Antecedents and consequences of stress in retailing: environmental expectations and promoter scoring

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to examine the effects of the disconfirmation of expectations of crowding and mall accessibility, on stress and two marketing outcomes, satisfaction and promoter scoring. Design/methodology/approach: Data were obtained through two face-to-face surveys from mall shoppers that answered them at two different moments of their shopping experience, before entering the mall and before leaving it. Results are obtained from 230 customers that answered the two questionnaires. Findings: The findings suggest that stress indirectly influences customer promoter scoring through satisfaction, while disconfirmation of expectations influences it directly and indirectly. Practical implications: These results also suggest that stress and disconfirmation of expectations about crowding and accessibility are important in determining promoter scoring. To reduce stress and increase satisfaction and promoter scoring, managers should focus on exceeding customers'' expectations about mall accessibility and on ensuring that customers experience a lower level of crowding than they expected. Originality/value: The article examines Net Promoter Scoring, an outcome that has attracted managers'' attention but little is known about its antecedents. The paper provides evidence of the effect of disconfirmation of expectations and negative emotions on promoter scoring

Atmospheric excitement, customers’ moods and gender: A study of young shoppers

This paper aims to demonstrate how both incidental moods and gender can moderate the relationship between the level of excitement triggered by a mall environment and shopping behaviour. Our method is based on a 4 × 2 between subjects experiment with a final sample of 377 Spanish undergraduates. The study analyses four incidental moods that differ in the dimensions of valence and arousal, and their interaction effects with two atmospheric scenarios in a mall (exciting versus non-exciting atmospheres). Our findings support mood regulation theory for positive low-arousal individuals, and reject this theory for the rest of mood conditions. Additionally, arousal reduces customers’ cognitive capabilities, confirming previous research. This means that high-arousal shoppers are not influenced by a mall environment. Finally, gender differences are only found within more frequent shoppers and for negative low-arousal (NLA) shoppers. Managerial implications are provided regarding the creation of relaxing areas or the stimulation of shoppers

How extroversion affects student attitude toward the combined use of a wiki and video recording of group presentations

The aim of this paper is to analyze the effect of extroversion on students'' attitude toward the combined use of a wiki and the video recording of oral presentations to improve communication skills using a quantitative approach. The model includes stress because it is considered an important aspect in public speaking situations, especially so in a case like ours where the videos will be available to the class. The students’ enjoyment and the relative advantages of the learning activity are also included because they may have an influence on satisfaction and course recommendation. A survey was carried out among first-year undergraduate students. Using partial least squares methodology, the results suggest that extrovert individuals perceive less stress and more enjoyment when performing this activity, which results in them having a better attitude toward it. A total mediation effect of enjoyment between extroversion and attitude is found. Our findings also confirm that stress acts as a barrier to satisfaction, but it does not create a negative reaction toward the activity. Finally, the results show the mediation effect of attitude between the perceived relative advantages and satisfaction and between enjoyment and satisfaction

The role of the humanisation of smart home speakers in the personalisation–privacy paradox

This article examines the personalisation–privacy paradox through the privacy calculus lens in the context of smart home speakers. It also considers the direct and moderating role of humanisation in the personalisation–privacy paradox. This characteristic refers to how human the device is perceived to be, given its voice''s tone and pacing, original responses, sense of humour, and recommendations. The model was tested on a sample of 360 users of different brands of smart home speakers. These users were heterogeneous in terms of age, gender, income, and frequency of use of the device. The results confirm the personalisation–privacy paradox and verify uncanny valley theory, finding the U-shaped effect that humanisation has on risks of information disclosure. They also show that humanisation increases benefits, which supports the realism maximisation theory. Specifically, they reveal that users will perceive the messages received as more useful and credible if the devices seem human. However, the human-likeness of these devices should not exceed certain levels as it increases perceived risk. These results should be used to highlight the importance of the human-like communication of smart home speakers. © 2022 The Author

What characteristics of smart home speakers should companies invest in? Differences between actual and potential users

The aim of the research is double. First, it aims to examine the importance of smart product features on users'' satisfaction and adopters'' purchasing intentions. Second, we want to analyse the possible quadratic effect of three features, autonomy, personality and human interaction on the two outcomes. The results show that the features of smart products that influence users'' satisfaction differ from those of adopters'' purchasing intentions. Finally, interesting managerial implications for smart product producers and dealers are offered

Complementary IT resources for enabling technological opportunism

This study examines the use of information technologies (ITs), IT human capital, the level of IT vendor support, and their joint effects on firm''s sensing and responding to IT changes (technological opportunism). Using data from the U.S. and Spain, the results suggest that IT use and the firm''s IT human capital are the main drivers of technological opportunism (TO). The effect of IT vendor support on TO is country dependent, with a U-shaped effect in the U.S. and no effect in Spain. IT vendor support can have positive effects on TO if the firm invests in IT human capital

β-delayed γ-proton decay in 56Zn: analysis of the charged-particle spectrum

A study of the beta decay of the proton-rich T-z = 2 nucleus Zn-56 has been reported in a recent publication. A rare and exotic decay mode, beta-delayed gamma-proton decay, has been observed there for the first time in the fp shell. Here, we expand on some of the details of the data analysis, focussing on the charged particle spectrum

Staphylococcal phenotypes induced by naturally occurring and synthetic membrane-interactive polyphenolic β-lactam resistance modifiers.

Galloyl catechins, in particular (-)-epicatechin gallate (ECg), have the capacity to abrogate β-lactam resistance in methicillin-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA); they also prevent biofilm formation, reduce the secretion of a large proportion of the exoproteome and induce profound changes to cell morphology. Current evidence suggests that these reversible phenotypic traits result from their intercalation into the bacterial cytoplasmic membrane. We have endeavoured to potentiate the capacity of ECg to modify the MRSA phenotype by stepwise removal of hydroxyl groups from the B-ring pharmacophore and the A:C fused ring system of the naturally occurring molecule. ECg binds rapidly to the membrane, inducing up-regulation of genes responsible for protection against cell wall stress and maintenance of membrane integrity and function. Studies with artificial membranes modelled on the lipid composition of the staphylococcal bilayer indicated that ECg adopts a position deep within the lipid palisade, eliciting major alterations in the thermotropic behaviour of the bilayer. The non-galloylated homolog (-)-epicatechin enhanced ECg-mediated effects by facilitating entry of ECg molecules into the membrane. ECg analogs with unnatural B-ring hydroxylation patterns induced higher levels of gene expression and more profound changes to MRSA membrane fluidity than ECg but adopted a more superficial location within the bilayer. ECg possessed a high affinity for the positively charged staphylococcal membrane and induced changes to the biophysical properties of the bilayer that are likely to account for its capacity to disperse the cell wall biosynthetic machinery responsible for β-lactam resistance. The ability to enhance these properties by chemical modification of ECg raises the possibility that more potent analogs could be developed for clinical evaluation

Measurements of the leptonic branching fractions of the τ\tau

Data collected with the DELPHI detector from 1993 to 1995 combined with previous DELPHI results for data from 1991 and 1992 yield the branching fractions B({\tau \rightarrow \mbox{\rm e} \nu \bar{\nu}}) = (17.877 \pm 0.109_{stat} \pm 0.110_{sys} )\% and $B({\tau \rightarrow \mu \nu \bar{\nu}}) = (17.325 \pm 0.095_{stat} \pm 0.077_{sys} )\%$

Search for scalar fermions and long-lived scalar leptons at centre-of-mass energies of 130 GeV to 172 GeV

Data taken by DELPHI during the 1995 and 1996 LEP runs have been used to search for the supersymmetric partners of electron, muon and tau leptons and of top and bottom quarks. The observations are in agreement with standard model predictions. Limits are set on sfermion masses. Searches for long lived scalar leptons from low scale supersymmetry breaking models exclude stau masses below 55~GeV/c$^2$ at the 95\% confidence level, irrespective of the gravitino mass