising effectiveness
Michael J. Barone, Robert D. Jewell
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
Surprisingly little research examines whether and how category advertising norms influence the effectiveness of comparative advertising. To address this void, the present research investigates if the persuasiveness of a particular comparative advertisement depends on whether or not it is viewed as a typical tactic that conforms to category advertising norms. Results from experiments 1 and 2 indicate that a comparative advertisement used in violation of category norms results in a persuasion penalty that is evidenced by a reduction in the ad's impact on brand attitudes. This effect of category norms on persuasion is shown to be mediated by evaluations of the comparative advertisement's appropriateness in the product category. A final experiment confirms this persuasion penalty with respect to consumers holding conformity-based motives. However, this penalty is found to be reversed for individuals seeking counter-conformity in the marketplace, who respond more favorably to a comparative advertisement when it violates rather than conforms to category norms.
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How context shapes category inferences and attribute preference for new ambiguous products
Theodore J. Noseworthy, Juan Wang, Towhidul Islam
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
Extant research suggests that when marketers introduce products with functions that span multiple categories, consumers tend to generate beliefs in line with only a single category. This has been regarded as a major marketing challenge because it leads consumers to ignore key attributes from the product's supplementary category. Contrary to this prediction, the authors find that because consumers tend to classify new hybrid products by contrasting them against the competitive context, attributes from the supplementary category become more salient and thus contribute greater utility in choice. The authors pit the strength of this effect against several of the most dominant and favored category cues. The results confirm that classification inferences and attribute preference for new hybrid products are highly contextual, and as such, single category inferences need not translate directly into attribute preference.
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Imagining thin: Why vanity sizing works
Nilufer Z. Aydinoglu, Aradhna Krishna
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
Vanity sizing, the practice of clothing manufacturers, whereby smaller size labels are used on clothes than what the clothes actually are, has become very common. Apparently, it helps sell clothes—women prefer small size clothing labels to large ones. We propose and demonstrate that smaller size labels evoke more positive self-related mental imagery. Thus, consumers imagine themselves more positively (thinner) with a vanity sized size-6 pant versus a size-8 pant. We also show that appearance self-esteem moderates the (mediating) effect of imagery on vanity sizing effectiveness—while vanity sizing evokes more positive mental imagery for both low and high appearance self-esteem individuals, the effect of the positive imagery on clothing preference is significant (only) for people with low appearance self-esteem, supported by the theory of compensatory self-enhancement. Our suggestion of simple marketing communications affecting valence of imagery and consequent product evaluation have implications for many other marketing domains.
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Knowledge creation in consumer research: Multiple routes, multiple criteria
John G. Lynch, Jr., Joseph W. Alba, Ardhna Krishna, Vicki G. Morwitz, Zeynep Gurhan-Canli
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
The modal scientific approach in consumer research is to deduce hypotheses from existing theory about relationships between theoretic constructs, test those relationships experimentally, and then show “process” evidence via moderation and mediation. This approach has its advantages, but other styles of research also have much to offer. We distinguish among alternative research styles in terms of their philosophical orientation (theory-driven vs. phenomenon-driven) and their intended contribution (understanding a substantive phenomenon vs. building or expanding theory). Our basic premise is that authors who deviate from the dominant paradigm are hindered by reviewers who apply an unvarying set of evaluative criteria. We discuss the merits of different styles of research and suggest appropriate evaluative criteria for each.
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Mediation analysis and categorical variables: Some further frontiers
Fred M. Feinberg
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
Iacobucci (2012) provides a conceptually appealing, readily implemented measure to assess mediation for a far wider range of data type combinations than traditional OLS-based analyses permit. Here, we consider potential applications and extensions along several lines, particularly in terms of random utility models, simulation-based estimation, and potential nonlinearities, as well as some methodological and cultural impediments.
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Mediation analysis and categorical variables: The final frontier
Dawn Iacobucci
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
Many scholars are interested in understanding the process by which an independent variable affects a dependent variable, perhaps in part directly and perhaps in part indirectly, occurring through the activation of a mediator. Researchers are facile at testing for mediation when all the variables are continuous, but a definitive answer had been lacking heretofore as to how to analyze the data when the mediator or dependent variable is categorical. This paper describes the problems that arise as well as the potential solutions. In the end, a solution is recommended that is both optimal in its statistical qualities as well as practical and easily implemented: compute zMediation.
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Mediation with categorical variables compleat
Dawn Iacobucci
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
This rejoinder addresses the thoughtful issues raised by the commentators. We hold to the analytical solution of fitting X ? M (to obtain a and sa) and X&M? (to obtain b and sb) via regression or logistic regression, depending on whether M and Y are continuous or categorical. Then researchers compute za, zb, and ZMediation.
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Mediation with categorical variables: Consider ordinal models, empirical Bayes, and alternatives to R2
Zvi Gilula
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
The article by Iacobucci (in press) extending mediation analyses for categorical variables is interesting and thought provoking. I have the following brief and minor comments:
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Reducing self-control depletion effects through enhanced sensitivity to implementation: Evidence from fMRI and behavioral studies
William M. Hedgcock, Kathleen D. Vohs, Akshay R. Rao
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
Research suggests self-control relies on a limited set of resources that can be diminished by use. Recent theories posit that there are two stages of self-control: recognizing the need for control and implementing controlled responses. We conducted a functional magnetic resonance imaging experiment and an intervention experiment to investigate whether one or both stages were affected by the prior exercise of self-control. Results from both experiments indicated that only the implementation stage was affected. Further, we demonstrate that self-control can be increased by an intervention designed to boost implementation, as opposed to the recognition of the need to control one's responses.
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The moderating role of emotional differentiation on satiation
Morgan Poor, Adam Duhachek, Shanker Krishnan
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
People tend to like experiences less the more they repeat them, a process commonly referred to as satiation. Despite an increasing interest in satiation among consumer researchers, we still know very little about the role that emotions play in the process. Through a series of three experiments, we show paradoxically that when individuals differentiate between the positive and negative emotions that arise during repeated consumption, they satiate at a slower rate. We show that a cognitive re-appraisal process drives this emotional differentiation effect, whereby, when individuals focus on negative emotions they exhibit increased enjoyment of repeated consumption sequences. We demonstrate these effects for both trait and state emotional differentiation and across both continued and repeated consumption contexts. Theoretical implications of these findings for satiation, emotional differentiation, and emotion regulation literatures are then discussed.
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Unconscious creativity: When can unconscious thought outperform conscious thought?
Haiyang Yang, Amitava Chattopadhyay, Kuangjie Zhang, Darren W. Dahl
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
Recent research suggests that unconscious thought is superior to conscious thought in many cognitive domains. In this article, we show that the duration of unconscious thought has an inverted-U shaped relationship with creativity performance. Unconscious thought is, thus, unlikely to provide creative advantage over conscious thought when deliberation duration is either short or long. However, when deliberation duration is of a moderate length, the creative output of unconscious thought surpasses that of conscious thought. Furthermore, the superiority of unconscious thought pertains only to the novelty dimension of creativity, but not the appropriateness dimension. These findings not only shed light on the powers and limits of unconscious thought but also illuminate the importance of calibration in utilizing unconscious thought to boost creativity.
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When promoting a charity can hurt charitable giving: A metacognitive analysis
Robert W. Smith, Norbert Schwarz
2012 Vol. 22 No. 4
Charities need to come to mind to enter a potential donor's consideration set. However, feeling familiar with a charity and its cause can facilitate or impair giving. In most cases, perceived good memory for details of the cause fosters the impression of personal importance, which increases giving (Studies 1 and 3). But when the charity aims to increase awareness of a cause, good memory for the cause suggests that awareness is already high, which impairs giving (Studies 2 and 3). Hence, promotions for awareness-raising charities can actually have negative consequences, confirming the predictions of a metacognitive analysis.
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