Showing papers in "Psychology & Marketing in 1997"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors developed a conceptual foundation for investigating the customer retention process, with the use of the concepts of customer satisfaction and relationship quality, and developed a more comprehensive view of the customer's quality perception.
Abstract: Customer satisfaction with a company’s products or services is often seen as the key to a company’s success and long-term competitiveness. In the context of relationship marketing, customer satisfaction is often viewed as a central determinant of customer retention. However, the few empirical investigations in this area indicate that a direct relationship between these constructs is weak or even nonexistent. The overall purpose of this article is to develop a conceptual foundation for investigating the customer retention process, with the use of the concepts of customer satisfaction and relationship quality. The article involves a critical examination of the satisfaction ‐ retention relationship, and the development of a more comprehensive view of the customer’s quality perception. ©1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
1,334 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the effect of store environment on consumer emotions and the resulting influence on aspects of consumer behavior with actual shopping behavior used as an example was studied. But the results suggest that a consumer's emotions can be a mediating factor in the purchase process.
Abstract: This article presents a large-scale cross-sectional field study of the effect of store environment on consumer emotions and the resulting influence on aspects of consumer behavior with actual shopping behavior used as an example. Cast into a stimulus–organism–response framework, the results suggest that a consumer's emotions can be a mediating factor in the purchase process. In this study, we identify and explore how store environment and emotional states may influence various dimensions of purchase behavior. This research confirms that although cognitive factors may largely account for store selection and for most planned purchases within the store, the environment in the store and the emotional state of consumers may be important determinants of purchase behavior. This research has many pragmatic applications, because pleasure was associated with the amount of money spent and affinity for the store, whereas arousal was associated with money spent in the store, time spent in the store, and the number of items purchased in the store. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
829 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present the results of the analysis of data collected in a telephone survey of retail customers of banks and other financial institutions, identifying various dimensions of the customers' relationships with their principal financial institution and to ascertain the factors that contribute to the types of close relationships that are likely to lead to customer retention, referrals, and long-term profitability.
Abstract: This article presents the results of the analysis of data collected in a telephone survey of retail customers of banks and other financial institutions. The objective of the research is to identify various dimensions of the customers' relationships with their principal financial institution and to ascertain the factors that contribute to the types of close relationships that are likely to lead to customer retention, referrals, and long-term profitability. A survey of 400 adult retail bank customers provided data for analysis. The results indicate that the factors that contribute most to the establishment of close, satisfying customer relationships are affective variables, rather than situational or behavioral variables. The results also point to the existence of quite different segments of the retail bank market as defined by the type of relationship the customer wishes to have with his or her main bank. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.. Inc.
432 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a means-end chain (MEC) is defined as a hierarchy of goals that represent potential identities of the actions necessary for the person to reach his or her goal.
Abstract: A means–end chain (MEC) has been defined as a hierarchy of goals that represents potential identities of the actions necessary for the person to reach his or her goal. Goals as ends in MECs can be grouped into three levels: action goals (concerned with the act itself), outcome goals (immediate effects of actions), and consequences (indirect effects stemming from outcomes). An action unit (AU) is defined as a planned sequence of acts directed toward goal achievement. AUs may be part or all of a MEC, thus the highest goal in a MEC may not be what the consumer has in mind when making a purchase or consumption decision. Data are presented that suggest that laddering takes respondents beyond the intended goals of their initial actions or choice. Goals beyond AU's which are part of a MEC may represent the underlying reasons why we strive for the goals we do. This seems to be one useful way to differentiate goals from values. Goals are what we want; values are why we want them. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
353 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine individual differences in the desire for unique consumer products and argue that a new scale to measure it is needed, and report the results of their efforts to develop and validate such a scale.
Abstract: In this article we examine individual differences in the desire for unique consumer products. We identify several of the antecedents and consequences of this variable and argue that a new scale to measure it is needed. Then we report the results of our efforts to develop and validate such a scale. The 8-item scale that emerged from these efforts is shown to be unidimensional, to have a factor structure that generalizes across student and nonstudent samples, and to have acceptable internal and test–retest reliabilities. The scale's validity is attested to by its theoretically intelligible relationships with other personality measures and by its ability to differentiate between the patrons of an artistic theater and a second-run theater. Finally, we discuss the potential uses of the scale in both basic and applied marketing research. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
337 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explored the relationship between consumer subjective well-being (SWB) and selected secular and sacred values and found significant differences between high and low religious consumers regarding the role of income and materialistic attitudes in predicting SWB.
Abstract: In appealing to consumers, marketers need to know what the good life means across various consumer segments. The present study seeks to deepen the understanding of consumer subjective well-being (SWB) by exploring its relationship with selected secular and sacred values. SWB, defined as individuals' cognitive and affective assessments regarding their life satisfaction (Diener, 1984), is treated as the dependent variable in investigating how SWB is influenced by individual consumer materialistic attitudes (a secular value), religiosity (a sacred value), and demographics. Significant differences between high and low religiosity consumers regarding the role of income and materialistic attitudes in predicting SWB were found. Although income and some aspects of materialism are positively related to the SWB of low religiosity consumers, these variables are negatively related to the SWB of high religiosity consumers. This study implies that marketers might benefit from considering consumer religiosity as a segmentation and targeting direction in the design of materialistic positionings and communications. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
262 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors integrate these findings with consumer research models linking consumption-based emotions with consumer satisfaction and postpurchase behaviors (including complaints, recommendations, and repeat purchase intentions), and suggest a general approach for relating broad traits to specific behaviors by incorporating mediating processes.
Abstract: Emerging theory and empirics in personality psychology have related enduring traits with transient affective experiences or states. The research reported in this article integrates these findings with recent consumer research models linking consumption-based emotions with consumer satisfaction and postpurchase behaviors (including complaints, recommendations, and repeat purchase intentions). Our results support a model relating broad, fundamental personality traits to specific consumer behaviors via mediating affective experiences. These findings may help identify consumer segments inclined toward satisfaction or dissatisfaction, and consequently, toward loyalty, word of mouth, and complaining. Further, they suggest a general approach for relating broad traits to specific behaviors by incorporating mediating processes. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
260 citations
TL;DR: This paper examined the role consumption situations play in determining the effects of brand image on consumers' brand evaluations and found that conspicuousness does not significantly moderate the relative effects of actual and ideal congruence on brand evaluations.
Abstract: This research examines the role consumption situations play in determining the effects of brand image on consumers' brand evaluations. Results from the first experiment suggest that when consumption situations are experimentally manipulated for the same brand, conspicuousness does not significantly moderate the relative effects of actual and ideal congruence on brand evaluations. Further, marketers can manage the effects of image congruence (between brand image and self-image) by promoting varying consumption situations. Results from the second experiment demonstrate how a dynamic concept of situational ideal self-image (the image consumers perceive as being ideal to project in a particular situation) is a better predictor of brand attitudes than are static concepts of self-image such as actual and ideal self-image. Developing effective brand images must be coupled with a consideration of the potential situations in which the product is to be consumed. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
228 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a model of symbolic consumption activities and psychological phenomena that occur during major life transitions is developed, and consumers in transition appear to rely on possessions that symbolize the past, as well as those that represent the new role, to help facilitate a major life transition.
Abstract: Integrating Belk's (1988) notion of the “extended self” with van Gennep's (1960) framework of “liminal transitions,” a model of symbolic consumption activities and psychological phenomena that occur during major life transitions is developed. In an initial investigation, the transition from high school to college is used to explore the nature of the liminal experience, the role that symbolic consumption assumes in the process, and the effects of both on consumers' psychological states. The results suggest that certain negative psychological consequences are indicative of existence in a liminal state. Further, consumers in transition appear to rely on possessions that symbolize the past, as well as those that represent the new role, to help facilitate a major life transition. Directions for future research are offered. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
213 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the impact of buyer dependence on opportunism against the supplier and found that dependence and opportunism will be positively related under low relational norms, and negatively related under high relational norms.
Abstract: The impact of buyer dependence on opportunism against the supplier is examined in this research. Extant literature provides support for both a positive and an inverse relationship between these constructs. In this research, these competing predictions are subsumed under a more general model where the effect of dependence on opportunism is moderated by the level of relational norms present in the buyer–supplier relationship. Results of an experiment with purchasing managers and one replication provide support for the hypotheses that (a) dependence and opportunism will be positively related under low relational norms, and (b) dependence and opportunism will be inversely related under high relational norms. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
185 citations
TL;DR: This paper found that consumer knowledge measures moderate the evaluation of some extrinsic cues, and that objective expertise is a more efficient predictor of product evaluation and to be more consistent in valuing extrinic cues in accordance with their diagnostic utility.
Abstract: An experiment was conducted to test whether measures of consumer knowledge predict utilization of extrinsic product cues and willingness to pay for a product. Consumers have been shown to value some extrinsic cues more than others, and this study shows that knowledge measures moderate the evaluation of some extrinsic cues. Compared to measures of familiarity and subjective expertise, objective expertise is found to be a more efficient predictor of product evaluation and to be more consistent in valuing extrinsic cues in accordance with their diagnostic utility. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors suggest continuance, behavior, and affect as three essential components of distributor commitment and hypothesize that each component of commitment has a different set of driving forces.
Abstract: Despite a recent surge of interest in commitment, its conceptual scope and components in channel relationships remain equivocal. The authors suggest continuance, behavior, and affect as three essential components of distributor commitment and hypothesize that each component of commitment has a different set of driving forces. A proposed model was tested with data collected in a national survey of industrial distributors. Estimation results indicate that (a) three suggested components are interrelated, yet distinctive, elements of distributor commitment, and (b) each component of distributor commitment is driven by a different set of driving forces. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explored the emotional contagion hypothesis in a sales context and found that a salesperson's ability to infect others with his or her emotions is an asset (because it can lead to higher performance) and a liability (because of the higher risk of burnout).
Abstract: This article explores the emotional contagion hypothesis, proposed by Hatfield, Cacioppo, and Rapson (1994), in a sales context. Specifically, the emotional contagion hypothesis explains how the emotions of two people (e.g., salesperson and customer) during a conversation are transmitted from one to the other via facial cues, and that these emotions affect the outcome of that interaction. The emotional contagion hypothesis implies that there are definitive individual differences concerning whether someone is either sensitive to emotions from others or able to transmit his or her emotions onto others. This study explores whether these individual differences are assets or liabilities over the long term for salespersons in a sales organization. The data in this study show that a salesperson's ability to infect others with his or her emotions is an asset (because it can lead to higher performance). In addition, being sensitive to the emotions of others is an asset (it can also lead to better performance); at the same time it is a liability (because of the higher risk of burnout). This study further explores how emotionally sensitive salespersons develop burnout as a consequence of role stress, which then affects their performance. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: For example, this paper found that advertisements that depict consistencies in local cultural norms and roles are viewed more favorably and purchase intention is higher than for advertisements that do not depict inconsistencies, indicating that the cultural value orientation, individualism-collectivism, should be considered when developing international advertising campaigns.
Abstract: Past research suggests that the cultural value orientation, individualism-collectivism, should be considered when developing international advertising campaigns. The present study examines how (in)consistencies in collectivist values (e.g., familial norms and roles) may affect attitudes and behaviors toward advertised products within a collectivist culture, Mexico. The findings suggest advertisements that depict consistencies in local cultural norms and roles are viewed more favorably and purchase intention is higher than for advertisements that depict inconsistencies. The data provide no support for the moderating role of individual-level differences in value orientation (i.e., allocentric versus idiocentric tendencies) on persuasion measures. Interestingly, product category advertised appears to be the best moderator of the relative strength of role and norm effects on ad attitudes and purchase intention. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: In this paper, the strength of a green claim and the consumer's attitude toward the country of origin of the automobile, interactively affect the product evaluation in terms of its greenness and company image.
Abstract: Green advertising is defined as the advertising that emphasizes the environmental friendliness of the product. Attributes such as degradability, recyclability, lower pollution et cetera are considered to be environmentally friendly. The research reported in this article addresses how the strength of a green claim, for example, the extent of pollution reduction claimed in an advertisement for a new automobile and the consumer's country disposition, that is, the consumer's attitude toward the country of origin of the automobile, interactively affected the product evaluation in terms of its greenness and company image in terms of its green consciousness. Product evaluation and company image were more favorable for consumers with highly positive country disposition than for consumers with less positive country disposition when the green claim was moderate in strength. However, when the green claim was extremely low or extremely high in strength, the reverse was true. Theoretical rationale for these findings draws upon several areas of research, for example, latitude of acceptance/rejection, assimilation/contrast effects, social cognition, country of origin, and Heider's balance theory. Managerial implications of the findings and future research directions are discussed. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: Two studies were conducted to assess separateness-connectedness (SC) as a new message variable and individual difference variable in advertising as discussed by the authors, and the results revealed that individuals with a separate self-schema preferred a separated advertising theme, and those with a connected self-schemas preferred a connected advertising theme.
Abstract: Two studies were conducted to assess separateness-connectedness (SC) as a new message variable and as a new individual difference variable in advertising. Study I began the process of developing a Separateness-Connectedness scale based on a sample of 140 college students (97 Westerners and 43 non-Westerners, 81 males and 59 females) attending a midwestern university. The 9-item, 2-factor scale revealed good reliability and construct validity. The structure of the overall model was then successfully tested on a new sample by confirmatory factor analysis. In Study II an experiment assessed whether the separateness/connectedness self-schema would moderate the effect of using either a connected or a separated advertising appeal on consumers' attitude toward the ad. As predicted, a significant interaction effect was found. The results revealed that individuals with a separate self-schema preferred a separated advertising theme, and individuals with a connected self-schema preferred a connected advertising theme. Implications for advertising managers, the studies' limitations, and future research directions are also discussed. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: Wang et al. as mentioned in this paper compared the lifestyles of female consumers in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China, which together make up Greater China, and found that significant differences exist among the three groups of women in nine different areas.
Abstract: This study compares the lifestyles of female consumers in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China, which together make up Greater China. The investigation revealed that significant differences exist among the three groups of female consumers in nine different areas. These are (a) women’s role and perception, (b) family orientation, (c) home cleanliness, (d) brand consciousness, (e) price consciousness, (f) self-confidence, (g) addiction to work, (h) health consciousness, and (i) environmental consciousness. Although the women studied in the three groups were found to be heavily influenced by Confucianism, they were also affected by western culture to varying degrees. Thus, the three groups were found to have a mixture of traditional and modern values. Hong Kong women were found to favor a more modern view of the role of women than their counterparts in China and Taiwan. However, women in China, especially the younger ones, were quickly adopting new values and Western ideas. The authors foresee that female consumers in Greater China will become increasingly similar in their lifestyles in the near future. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the effect of empowerment on customer satisfaction and service quality of front-line staff in terms of the degree to which the employee is empowered, and the employee's communication style.
Abstract: Empowering front-line staff to deal with service failures has been proposed as a method of recovering from service breakdown and ensuring greater customer satisfaction. However, no empirical study has investigated consumer responses to empowerment strategies. This research investigates the effect on customer satisfaction and service quality of two employee characteristics: the degree to which the employee is empowered (full, limited, and none), and the employee's communication style (accommodative - informal and personal, and underaccommodative-formal and impersonal). These employee characteristics are studied within the context of service failures. Subjects were shown videotaped service scenarios, and asked to complete satisfaction and service quality ratings. Results revealed that the fully empowered employee produced more customer satisfaction than the other conditions, but only when the service provider used an accommodating style of communication. Fully empowered and nonempowered employees were not judged differently when an underaccommodating style of communication was adopted. (C) 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: This paper investigated the shopping orientations of adult, Chinese-and Filipino-American consumers living in San Francisco, their acculturation levels, and relationships between acculturability levels and shopping orientation.
Abstract: The study investigated (a) shopping orientations of adult, Chinese-and Filipino-American consumers living in San Francisco, (b) their acculturation levels, and (c) relationships between acculturation levels and shopping orientations. A mail survey, sent to a random sample (N = 124), included the Suinn-Lew Asian Self-Identity Acculturation scale (SL-ASIA), 41 shopping orientation statements, and demographic items. Factor analyses resulted in four SL-ASIA factors and 10 shopping orientation factors. Results of t tests showed statistically significant differences in responses to two shopping orientation subscales (shopping sex roles and shopping opinion leadership) between high and low acculturation groups. Findings suggest that certain shopping-orientation constructs are more closely linked with acculturation of Asian-Americans than other shopping-orientation constructs. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the impact of involvement and ambiguity on satisfaction judgments for high-credence property services such as health care, and found that higher levels of customer involvement were associated with greater expectations and performance ratings for the ambiguous dimension of the service (physicians).
Abstract: The impact of involvement and ambiguity on satisfaction judgments for high-credence property services such as health care has not been studied. This study examines the level and process effects of involvement on satisfaction with two dimensions of a health-care service. We found that higher levels of customer involvement were associated with greater expectations and performance ratings for the ambiguous dimension of the service (physicians). Customer involvement had no influence on ratings for the nonambiguous aspects of the service (access mechanisms). Perceived performance was found to be the most influential predictor of satisfaction for low-involvement subjects. High-involvement subjects used disconfirmation and performance to evaluate physicians and only disconfirmation in forming satisfaction judgments for access mechanisms. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: This article examined the effects of three imagery-evoking strategies commonly used in radio advertising (sound effects, vivid verbal messages, and instructions to imagine) in influencing mental imagery, ad-evoked feelings, and attitude toward the ad.
Abstract: A debate in the marketing literature concerning the relative effectiveness of various imagery-evoking strategies in influencing consumer responses to advertising has been unresolved. This study examined the effects of three imagery-evoking strategies commonly used in radio advertising—sound effects, vivid verbal messages, and instructions to imagine—in influencing mental imagery, ad-evoked feelings, and attitude toward the ad. The theoretical basis for the study is an imagery model based on propositional representations theory. Consistent with the implications of the theory, of the three strategies, sound effects had the greatest impact on imagery and affective responses. Compared with sound effects, a vivid verbal message had a slightly weaker influence. Instructions to imagine, however, had a very weak impact on imagery and no significant influence on affect. Finally, the results indicated that the three strategies interacted with one another. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: The authors examined the effects of affect's two primary dimensions, pleasantness and arousal, on ad-based persuasion outcomes (attitude favorability) and processes (degree of elaboration, thought positivity).
Abstract: In contrast to past research that viewed affect as unidimensional, this study examines the effects of affect's two primary dimensions, pleasantness and arousal, on ad-based persuasion outcomes (attitude favorability) and processes (degree of elaboration, thought positivity). After assessing their naturally-occurring levels of pleasantness and arousal, subjects were exposed to a persuasive communication and assigned to an involvement (low/high) by message strength (low/high) design. GLM analyses revealed that higher pleasantness accentuated the typical involvement X message interaction on attitude favorability, and that higher involvement enhanced message elaboration only when accompanied by higher pleasantness. Path analyses further suggested that (1) higher pleasantness enhanced message elaboration under higher involvement but decreased it under lower involvement, (2) under higher involvement, both pleasantness and arousal positively impacted thought positivity, and, (3) higher arousal decreased message elaboration only for the weaker message. The importance and implications of a broader than unidimensional view of affect in persuasion are discussed. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: One hundred twenty consumers (classified as either higher or lower knowledge) read an advertisement for a camera described by either attributes or consequences, or both attributes and their related consequences as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: One hundred twenty consumers (classified as either higher or lower knowledge) read an advertisement for a camera described by either attributes or consequences, or both attributes and their related consequences. Thought listings coded for inferences at varying levels of abstraction corresponding to means-end chain theory revealed that most inferences were about self-relevant product consequences. Results also suggest that higher-knowledge consumers are more likely to infer cause-and-effect means-end associations during product comprehension. Further, compared to inferences about concrete attributes and features, inferences about self-relevant product consequences had stronger effects on consumers' brand attitudes, but not ad attitudes. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: In this paper, a hierarchical goal structure consisting of four levels of goals, abstract principles or values, action programs, more concrete product acquisition, and brand acquisition goals, is proposed as the theoretical construct which ties together a wide range of consumer decision-making phenomena.
Abstract: Research and theory in consumer decision making has been dominated by a perspective that assumes that a consumer knows what product category he or she needs. This limited view has resulted in equating consumer decisions with brand choice. The purpose of this article is to provide a framework for considering a wider range of consumer decision-making processes by linking them to different goals that consumers might pursue. A hierarchical goal structure consisting of four levels of goals; abstract principles or values, action programs, more concrete product acquisition, and brand acquisition goals, is proposed as the theoretical construct which ties together a wide range of consumer decision making phenomena. An experiment in which consumers think out loud in contemplating two levels of more familiar or unfamiliar goals reveals that their thoughts are constrained by the proposed goal hierarchy. The goals provide a useful framework for understanding decision-making processes involving product level consideration, set generation, and the evaluation of those self-generated sets. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors defined reciprocity as the degree to which individuals expect cooperative action, and placed reciprocity within the overall framework of consumer-retailer market exchange.
Abstract: Although consumer–retailer exchange behavior has been studied for many years, its treatment has not accounted for factors relating to reciprocal exchange intentions. This article defines reciprocity as the degree to which individuals expect cooperative action, and places reciprocity within the overall framework of consumer–retailer market exchange. In addition, it presents results of an exploratory study of rural consumers' reciprocal intentions to shop with local retailers, indicating that levels of satisfaction with interpersonal reciprocity have greater influence than moral, social, or economic motives. This study also suggests that social desirability, as a bias, is strongly linked to rural consumers' responses. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: The authors suggest that the country of origin may be an outcome of a combination of two processes (cultural stereotypes and personal beliefs) that influence a person's use of the country-of-origin factor in product evaluation.
Abstract: The country-of-origin effect has been the focus of numerous studies in international marketing. The concept of stereotypes assumes importance in the study of country-of-origin effects. However, past research has failed to consider the cognitive structures that influence a person's use of the country-of-origin factor in product evaluation. This article attempts to fill this gap through a conceptualization that suggests that the country of origin may be an outcome of a combination of two processes—cultural stereotypes and personal beliefs. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: In this paper, the concepts of values, motivations, and personal goals are analyzed from a conceptual standpoint and it is suggested that using values in marketing studies may lead to ambiguous results and that a combination of values and motivations may prove to be superior.
Abstract: This article deals with the concepts of values, motivations, and personal goals. These concepts are first analyzed from a conceptual standpoint. In spite of numerous attempts to define them, clear-cut definitions have yet to be found. An empirical survey confirms this theoretical analysis. It shows that individuals structure these three concepts into four meaningful dimensions oriented toward success in one's private life, professional success, success in one's social life, and humanitarianism. These results are at variance with recent published research. It is suggested that using values in marketing studies may lead to ambiguous results and that a combination of values, motivations, and personal goals may prove to be superior. ©1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: This paper examined the implications of adopting concrete and abstract purchase goals over several stages of information processing and found that goals influence the level at which information is encoded, causing it to be more attribute-level or conceptual in nature.
Abstract: This article examines the implications of adopting concrete and abstract purchase goals over several stages of information processing. Results are reported from a computerized experiment that demonstrates three important goal effects. At the acquisition stage, goals guide information exposure, inducing tendencies to engage in attribute-based or brand-based elaboration. During encoding, goals influence the level at which information is encoded, causing it to be more attribute-level or conceptual in nature. Finally, under certain conditions, goals may continue to guide product-related thinking through successive generations of product judgments. Implications of these findings for marketing theory and practice are discussed. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TL;DR: In this paper, a profile deviation analysis reveals that an optimal mix of the marketing corporate culture elements of adhocracy, clan, market, and hierarchy does exist and is positively related to customer satisfaction assessment activities.
Abstract: Customer satisfaction has been identified as an important relationship marketing outcome. As such, firms should continually track and assess customer satisfaction. The following study examines how four elements of corporate culture combine to form an optimal mix that encourages attention to and measurement of customer satisfaction. Culture is operationalized as a pattern of values and beliefs that aid individuals in understanding organizational functioning. A profile deviation analysis reveals that an optimal mix of the marketing corporate culture elements of adhocracy, clan, market, and hierarchy does exist and is positively related to customer satisfaction assessment activities. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.