Dominique A. Greer

Defective co-creation: Developing a typology of consumer dysfunction in professional services

Purpose This study aims to explore the scope of consumers’ defective co-creation behaviour in professional service encounters. One of the founding premises of service-dominant logic (Vargo and Lusch, 2004, 2008) is that consumers co-create the value they derive from service encounters. In practice, however, dysfunctional consumer behaviour can obstruct value co-creation. Extant research has not yet investigated consumers’ defective co-creation behaviour in highly relational services, such as professional services, that are heavily reliant on co-creation. Design/methodology/approach To investigate defective co-creation in professional services, 164 critical incidents were collected from 38 health-care and financial service providers using the critical incident technique within semi-structured, in-depth interviews. Thematic coding was used to identify emergent themes and patterns of consumer behaviour. Findings Thematic coding resulted in a comprehensive typology of consumers’ defective co-creation behaviour that both confirms the prevalence of previously identified dysfunctional behaviours (e.g. verbal abuse and physical aggression) and identifies two new forms of consumer misbehaviour: underparticipation and overparticipation. Further, these behaviours can vary, escalate and co-occur during service encounters. Originality/value Both underparticipation and overparticipation are newly identified forms of defective co-creation that need to be examined within the broader framework of service-dominant logic (SDL).

Risk Perception and the Public Acceptance of Drones

Unmanned aircraft, or drones, are a rapidly emerging sector of the aviation industry. There has been limited substantive research, however, into the public perception and acceptance of drones. This article presents the results from two surveys of the Australian public designed to investigate (1) whether the public perceive drones to be riskier than existing manned aviation, (2) whether the terminology used to describe the technology influences public perception, and (3) what the broader concerns are that may influence public acceptance of the technology. We find that the Australian public currently hold a relatively neutral attitude toward drones. Respondents did not consider the technology to be overly unsafe, risky, beneficial, or threatening. Drones are largely viewed as being of comparable risk to that of existing manned aviation. Furthermore, terminology had a minimal effect on the perception of the risks or acceptability of the technology. The neutral response is likely due to a lack of knowledge about the technology, which was also identified as the most prevalent public concern as opposed to the risks associated with its use. Privacy, military use, and misuse (e.g., terrorism) were also significant public concerns. The results suggest that society is yet to form an opinion of drones. As public knowledge increases, the current position is likely to change. Industry communication and media coverage will likely influence the ultimate position adopted by the public, which can be difficult to change once established.

Learner-focused evaluation cycles: facilitating learning using feedforward, concurrent and feedback evaluation

There is a growing trend to offer students learning opportunities that are flexible, innovative and engaging. As educators embrace student-centred agile teaching and learning methodologies, which require continuous reflection and adaptation, the need to evaluate students’ learning in a timely manner has become more pressing. Conventional evaluation surveys currently dominate the evaluation landscape internationally, despite recognition that they are insufficient to effectively evaluate curriculum and teaching quality. Surveys often: (1) fail to address the issues for which educators need feedback, (2) constrain student voice, (3) have low response rates and (4) occur too late to benefit current students. Consequently, this paper explores principles of effective feedback to propose a framework for learner-focused evaluation. We apply a three-stage control model, involving feedforward, concurrent and feedback evaluation, to investigate the intersection of assessment and evaluation in agile learning environments. We conclude that learner-focused evaluation cycles can be used to guide action so that evaluation is not undertaken simply for the benefit of future offerings, but rather to benefit current students by allowing ‘real-time’ learning activities to be adapted in the moment. As a result, students become co-producers of learning and evaluation becomes a meaningful, responsive dialogue between students and their instructors.

Unpacking the perceived opportunity to misbehave: The influence of spatio-temporal and social dimensions on consumer misbehavior

Purpose – This study aims to use opportunity as a theoretical lens to investigate how the spatio-temporal and social dimensions of the consumption environment create perceived opportunities for consumers to misbehave. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing on routine activity theory and social impact theory, the authors use two experiments to demonstrate that spatio-temporal and social dimensions can explain consumer theft in retail settings. Findings – Study 1 reveals mixed empirical support for the basic dimensions of routine activity theory, which posits that the opportunity to thieve is optimised when a motivated offender, suitable target and the absence of a capable formal guardian transpire in time and space. Extending the notion of guardianship, Study 2 tests social impact theory and shows that informal guardianship impacts the likelihood of theft under optimal routine activity conditions. Originality/value – The study findings highlight important implications for academicians and retail managers: rather than focusing on the uncontrollable characteristics of thieving offenders, more controllable spatio-temporal and social factors of the retail environment can be actively monitored and manipulated to reduce perceived opportunities for consumer misbehaviour.

Helping doctoral students teach: transitioning to early career academia through cognitive apprenticeship

ABSTRACT Doctoral training is strongly focused on honing research skills at the expense of developing teaching competency. As a result, emerging academics are unprepared for the pedagogical requirements of their early-career academic roles. Employing an action research approach, this study investigates the effectiveness of a competency-based teaching development intervention that aims to improve the teaching self-efficacy of doctoral candidates. To conduct this research, we apply the theoretical framework of Cognitive Apprenticeship Theory, a theory of social learning that requires learners to participate in a community of inquiry. Participants report significantly higher levels of teaching self-efficacy and a stronger sense of connectedness to the wider academic community.

Unpacking the perceived opportunity to misbehave

Purpose – This study aims to use opportunity as a theoretical lens to investigate how the spatio-temporal and social dimensions of the consumption environment create perceived opportunities for consumers to misbehave. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing on routine activity theory and social impact theory, the authors use two experiments to demonstrate that spatio-temporal and social dimensions can explain consumer theft in retail settings. Findings – Study 1 reveals mixed empirical support for the basic dimensions of routine activity theory, which posits that the opportunity to thieve is optimised when a motivated offender, suitable target and the absence of a capable formal guardian transpire in time and space. Extending the notion of guardianship, Study 2 tests social impact theory and shows that informal guardianship impacts the likelihood of theft under optimal routine activity conditions. Originality/value – The study findings highlight important implications for academicians and retail managers: rather than focusing on the uncontrollable characteristics of thieving offenders, more controllable spatio-temporal and social factors of the retail environment can be actively monitored and manipulated to reduce perceived opportunities for consumer misbehaviour.

The dark side of marketing: introduction to the special issue

In stark contrast to traditional depictions of customers and organisational actors as functional and good natured entities, the past decade has witnessed a surge in research that explores the dark side of marketing. Unwanted, undesirable and often illegitimate facets of exchange have been explored and the emergence of savvymarket actors has been documented (Brady, Voorhees, & Brusco, 2012; Fisk et al., 2010; Fullerton & Punj, 2004). Although our instinct might be to ignore, conceal or diminish deviant behaviour, our growing understanding of such behaviours provides important insights into the evolving realities of marketing. Despite considerable developments in our understanding of the definitions (Daunt & Greer, 2015; Mitchell & Chan, 2002), forms (Moschis & Cox, 1989; Phau, Teah, & Lwin, 2014), antecedents (Harris & Ogbonna, 2006; Yagil & Luria, 2014) and consequences (Baranik et al., 2017; Van Jaarsveld, Walker, & Skarlicki, 2011) of dark side dynamics, however, much of this collective work is disjointed. Thus, significant research gaps still remain. This special issue aims to more deeply develop our conceptual and empirical understanding of dark side dynamics in marketing and consolidate a number of issues inherent to this field. In doing so, this special issue furthers the Journal of Marketing Management’s rich history of publishing works that advance and strengthen this field (e.g. Abdelhadi, Foster, & Whysall, 2014; Gregory-Smith, Smith, & Winklhofer, 2013; Leo & Russell-Bennett, 2012; Parker, Roper, & Medway, 2015; Wallace & De Chernatony, 2007). Reflective of the literature, the papers published in this special issue demonstrate the complexities, contradictions and consequences of deviant behaviours perpetrated by both consumers and organisational actors. Thematically, the six papers and three commentaries confirm the growing prevalence of deviant behaviours across every facet of consumers’ and organisations’ interactions. The papers question traditional conceptualisations of deviant behaviours that no longer fit well across the diverse settings and contexts comprising the fabric of modern marketing activity. Interestingly, the papers also highlight a number of counterintuitive findings. They demonstrate collectively that organisations and consumers can both gain and lose as a consequence of dark behaviours, and that these parties themselves can be the masters of their own misfortunes. Importantly, the papers consider reasonable means by which organisations could prevent or mitigate deviant behaviour and its outcomes, which affect a range of macro and micro entities. The six papers and three commentaries discuss the breadth of deviant behaviours and accordingly adopt diverse theoretical underpinnings and methodological approaches to explain these phenomena. The first paper, titled ‘Schadenfreude and product failures: the role of product deservingness and product status’, authored by Pancer, McShane and Poole, investigates the dark experience of schadenfreude, which is taking pleasure in the suffering of other customers in the context of product failures. Underpinned by equity theory, the authors forward three hypotheses that propose dynamics between schadenfreude, product status, deservingness and envy. The findings JOURNAL OF MARKETING MANAGEMENT, 2017 VOL. 33, NOS. 15–16, 1231–1235 https://doi.org/10.1080/0267257X.2017.1382188

Unpacking the perceived opportunity to misbehave: The influence of spatio-temporal and social dimensions on consumer misbehaviour

Purpose – This study aims to use opportunity as a theoretical lens to investigate how the spatio-temporal and social dimensions of the consumption environment create perceived opportunities for consumers to misbehave. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing on routine activity theory and social impact theory, the authors use two experiments to demonstrate that spatio-temporal and social dimensions can explain consumer theft in retail settings. Findings – Study 1 reveals mixed empirical support for the basic dimensions of routine activity theory, which posits that the opportunity to thieve is optimised when a motivated offender, suitable target and the absence of a capable formal guardian transpire in time and space. Extending the notion of guardianship, Study 2 tests social impact theory and shows that informal guardianship impacts the likelihood of theft under optimal routine activity conditions. Originality/value – The study findings highlight important implications for academicians and retail managers: rather than focusing on the uncontrollable characteristics of thieving offenders, more controllable spatio-temporal and social factors of the retail environment can be actively monitored and manipulated to reduce perceived opportunities for consumer misbehaviour.