WHEN DOES NEGATIVE BRAND PUBLICITY HURT? The Moderating Influence of Analytic Versus Holistic Thinking

Negative publicity can diminish positive consumer perceptions of a brand. We explore the impact of processing style on mitigating the effects of negative publicity. We hypothesize that holistic thinkers are less susceptible to negative publicity information than are analytic thinkers. Holistic thinkers are more likely to consider external context-based explanations for the negative publicity, resulting in little or no revision of beliefs about the parent brand. Analytic thinkers, in contrast, are less likely to consider contextual factors, attributing negative information to the parent brand and updating their brand beliefs accordingly. Across three studies, we find support for our predictions.Brand publicity, holistic thinking

Lan Nguyen Chaplin a,b,⁎

and peer

Cultural Differences in Brand Extension Evaluation: The Influence of Analytic versus Holistic Thinking

Consumers evaluate brand extensions by judging how well they fit with the parent brand. We examine this process across cultures. We predict that consumers from Eastern cultures, characterized by holistic thinking, perceive higher brand extension fit and evaluate brand extensions more favorably than do Western consumers, characterized by analytic thinking. Study 1 supports the existence of these cultural differences, with study 2 providing support for styles of thinking (analytic vs. holistic) as the drivers of cultural differences in brand extension evaluations. (c) 2007 by JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH, Inc..

Growing up in a material world: Age differences in materialism in children and adolescents

We examine age differences in materialism with children and adolescents 8-18 years old. In study 1, we find materialism increases from middle childhood to early adolescence and declines from early to late adolescence. Further, we find that age differences are mediated by changes in self-esteem occurring from middle childhood through adolescence. In study 2, we prime self-esteem to obtain further evidence of a causal link between self-esteem and materialism. As expected, we find that inducing high self-esteem decreases expressions of materialism. Inducing high self-esteem reduces materialism among adolescents so dramatically that age differences in materialism disappear. Contemporary American tweens and teens have emerged as the most brand-oriented, consumer-involved, and materialistic generation in history. And they top the list globally. . . . More children here than anywhere else believe that their clothes and brands describe who they are and define their social status. (Schor 2004, 13) C oncerns over the rising level of materialism in children and adolescents are increasing among parents, educators, and social scientists. In a recent national survey, 95% of adults say that children are too focused on buying and consuming things, and almost 80% agree that limits shoul

Growing up in a Material World: Age Differences in Materialism in Children and Adolescents

We examine age differences in materialism with children and adolescents 8-18 years old. In study 1, we find materialism increases from middle childhood to early adolescence and declines from early to late adolescence. Further, we find that age differences are mediated by changes in self-esteem occurring from middle childhood through adolescence. In study 2, we prime self-esteem to obtain further evidence of a causal link between self-esteem and materialism. As expected, we find that inducing high self-esteem decreases expressions of materialism. Inducing high self-esteem reduces materialism among adolescents so dramatically that age differences in materialism disappear. (c) 2007 by JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH, Inc..

When

does negative brand publicity hurt? The moderating influence of analytic versus holistic thinkin

The Development of Self-Brand Connections in Children and Adolescents

Individuals use brands to create and communicate their self-concepts, thereby creating self-brand connections. Although this phenomenon is well documented among adult consumers, we know very little about the role of brands in defining, expressing, and communicating self-concepts in children and adolescents. In this article, we examine the age at which children begin to incorporate brands into their self-concepts and how these self-brand connections change in qualitative ways as children move into adolescence. In three studies with children 8-18 yr. of age, we find that self-brand connections develop in number and sophistication between middle childhood and early adolescence. (c) 2005 by JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH, Inc..