Michael K. Hui

What to tell consumers in waits of different lengths: An integrative model of service evaluation

The authors conduct an experimental study to examine the impact of two types of waiting information—waiting-duration information and queuing information—on consumers’ reactions to waits of differen...

Country‐of‐manufacture effects for known brands

This paper examines the differential effects of country‐of‐manufacture information on product beliefs and attitudes for brands with different levels of brand equity. Results show that when there is congruence between brand origin and country of manufacture (e.g. a Sony television that is made in Japan), the latter information has no significant effect on product beliefs and global product attitude. When country‐of‐manufacture information indicates that a branded product is made in a country with a less reputable image than that of the brand origin (e.g. a Sony television that is made in Mexico), the information produces more negative effects on product evaluations for low equity brands than high equity brands. These results can be attributed to two different perceptual processes through which incongruent country‐of‐manufacture information affects product evaluations for brands with different levels of brand equity.

When Does the Service Process Matter? A Test of Two Competing Theories

This article examines the interactive effect of process quality and outcome quality on service evaluation. Experiment 1 shows that the interaction between the two types of quality follows a pattern predicted by two-factor theory. In contrast, experiment 2 demonstrates that when consumers feel uncertain about the service outcome prior to consumption, they will use process quality as a heuristic substitute in their assessment of the trustworthiness of the service provider. The resulting interaction between the types of quality then follows a pattern predicted by fairness heuristic theory.

Test of a Nonlinear Relationship between Linguistic Acculturation and Ethnic Identification

Following a review of the literature concerning the relationship between acculturation (acquisition of a dominant culture) and ethnic identification (retention of culture of origin), the authors propose that linguistic acculturation is nonlinearly related to ethnic identity. An empirical study was conducted to test this relationship between linguistic acculturation and ethnic identification using data gathered from multiple studies investigating four different ethnic groups in Eastern Canada over a period of 7 years. Regression analysis results indicate that the two underlying dimensions of ethnicity are related and that the postulated function exhibits an excellent fit, thus providing support for the proposition.

The Role of Relationship Norms in Responses to Service Failures

A friendly relationship with a service provider can sometimes decrease the negative feelings that consumers experience as the result of a service failure. However, friendship is not always beneficial. When consumers focus their attention on the providers obligation to respond to their needs, they react more negatively to a service failure when they are friends of the provider than when they have only a business relationship with him or her. When their attention is drawn to their own obligation in the relationship, however, the reverse is true. This difference is confirmed in four experiments in which the perspective from which participants imagined a service failure was activated either by unrelated experiences before being exposed to the failure or by features of the service encounter itself.

Linking Product Evaluations and Purchase Intention for Country-of-Origin Effects

Abstract This paper reports an experimental study concerned with the observed inconsistency between evaluative and behavioral data for country-of-origin (COO) effects. This issue is addressed by specifying conceptual relationships among three criterion variables-consumer evaluations of product quality, perceived product value, and purchase intention in the context of COO effects. The results showed that COO information had a direct effect on overall product evaluation and an indirect effect (through product evaluation) on perceived product value, which in turn determined purchase intention. In addition, purchase intention was also directly affected by brand name and price factors, but not by COO. Moreover, it was also revealed that COO and brand name had a similar impact on overall product evaluation. On the whole, this study suggests that it may be premature to claim less significant importance and role of COO information in influencing purchase intentions or behaviors. Rather, the exact nature of COO effects for behavioral consequences might be much more complex than what has been assumed in most previous studies. The present investigation represents an initial effort in providing empirical evidence of how COO information may impact evaluative and behavioral variables differently in the consumer decision process. Managerial implications of this study are discussed.

Moderation Effects of Power Distance on the Relationship Between Types of Empowerment and Employee Satisfaction

Previous research concludes that empowerment is ineffective with employees from societies high in power distance. The present study examines this conclusion across three types of empowerment: discretion empowerment, psychological empowerment, and leadership empowerment (or empowerment leadership behaviors). To assess the effects of power distance on these three types of empowerment, employee surveys were conducted in Canada (a society low in power distance) and in China (a society high in power distance). Results showed that the effect of discretion empowerment on employee satisfaction was less pronounced in China, just as previous literature had concluded about the dynamics of societies high in power distance. However, the effect of the leadership empowerment on employee satisfaction via the competence facet of psychological empowerment was found to be more pronounced in Canada, a society lower in power distance. These conclusions at the cultural level were also confirmed at the psychological level. We thus advocate that empowerment remains an advantageous strategy to organizations in both societies and individuals high and low in power distance, depending on the type of empowerment involved.

Prior Relationships and Consumer Responses to Service Failures: A Cross-Cultural Study

The authors examine the mitigating effect of an established trusting relationship between service providers and consumers on the consequences of service failures as a function of interdependent–independent self-construal. Two studies reveal that the effect of prior relationship, defined as the length of past patronage of a service provider, on consumer behavioral responses to service failure tends to be more pronounced among consumers with interdependent (vs. independent) self-construal. This variation in the mitigating effect of prior relationship can be attributed to the differential impact of trust in the service provider on the two groups of consumers. The authors conclude with a discussion of managerial implications.

A typology of consumption based on ethnic origin and media usage

Examines consumption as a function of two ethnicity indicators. Ethnic origin, a reflective indicator, is not subject to the volition of a person and is hardly changed by continuous contact with the mainstream group. On the other hand, media usage is partly determined by the extent and duration of one’s contacts with the mainstream group, and is therefore considered as a formative indicator. Using a sample of French‐ and English‐Canadians drawn from the Toronto area, this study provides preliminary evidence showing that ethnic origin, media usage, and other ethnicity indicators vary in terms of the extent to which they are amenable to acculturative pressure. A new typology of consumption is also introduced based on the distinction between ethnic origin as a reflective indicator and media usage as a formative indicator.