The dangers of using intention as a surrogate for Retention in brand positioning decision support systems

The purpose of this paper is to explore the dangers of using intention as a surrogate for retention in a decision support system (DSS) for brand positioning. An empirical study is conducted, using structural equations modeling and both data from the internal transactional database and a survey. The study is aimed at evaluating whether the DSS recommends different product benefits for brand positioning when intention is used as opposed to retention as a criterion variable. The results show that different product benefits are recommended contingent upon the criterion variable (intention vs. retention). The findings also indicate that the strength of the structural relationships is inflated when intention is used. This study is limited in that it investigates only one industry; the newspaper industry. This study provides guidance for brand managers in selecting the most appropriate benefit for brand positioning and advices against the use of intention as opposed to retention in DSS. To the best of our knowledge this study is the first to challenge and refute the commonly held belief that intention is a valid surrogate for retention in a DSS for brand positioning

Statistical Analysis of Choice Experiments and Surveys

Measures of households' past behavior, their expectations with respect to future events and contingencies, and their intentions with respect to future behavior are frequently collected using household surveys. These questions are conceptually difficult. Answering them requires elaborate cognitive and social processes, and often respondents report only their “best” guesses and/or estimates, using more or less sophisticated heuristics. A large body of literature in psychology and survey research shows that as a result, responses to such questions may be severely biased. In this paper, (1) we describe some of the problems that are typically encountered, (2) provide some empirical illustrations of these biases, and (3) develop a framework for conceptualizing survey response behavior and for integrating structural models of response behavior into the statistical analysis of the underlying economic behavior.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/47001/1/11002_2005_Article_5884.pd

Advance Care Plans: Planning for Critical Healthcare Decisions

Advance care plans (ACPs) document personal values and healthcare preferences for critical situations where individuals cannot speak for themselves. Although ACPs can prevent receiving costly unwanted treatments and ensure receiving preferred treatments, few people have one. We examine factors associated with ACP engagement and design interventions to increase engagement. We find that ACP holders and non-holders largely have common values and preferences, which similarly vary with demographics. For example, older (vs. younger) individuals, regardless of ACP ownership, prefer to be able to care for themselves and to avoid prolonged end-of-life medical interventions. These two groups also differ in important ways: those who have or intend to create ACPs (versus not) prefer avoiding invasive life-sustaining treatments and having a peaceful end of life. However, interventions that use these similarities and differences to increase ACP engagement are unsuccessful. We propose that structural approaches may be more effective in increasing ACP uptake

Sales forecasts for existing consumer products and services: Do purchase intentions contribute to accuracy

Acknowledgments: The authors thank Albert Bemmaor for providing some of the data used in this study. Helpfu