Determinante stavova i namera potrošača u pogledu kupovine domaćih i globalnih brendova

Prilikom kupovine velikog broja različitih kategorija proizvoda i usluga, potrošači imaju izbor koji uključuje brendove kako multinacionalnih i globalnih preduzeća, tako i domaćih. Osnovni cilj ove doktorske disertacije jeste analiza determinanti koje imaju uticaj na stavove i namere potrošača u pogledu kupovine domaćih i globalnih brendova. Konkretno, analiziran je uticaj karakteristika brendova, preduzeća i potrošača, na stavove i namere koje potrošači imaju u pogledu buduće kupovine navedenih vrsta brendova. U okviru karakteristika brendova, analiziran je uticaj percipirane vrednosti brendova, tj. kvaliteta, cene, prestiža i emocionalne vrednosti. Karakteristike preduzeća obuhvataju aktivnosti domaćih i globalnih preduzeća na društvenim mrežama, aktivnosti korporativne društvene odgovornosti i imidž preduzeća. Na kraju, u okviru karakteristika potrošača, analiziran je uticaj etnocentrizma, kosmopolitizma, materijalizma, nacionalnog identiteta i animoziteta potrošača. U skladu sa definisanim ciljem doktorske disertacije, formulisane su osnovne hipoteze istraživanja, koje se odnose na uticaj navedenih determinanti na stavove i namere potrošača u pogledu kupovine domaćih i globalnih brendova, kao i na uticaj stavova na namere, ali i namera na samu kupovinu ovih brendova. Radi testiranja formulisanih hipoteza, sprovedeno je empirijsko istraživanje na teritoriji Centralne Srbije, pri čemu su prikupljena 872 anketna listića. Testiranje hipoteza je izvršeno korišćenjem modela strukturalnih jednačina (SEM) i analize moderacijskog uticaja demografskih karakteristika potrošača na utvrđene veze u modelima istraživanja. Empirijsko istraživanje je ukazalo na brojne zaključke, u pogledu relacija između analiziranih pojedinačnih determinanti i stavova i namera potrošača. Naime, rezultati ukazuju da karakteristike brendova, preduzeća i potrošača utiču pozitivno i statistički značajno na stavove i namere ispitanika prema kupovini domaćih i globalnih brendova. Pored toga, istraživanje je pokazalo da stavovi potrošača utiču pozitivno na namere potrošača, kao i da namere potrošača utiču pozitivno na samu kupovinu domaćih i globalnih brendova. Navedeni rezultati impliciraju da su sve osnovne hipoteze u ovoj doktorskoj disertaciji potvrđene. Sprovedeno istraživanje ima teorijske i praktične implikacije za poslovanje domaćih i globalnih preduzeća, koje se ogledaju u kreiranju strategije komunikacije i upravljanja odnosima sa potrošačima, kao i segmentacije tržišta. Osnovna ograničenja istraživanja se odnose na činjenicu da njime nisu obuhvaćene sve varijable koje mogu uticati na kupovinu domaćih i globalnih brendova, kao i da je ono sprovedeno na teritoriji jedne države. Ovo ujedno mogu biti i pravci budućih istraživanja, u kojima se mogu uključiti nove varijable i koje može biti realizovano u većem broju država.When purchasing a large number of different categories of products and services, consumers have a choice that includes brands from both multinational and global companies, as well as domestic ones. The main objective of this doctoral dissertation is to analyze the determinants that influence consumers' attitudes and intentions regarding the purchase of local and global brands. Specifically, the impact of brand, company, and consumer haracteristics on consumer attitudes and intentions regarding the future purchase of these types of brands was analyzed. Within the brand characteristics, the impact of perceived brand value, i.e. quality, price, prestige and emotional value. The characteristics of the companies include activities of local and global companies on social networks, corporate social responsibility activities and corporate image. Finally, within the consumer characteristics, the influence of ethnocentrism, cosmopolitanism, materialism, national identity and consumer animosity was analyzed. In accordance with the defined goal of the doctoral dissertation, basic hypotheses of the research were formulated, which relate to the influence of the above mentioned determinants on the attitudes and intentions of the consumers regarding the purchase of local and global brands, as well as the influence of the attitudes on the intentions, but also the influence of intentions on the purchase of these brands. In order to test the formulated hypotheses, an empirical survey was conducted in the territory of Central Serbia, in which 872 questionnaires were collected. Hypothesis testing was performed using structural equation modelling (SEM) and analysis of the moderating influence of consumer demographic characteristics on relationships in research models. Empirical research has led to a number of conclusions regarding the relationships between the analyzed individual determinants and consumer attitudes and intentions. More specifically, the results indicate that the characteristics of brands, companies and consumers have a positive and statistically significant influence on respondents' attitudes and intentions regarding the purchase of local and global brands. In addition, research has shown that consumer attitudes have a positive effect on consumers' intentions, as well as that consumers' intentions have a positive effect on the purchase of domestic and global brands. The aforementioned results imply that all the hypotheses in this doctoral dissertation are confirmed. The conducted research has theoretical and practical implications for the operations of domestic and global businesses, which are reflected in the creation of communication and customer relationship management strategies as well as market segmentation. The basic limitations of the research relate to the fact that it does not cover all the variables that may affect the purchase of local and global brands, and that it was conducted in the territory of a single country. This may also be a direction for future research, in which new variables can be included and can be implemented in a number of countries

Brand i karakteristike potrošača kao pokretača ponašanja prema globalnim i lokalnim brandovima

The main purpose of this research is to determine influence of brand and consumer characteristics on consumers` behaviour regarding purchase of global and local brands. Starting from Theory of planned behaviour and Theory of social identity several antecedents of consumers` attitudes were researched in proposed model- quality of brands, prestige, ethnocentrism and materialism. For this purpose, sample comprising of 329 respondents was collected. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to test the validity of the model and structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to determine relationships between variables. Empirical research has shown that the factors of quality of local brands and ethnocentrism have a positive and statistically significant effect on the consumers` attitudes towards the local brands. On the other side, brand quality, prestige and materialism have a positive effect on the attitudes of consumers towards global brands, whereas ethnocentrism has a negative effect on attitudes towards this type of brands. In addition, research has shown that the attitudes have positive influence on consumers` behavioural intentions regarding purchase of both local and global brands and that consumers` intentions have positive effect on actual purchase of both types of brands. The main finding of the paper implies that the characteristics of consumers and brands influence consumer behaviour in terms of purchasing aforementioned types of brands. The conducted research has a scientific and practical contribution in terms of obtaining information about the factors that influence the consumers` decisions regarding the purchase of both local and global brands.Glavna svrha ovog istraživanja je utvrditi kako utjecaj branda i karakteristika potrošača na ponašanje potrošača pri odabiru globalnih i lokalnih brandova. Polazeći od teorije planiranog ponašanja i teorije društvenog identiteta, istraženo je nekoliko preduvjeta stavova potrošača u predloženom modelu – kvaliteta robnih marki, prestiž, etnocentrizam i materijalizam. U tu svrhu prikupljeno je 329 ispitanika. Konfirmatorna faktorska analiza korištena je za testiranje valjanosti modela i modeliranje strukturalne jednadžbe (SEM) za određivanje odnosa između varijabli. Empirijska istraživanja pokazala su da čimbenici kvalitete lokalnih brandova i etnocentrizma imaju pozitivan i statistički značajan utjecaj na stavove potrošača prema lokalnim brandovima. S druge strane, kvaliteta robne marke, prestiž i materijalizam imaju pozitivan učinak na stavove potrošača prema globalnim brandovima, dok etnocentrizam negativno utječe na stavove prema ovakvim vrstama marki. Nadalje, istraživanje je pokazalo da stavovi imaju pozitivan utjecaj na bihevioralnu namjeru potrošača u vezi s kupnjom lokalnih i svjetskih marki te da namjere potrošača imaju pozitivan učinak na stvarnu kupnju obje vrste marki. Glavni nalaz ovog istraživanja upućuje na to da karakteristike potrošača i marki utječu na ponašanje potrošača u smislu nabave gore spomenutih vrsta marki. Provedeno istraživanje ima znanstveni i praktičan doprinos u prikupljenim informacijama o čimbenicima koji utječu na odluke potrošača o kupnji lokalnih i svjetskih marki

Transcranial Electrical Stimulation for Associative Memory Enhancement: State-of-the-Art from Basic to Clinical Research

Associative memory (AM) is the ability to bind new information into complex memory representations. Noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS), especially transcranial electric stimulation (tES), has gained increased interest in research of associative memory (AM) and its impairments. To provide an overview of the current state of knowledge, we conducted a systematic review following PRISMA guidelines covering basic and clinical research. Out of 374 identified records, 41 studies were analyzed—twenty-nine in healthy young adults, six in the aging population, three comparing older and younger adults, as well as two studies on people with MCI, and one in people with Alzheimer’s dementia. Studies using transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) as well as oscillatory (otDCS) and high-definition protocols (HD-tDCS, HD-tACS) have been included. The results showed methodological heterogeneity in terms of study design, stimulation type, and parameters, as well as outcome measures. Overall, the results show that tES is a promising method for AM enhancement, especially if the stimulation is applied over the parietal cortex and the effects are assessed in cued recall paradigms

Effects of Transcranial Electrical Stimulation on Gambling and Gaming: A Systematic Review of Studies on Healthy Controls, Participants with Gambling/Gaming Disorder, and Substance Use Disorder

Gambling disorder (GD) and internet gaming disorder (IGD) are formally recognized behavioral addictions with a rapidly growing prevalence and limited treatment options. Recently, transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) techniques have emerged as potentially promising interventions for improving treatment outcomes by ameliorating cognitive functions implicated in addictive behaviors. To systematize the current state of evidence and better understand whether and how tES can influence gambling and gaming-related cognitive processes, we conducted a PRISMA-guided systematic review of the literature, focusing on tES effects on gaming and gambling in a diverse range of population samples, including healthy participants, participants with GD and IGD, as well as participants with substance abuse addictions. Following the literature search in three bibliographic databases (PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus), 40 publications were included in this review, with 26 conducted on healthy participants, 6 focusing on GD and IGD patients, and 8 including participants with other addictions. Most of the studies targeted the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, using transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), and assessed the effects on cognition, using gaming and gambling computerized cognitive tasks measuring risk taking and decision making, e.g., balloon analogue risk task, Iowa gambling task, Cambridge gambling task, etc. The results indicated that tES could change gambling and gaming task performances and positively influence GD and IGD symptoms, with 70% of studies showing neuromodulatory effects. However, the results varied considerably depending on the stimulation parameters, sample characteristics, as well as outcome measures used. We discuss the sources of this variability and provide further directions for the use of tES in the context of GD and IGD treatment

Zn(II) complexes of (1,3-thiazol-2-yl)hydrazones as potential pharmacological agents

Antimicrobial resistance due to the overuse of antibiotics and transmission of resistance within and between individuals is nowadays a serious public health threat. Therefore, there is an urgent need for development of new classes of antimicrobials that may not be as susceptible to bacterial resistance mechanisms as the current drugs [1]. Significant number of studies indicates promising antimicrobial activity of (1,3-thiazol-2-yl)hydrazones [2]. Zinc is an element of interest for biologically active complex preparation since it is essential trace element found in all animals, and to a much lesser extent toxic to humans than non-essential metals like e.g. platinum. We hereby present the structural studies of a series of their zinc complexes, prepared by simple reactions of ZnCl2 and Zn(NO3)2 with each of the ligands HL1–3: [ZnCl2(HL1)] (1), [Zn(HL1)2](NO3)2 ×H2O (2), [Zn(HL2)2][ZnCl4] (3), [Zn(HL2)2](NO3)2 × MeOH × H2O (4), [Zn(HL3)2][ZnCl4] (5) and [Zn(HL3)2](NO3)2 × 3H2O (6). All complexes were characterized by elemental analysis, molar conductivity measurements, UV-Vis, IR and NMR spectroscopic analyses. Single crystals suitable for the X-ray analysis of 1–5 were successfully prepared and diffraction studies were conducted. In all complexes, the tridentate NNN coordination is observed. In the molecular complex of 1 zinc is located in a centre of a slightly distorted trigonal bipyramid. In cationic complexes of 2, 3, 4 and 5, more or less severely distorted octahedral coordination cores are formed around the Zn atom and the overall charge is balanced by the presence of two nitrate anions (2 and 4) or two ZnCl42- anions (3 and 5) per complex molecule. Crystal structure of 1 is characterized by the distinct H-bonded centrosymmetric dimers of a graph-set notation R(2,2)10. In the nitrato-complexes 2 and 4, the two hydrazone nitrogen atoms act as donors in bifurcated H-bonds, connecting both ligand molecules of the cationic complex to two oxygen atoms from the corresponding nitrate anionic moieties. These neutral assemblies appear as distinct building blocks of the crystal structures. Finally, H-bonding patterns in the isostructural structures 3 and 5 are analogous. A single observed H-bond connects the hydrazine nitrogen as a donor to a chlorine from the ZnCl4- anion as an acceptor, hence an “endless” chain is formed parallel

Blinding in tDCS Studies: Correct End-of-Study Guess Does Not Moderate the Effects on Associative and Working Memory

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has become a valuable tool in cognitive neuroscience research as it enables causal inferences about neural underpinnings of cognition. However, studies using tDCS to modulate cognitive functions often yield inconsistent findings. Hence, there is an increasing interest in factors that may moderate the effects, one of which is the participants’ beliefs of the tDCS condition (i.e., real or sham) they received. Namely, whether participants’ correct guessing of sham condition may lead to false-positive tDCS effects. In this study, we aimed to explore if participants’ beliefs about received stimulation type (i.e., the success of blinding) impacted their task performance in tDCS experiments on associative (AM) and working memory (WM). We analyzed data from four within-subject, sham-controlled tDCS memory experiments (N = 83) to check if the correct end-of-study guess of sham condition moderated tDCS effects. We found no evidence that sham guessing moderated post-tDCS memory performance in experiments in which tDCS effects were observed as well as in experiments that showed null effects of tDCS. The results suggest that the correct sham guessing (i.e., placebo-like effect) is unlikely to influence the results in tDCS memory experiments. We discuss the results in light of the growing debate about the relevance and effectiveness of blinding in brain stimulation research

Effects of online parietal transcranial electric stimulation on associative memory: a direct comparison between tDCS, theta tACS, and theta-oscillatory tDCS

Associative memory (AM) is the ability to remember and retrieve multiple items bound together. Previous studies aiming to modulate AM by various transcranial electric stimulation (tES) techniques were inconclusive, although overall suggestive that tES could be a tool for AM enhancement. However, evidence from a direct comparison between different tES techniques is lacking. Here, in a sham-controlled cross-over experiment, we comparatively assessed the effects of three types of tES—anodal tDCS, theta-band transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS), and theta-oscillatory tDCS (otDCS), delivered over the left posterior parietal cortex, during a short-term digit-color AM task with cued-recall. The effects were tested in 40 healthy young participants while both oscillatory tES were delivered at a previously determined individual theta frequency (4–8 Hz). All three active stimulations facilitated the overall AM performance, and no differences could be detected between them on direct comparison. However, unlike tDCS, the effects of which appeared to stem mainly from the facilitation of low-memory demand trials, both theta-modulated tACS and otDCS primarily promoted AM in high memory demand trials. Comparable yet differential effects of tDCS, theta tACS, and otDCS could be attributed to differences in their presumed modes of action

The impact of consumers' traveling and media activities on consumer behaviour towards purchasing global brands

The main objective of this research is an analysis of the impact that consumer travel and the presence of global brands in the media have on the attitudes and intentions which consumers have regarding the purchase of these brands. In order to analyse previously mentioned relationships between the variables, an empirical study was conducted as well as statistical analysis of the obtained data. Testing of hypotheses and relationships between variables was performed using structural equation modelling (SEM). The research results indicate that consumer travel and media activities of global companies have a positive and statistically significant impact on attitudes which consumers have regarding the purchase of global brands, and that attitudes have a very strong and positive impact on consumers' intentions regarding future purchases of global brands. In addition, it has been found that female consumers, younger and middle-aged consumers, as well as consumers with higher levels of education are more prone to form intentions regarding the purchase of global brands. The study contributesto the existing scientific literature in the field of international marketing and brand management, since there are a certain number of papers in the field of global branding in the foreign scientific literature, while in the domestic scientific literature the mentioned area is relatively unexplored.Publishe

High-accuracy quasistatic numerical model for bodies of revolution tailored for RF measurements of dielectric parameters

We have developed rotationally symmetrical coaxial chambers for measurements of dielectric parameters of disk-shaped samples, in the frequency range from 1 MHz to several hundred MHz. The reflection coefficient of the chamber is measured and the dielectric parameters are hence extracted utilizing a high-accuracy quasistatic numerical model of the chamber and the sample. We present this model, which is based on the method-of-moments solution of a set of integral equations for composite metallic and dielectric bodies. The equations are tailored to bodies of revolution. The model is efficient and accurate so that the major contribution of the measurement uncertainty comes from the measurement hardware

Can Transcranial Electrical Stimulation modulate gambling and gaming behaviors?

Gambling Disorder (GD) and Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) are formally recognized behavioral addictions with a rapidly growing prevalence and limited treatment options. Recently, transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) techniques have emerged as potentially promising interventions for improving treatment outcomes by ameliorating cognitive functions implicated in addictive behaviors. To systematize the current state of evidence and better understand whether and how tES can influence gambling and gaming-related cognitive processes, we conducted a PRISMA-guided systematic review of the literature focusing on tES effects on risky gambling and gaming behaviors in a diverse range of population samples, including healthy participants, participants with GD and IGD, as well as substance abuse addictions. Following the literature search in three bibliographic databases (PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus) 40 publications have been included in this review, with 26 conducted on healthy participants, six focusing on GD and IGD patients, and eight including participants with other addictions. Most of the studies targeted the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex using transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). The results indicated that tES could change gambling and gaming behaviors and positively influence GD and IGD symptoms. However, the results varied considerably depending on the stimulation parameters, sample characteristics, as well as outcome measures used. We discuss the sources of this variability and provide further directions for the use of tES in the context of GD and IGD treatment