Russell N. Laczniak

Consumers’ Responses to Negative Word-of-Mouth Communication: An Attribution Theory Perspective

Research on negative word-of-mouth communication (WOMC) in general, and the process by which negative WOMC affects consumers’ brand evaluations in particular, has been limited. This study uses attribution theory to explain consumers’ responses to negative WOMC. Experimental results suggest that (a) causal attributions mediate the negative WOMC-brand evaluation relation, (b) receivers’ attributions depend on the manner in which the negative WOMC is conveyed, and (c) brand name affects attributions. Results also suggest that when receivers attribute the negativity of the WOMC message to the brand, brand evaluations decrease; however, if receivers attribute the negativity to the communicator, brand evaluations increase.

Manipulating Message Involvement in Advertising Research

Abstract Given the influential role involvement plays in advertising processing, it is important that researchers planning to manipulate the construct take great care in developing their manipulations and manipulation checks. This study discusses a procedure, adapted from Churchills (1979) paradigm for developing better measures of marketing constructs, that may be useful in constructing manipulations of advertising (message) involvement. A manipulation and accompanying manipulation checks are offered as examples of instructions/items satisfactorily meeting reliability and validity requirements. The study draws attention to the importance of developing valid manipulations of involvement when conducting advertising research.

From Nutrients to Nurturance: A Conceptual Introduction to Food Well-Being

The authors propose a restructuring of the “food as health” paradigm to “food as well-being.” This requires shifting from an emphasis on restraint and restrictions to a more positive, holistic understanding of the role of food in overall well-being. The authors propose the concept of food well-being (FWB), defined as a positive psychological, physical, emotional, and social relationship with food at both individual and societal levels. The authors define and explain the five primary domains of FWB: food socialization, food literacy, food marketing, food availability, and food policy. The FWB framework employs a richer definition of food and highlights the need for research that bridges other disciplines and paradigms outside and within marketing. Further research should develop and refine the understanding of each domain with the ultimate goal of moving the field toward this embodiment of food as well-being.

The Relationship between Experimental Manipulations and Tests of Theory in an Advertising Message Involvement Context

Abstract Advertising message involvement (AMI) has been identified as an important individual/situational factor influencing advertising processing. In order to isolate and examine various theoretical relationships, researchers often experimentally manipulate AMI. In this study, several manipulations of the construct were tested for their ability to place individuals into high- and low-involvement groups. The results of the analyses indicated that modifications in manipulation instructions may alter the pattern of results obtained on manipulation-and confounding-check measures. The findings also suggest that relationships between theoretical constructs may be dependent upon the involvement manipulation utilized. The study is intended to demonstrate the delicate balance/relationship between methodological rigor and theoretical development/advancement.

The Moderating Effects of Ad Message Involvement: A Reassessment

Recent conceptual and empirical work by MacKenzie and Lutz has provided an organizing framework for understanding the brand attitude formation process under varying involvement conditions. The present study extends this research effort by more closely examining the moderating effects of ad message involvement (AMI) in the context of the dual mode persuasion (DMP) and contextual evaluation transfer (CET) models. Utilizing a non-manipulated treatment of involvement and an alternative measure of brand perceptions, structural relationships among key constructs in both models were well-supported, even relationships hypothesized but not previously supported by MacKenzie and Lutz.

Does environmental advertising reflect integrated marketing communications?: An empirical investigation

Abstract We describe an empirical assessment of the degree to which environmental ads may be classified as integrated. A framework discussed by Nowak and Phelps (1994) is applied to a set of “green” ads to determine whether such ads are truly integrated. Because organizations should use more than one approach in order to develop a green posture, integrated marketing communications would appear to be a suitable method for forming an environmentally conscious stance. Results indicate that only about half of the environmental ads that were studied were classifiable as integrated according to criteria discussed by Nowak and Phelps. Further, integrated green ads do not appear to be applying the types of direct behavioral inducements that might be optimal for building a positive environmental posture. Such findings may have implications for the recent decline in use of and interest in green advertising.

Advertising's Influence on Subsequent Product Trial Processing

Abstract Several studies have shown that pretrial ad exposure can positively influence a subsequent product trial experience. In this study, we investigate several specific, positive ad effects on product trial using an experiment that exposes subjects to a trial only, an ad only, or an ad and trial. In general, the pretrial ad appeared to encourage consumers to process a subsequent product trial more deeply, purposefully, and carefully than was the case with the trial alone. Subjects exposed to a pretrial ad rated the subsequent trial higher in diagnosticity, formed more confidently held beliefs, and formed higher expectancy value and purchase intentions. In addition, consumers exposed to an ad prior to trial showed stronger structural relationships among expectancy value, brand attitude, and purchase intentions compared with those consumers that experienced a product trial alone. Such results suggest that posttrial responses are the result of more careful and focused processing of the trial information. Advertising and product trial were also shown to differ significantly in their ability to foster strongly held beliefs about experiential and nonexperiential product attributes. As expected, advertising was superior at communicating nonexperiential beliefs, and trial excelled at fostering experiential attribute beliefs.

Socializing Children about Television: An Intergenerational Study

This article describes a study on mothers’ views of television and children’s perceptions of their mothers’ socialization efforts regarding television. Results from the investigation involving 174 mother and child (in Grades 3–6) dyads suggest that mothers’ perceptions of their responsibilities regarding children’s television viewing vary by parental style. In addition, children’s perceptions of mothers’ verbal interactions about TV and coviewing together with opinions, monitoring, and controlling of television similarly vary across parental styles. These findings support previous research that parental styles play a role in determining the manner in which mothers socialize their offspring about television.

External organizational commitment.

Abstract Building on the organizational commitment literature and recent management practices like relationship marketing and total quality management, a new focus of work commitment is proposed: external organizational commitment (EOC). It is envisioned as a global construct and defined as an employees identification and involvement with another organization. A model of EOC specifying its antecedents, consequences, and moderating factors is offered and 28 propositions emanating from the model are articulated. Implications for human resource practitioners are discussed.

Delayed effects of advertising moderated by involvement

Abstract The moderating effect of message involvement was examined for two determinants of brand attitudes (attitude toward the ad [Aad] and brand beliefs) measured immediately after and 1 week following ad exposure. Findings indicated that, under high-involvement conditions, both brand beliefs and Aad were relatively enduring over time. In low-involvement conditions, Aad, but not beliefs, remained relatively stable over time. Irrespective of involvement conditions, immediate measures of Aad were significantly correlated with delayed measures of brand attitude, whereas immediate beliefs were significantly related to brand attitude only in high-involvement conditions.