Browsing by Author "Antonetti, Paolo"
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Item Open Access A better way to manage customer experience: lessons from the Royal Bank of Scotland(University of California Press, 2017-03-16) Maklan, Stan; Antonetti, Paolo; Whitty, S.Customer experience is heralded as the competitive battleground; however, it is defined so broadly that companies often struggle to define, implement, and measure it. Based on the experiences of the Royal Bank of Scotland, this article develops an effective approach to scoping and managing customer experience, identifying typical pitfalls, and providing guidance to organizations trying to understand where to start.Item Open Access An extended model of moral outrage at corporate social irresponsibility(Springer, 2014-12-02) Antonetti, Paolo; Maklan, StanA growing body of literature documents the important role played by moral outrage or moral anger in stakeholders’ reactions to cases of corporate social irresponsibility. Existing research focuses more on the consequences of moral outrage than a systematic analysis of how appraisals of irresponsible corporate behavior can lead to this emotional experience. In this paper, we develop and test, in two field studies, an extended model of moral outrage that identifies the cognitions that lead to, and are associated with, this emotional experience. This research contributes to the existing literature on reactions to corporate social irresponsibility by explaining how observers’ evaluation of irresponsible corporate behavior leads to reactions of moral anger. The paper also helps clarify the difference between moral outrage and other types of anger and offers useful insights for managers who have to confront public outrage following cases of irresponsible corporate behavior. Finally, the analysis of the causes of stakeholders’ anger at irresponsible corporations opens important avenues for future research that are presented in the paper.Item Open Access Hippies, greenies, and tree huggers: how the “warmth” stereotype hinders the adoption of responsible brands(Wiley, 2016-09-08) Antonetti, Paolo; Maklan, StanPast research has highlighted the difficulty faced by responsible consumers, individuals who wish to make environmentally and socially responsible consumption choices. Individual buyers, it is argued, act within a network of structural and social relationships that make responsible alternatives intrinsically hard to pursue. This paper maintains that one such barrier is the perception that users of responsible brands are not worthy of social emulation. Consumers are less likely to adopt brands positioned explicitly on their positive environmental or social credentials because of the stereotypes attached to the users of these products. Two empirical studies demonstrate that users of responsible brands are perceived as stereotypically warm. Warmth, however, is not an appealing feature in a consumption context. Warm groups are not envied and envy plays a central role in fueling a desire to emulate a consumption group. The study is the first to examine the possibility that a group-level stereotype limits the potential attractiveness of responsible brands. The significant implications of this insight for both scholarly research and marketing practice are examined in detail. The presence of a warmth stereotype, which has a negative influence on the social perception of responsible brands, suggests that the development of niches of responsible or ethical consumers is intrinsically problematic.Item Open Access Identity bias in negative word of mouth following irresponsible corporate behavior(Springer, 2016-03-09) Antonetti, Paolo; Maklan, StanCurrent research has documented how cases of irresponsible corporate behavior generate negative reactions from consumers and other stakeholders. Existing research, however, has not examined empirically whether the characteristics of the victims of corporate malfeasance contribute to shaping individual reactions. This study examines, through four experimental surveys, the role played by the national identity of the people affected on consumers’ intentions to spread negative word of mouth (WOM). It is shown that national identity influences individual reactions indirectly; mediated by perceived similarity and sympathy. Consumers perceive foreign victims as different from the self and this reduces the sympathy experienced towards them. Sympathy is an emotion that shapes consumer reactions and regulates WOM. The study identifies two moderating processes of this effect. Individuals who score high on collective narcissism are most likely to be strongly biased against foreign victims. In-group bias is also moderated by the perceived severity of the crisis. When a case is perceived as very serious, perceived similarity plays a less important role in generating sympathy because consumers focus on the perceived suffering of the victims. Hence, in-group bias is stronger in cases perceived as having minor consequences. The paper contributes to the literature on corporate social irresponsibility and offers implications for both scholars and managers.Item Open Access The persuasiveness of guilt appeals over time: pathways to delayed compliance(Elsevier, 2018-05-03) Antonetti, Paolo; Baines, Paul R.; Jain, ShailendraPast research on guilt-elicitation in marketing does not examine how the communications' effects might persist over time, when there is a gap between advertising at time 1 and the time of choice consideration at time 2. This study explores the processes leading to delayed compliance through guilt-based communications. Guilt elicitation enhances transportation into the message, driving message compliance through the effect of transportation. Transportation explains the effects recorded several days after campaign exposure. The influence of transportation is mediated by two pathways: increases in anticipated guilt and perceived consumer effectiveness. The message type moderates the relevance of different pathways in explaining persuasiveness. Appeals delivered through a text and image message (rather than text only) are more effective in driving compliance and shape reactions via guilt anticipation. The study raises important implications for research on the use of guilt appeals and the design of more effective messages based on this emotion.Item Metadata only The role of guilt and pride in consumers’ self-regulation: an exploration on sustainability and ethical consumption(Cranfield University, 2012-11) Antonetti, Paolo; Maklan, StanResearchers are interested in understanding the individual processes that favour consumers’ self-regulation since they can contribute to the achievement of personal and collective long-term goals in many areas. Sustainable and ethical consumption represents one such context; self-regulation can be a key driver for the solution of environmental and social sustainability challenges. In a series of three studies, this thesis investigates how guilt and pride contribute to consumers’ decisions to purchase sustainable products. The research adopts a multiple methods approach. The first qualitative study explores the process that leads to emotional experiences and describes what characterises feelings of guilt and pride. Five key dimensions that lead to enhanced self-control and stronger experiences of guilt and pride are identified: 1) altruistic value preference, 2) moral relevance of the issue presented, 3) credibility of the ethical claim(s) presented, 4) perception of a trade-off between altruism and self-interest, 5) social visibility of the decision. The two quantitative investigations examine consumers’ emotional reactions and how they affect future intentions to purchase sustainable products. It is demonstrated that: 1) feelings of guilt and pride have a positive influence on the intentions to purchase ethical products in the future; 2) intentionality is not necessary to experience guilt or pride; 3) experiences of guilt and pride have a positive impact on consumers’ efficacy beliefs; 4) beliefs in self-efficacy and collective efficacy influence positively intentions to purchase ethical products in the future. This research contributes to the literature on sustainable consumption by exploring how guilt and pride influence the purchase of ethical alternatives. This thesis also contributes to other domains of consumer research by: 1) explaining how guilt and pride influence cognition in self-regulation contexts; 2)developing a context-bound theory of appraisal in the study of guilt and pride. Implications for practitioners are also critically discussed.Item Open Access Social indentification and corporate irresponsibility: A model of stakeholder punitive intentions(Wiley, 2016-05-02) Antonetti, Paolo; Maklan, StanScholars hypothesize that retaliations against corporate social irresponsibility (CSI) are more likely when observers share the social identity of the victims. We present a model that explains in-group bias against irresponsibility and identify collective narcissism as a moderator of this effect. Experiment 1 demonstrates that the effect of identity on retaliations is mediated by the perceived similarity of the victims which reinforces feelings of sympathy towards the victims and anger towards the corporation. These emotions drive stakeholders’ attitudes and retaliations. Our study shows that appraisals of the victims of CSI are an important antecedent of stakeholders’ emotions and behavioural intentions. Our evidence also demonstrates that sympathy, an emotion neglected by past research in this area, has a unique effect on individuals’ reactions. Experiment 2 demonstrates that social identity biases in individual punitive intentions are moderated by individuals’ level of collective narcissism. Collective narcissists see out-group victims as very dissimilar from the self, whereas individuals with low levels of collective narcissism do not differentiate between victims of CSI on the basis of their identity. We extend knowledge on stakeholders’ reactions to CSI and offer insights to organizations promoting campaigns against irresponsible behaviour or managing the fallout from cases of corporate irresponsibility.Item Open Access Too good to be true? Boundary conditions to the use of downward social comparisons in service recovery(SAGE, 2018-08-20) Antonetti, Paolo; Crisafulli, Benedetta; Maklan, StanEvidence shows that downward social comparisons (DSCs), messages delivered by frontline employees describing how service experiences turned out even worse for others, can reduce customers’ anger following a service failure. This study contributes to the literature on DSCs and service recovery by highlighting pitfalls associated with the use of these messages in service recovery and showing the conditions necessary for their effectiveness. Building on persuasion knowledge theory, we show that customers draw manipulative inferences about DSCs because of the perceived bias associated with the source of the message and the implicit derogation of a competitor that DSCs entail. To reduce inferences of manipulative intentions, frontline employees should both accompany DSC messages with intense apologies and use self-derogation to reduce the perception that they are criticizing another firm. Past claims on the generalized effectiveness of DSCs need to be revised. Managers should craft social comparison messages carefully to avoid negative reactions from customers. Our research indicates that once adapted to address these concerns, DSCs can be an effective recovery strategy among individuals with a strong need for social comparison information.Item Open Access When doing good will not save us: revisiting the buffering effect of CSR following service failures(Wiley, 2021-06-25) Antonetti, Paolo; Crisafulli, Benedetta; Maklan, StanPast research offers inconsistent evidence on whether CSR is an effective service recovery strategy. Current debates overlook the signals that service failures send about the company, and their interplay with CSR. We propose a moderated mediation model showing that CSR's effectiveness for service recovery depends upon failure type. For failures signaling a lack of skills and expertise, CSR enhances warmth which in turn lowers revenge. Warmth further increases perceived competence which influences conciliatory responses. CSR, however, does not help if the failure signals a lack of moral integrity. Both warmth and competence explain the CSR's buffering effect. Our study demonstrates that “doing good” helps only to the extent that service failures that do not raise doubts about the character of the company. Even in these circumstances, however, the buffering effect of CSR is observed only in case of customer–firm communal relationships. Consistent evidence from three experiments revisits more optimistic assessments of the ability of CSR to act as a recovery strategy and shows that CSR can help only under very circumscribed conditions. Managerially, we show how and when the CSR buffer applies in service contexts, offering insights on how managers can best reap the potential benefits of service brands' involvement in CSR.