Understanding today’s music acquisition mix: a latent class analysis of consumers’ combined use of music platforms

In response to diversifying music delivery modes, consumers increasingly combine various music platforms, both online and offline, legal and illegal, and free or paying. Based on survey data (N = 685), the current study segments consumers in terms of the combination of music delivery modes they use. We identify four latent classes based on their usage frequency of purchasing CDs, copying CDs, streaming music, streaming music videos, peer-to-peer file sharing, and purchased downloading. All-round users (9.9 %) use most or all acquisition modes, but at a low frequency. Traditionalist (33.7 %) typically makes no use of any of the acquisition modes except buying CDs. Streamers-downloaders (20.7 %) use several acquisition modes intensively, especially streaming (video and/or music only) and downloading (legal and illegal). Light users (35.6 %) also use multiple acquisition modes, but less frequently. We draw theoretical and practical implications, discuss limitations, and suggest ideas for future research

Measurement in marketing

We distinguish three senses of the concept of measurement (measurement as the selection of observable indicators of theoretical concepts, measurement as the collection of data from respondents, and measurement as the formulation of measurement models linking observable indicators to latent factors representing the theoretical concepts), and we review important issues related to measurement in each of these senses. With regard to measurement in the first sense, we distinguish the steps of construct definition and item generation, and we review scale development efforts reported in three major marketing journals since 2000 to illustrate these steps and derive practical guidelines. With regard to measurement in the second sense, we look at the survey process from the respondent's perspective and discuss the goals that may guide participants' behavior during a survey, the cognitive resources that respondents devote to answering survey questions, and the problems that may occur at the various steps of the survey process. Finally, with regard to measurement in the third sense, we cover both reflective and formative measurement models, and we explain how researchers can assess the quality of measurement in both types of measurement models and how they can ascertain the comparability of measurements across different populations of respondents or conditions of measurement. We also provide a detailed empirical example of measurement analysis for reflective measurement models

Analyzing policy capturing data using structural equation modeling for within-subject experiments (SEMWISE)

We present the SEMWISE (structural equation modeling for within-subject experiments) approach for analyzing policy capturing data. Policy capturing entails estimating the weights (or utilities) of experimentally manipulated attributes in predicting a response variable of interest (e.g., the effect of experimentally manipulated market-technology combination characteristics on perceived entrepreneurial opportunity). In the SEMWISE approach, a factor model is specified in which latent weight factors capture individually varying effects of experimentally manipulated attributes on the response variable. We describe the core SEMWISE model and propose several extensions (how to incorporate nonbinary attributes and interactions, model multiple indicators of the response variable, relate the latent weight factors to antecedents and/or consequences, and simultaneously investigate several populations of respondents). The primary advantage of the SEMWISE approach is that it facilitates the integration of individually varying policy capturing weights into a broader nomological network while accounting for measurement error. We illustrate the approach with two empirical examples, compare and contrast the SEMWISE approach with multilevel modeling (MLM), discuss how researchers can choose between SEMWISE and MLM, and provide implementation guidelines

Response styles in consumer research

In researchers’ efforts to better understand consumers, questionnaires are an indispensable source of data. In consumer surveys the Likert item format, where respondents rate their agreement with specific statements, is very popular. However, responses to such items may be biased by response styles, defined as respondents’ tendencies to disproportionately select specific response options. A well-known example is the acquiescence response style, i.e. the tendency to disproportionately use the response options expressing agreement, but respondents may also make disproportionate use of the extreme options, the midpoint option, or the options expressing disagreement. Despite repeated warnings regarding the biasing effect of response styles, most survey research does not control or correct for their impact. A reason for this may be the incomplete understanding of response styles and their antecedents, as well as the difficulties encountered in measuring response styles. The research programme reported in this dissertation aimed to contribute to the understanding of response styles in consumer research by further crystalizing the conceptualization of response styles, by optimizing measurement of response styles, and by explaining the processes that underly response styles. To this end, five empirical studies were carried out. A first study investigated respondents’ understanding of reversed items in questionnaires. Reversed items relate to the same construct as their non-reversed counterparts, but in the opposite direction (e.g. ‘I love to buy new products’ is a reversal of ‘I dislike the purchase of innovations’). This study indicated that responses to items are influenced by the presence of other items that measure the same construct. The exact functional form of this influence is different for reversals and non-reversals, indicating a difference in the way respondents process both types of items. Since this study questioned the validity of reversals for measuring response styles, in the subsequent studies a measurement method for response styles was proposed that captures response tendencies across random samples of items. In a second study, it was shown that response styles are tendencies which are largely stable over the course of a single questionnaire administration. Study 3 established response styles as largely stable tendencies across different questionnaire administrations with a one year time gap in between and using different sets of questions. A fourth study compared response styles across different modes of data collection (self-administered paper and pencil questionnaires, telephone interviews and self-administered online questionnaires). This study showed that there may be differences in response styles across modes of data collection that cannot be detected by the traditional measurement invariance tests. A fifth and final study found two major segments of respondents that differ in the way they satisfice, i.e. economize on the time and effort invested in responding to questionnaire items. One group tends to disproportionately use the midpoint when satisficing. A second group, when satisficing, disproportionately uses the midpoint as well as the negative and positive extremes of the response scale. In sum, though many questions remain unresolved, this dissertation contributes to a better understanding of response styles. More specifically, theory is enhanced by (1) a further delineation of the concept of response styles, which is translated in a proposed operationalization of response styles, (2) evidence in support of the stabililty of response styles, (3) the establishment of response styles as a potential biasing factor in cross-mode comparisons, and (4) a model that captures the relation of response styles to satisficing

Reversed item bias: an integrative model

In the recent methodological literature, various models have been proposed to account for the phenomenon that reversed items (defined as items for which respondents' scores have to be recoded in order to make the direction of keying consistent across all items) tend to lead to problematic responses. In this article we propose an integrative conceptualization of three important sources of reversed item method bias (acquiescence, careless responding, and confirmation bias) and specify a multisample confirmatory factor analysis model with 2 method factors to empirically test the hypothesized mechanisms, using explicit measures of acquiescence and carelessness and experimentally manipulated versions of a questionnaire that varies 3 item arrangements and the keying direction of the first item measuring the focal construct. We explain the mechanisms, review prior attempts to model reversed item bias, present our new model, and apply it to responses to a 4-item self-esteem scale (N = 306) and the 6-item Revised Life Orientation Test (N = 595). Based on the literature review and the empirical results, we formulate recommendations on how to use reversed items in questionnaires

Attracting applicants through the organization’s social media page : signaling employer brand personality

The purpose of this study is to examine how potential applicants’ exposure to an organization’s social media page relates to their subsequent organizational attractiveness perceptions and word-of-mouth intentions. Based on signaling theory and the theory of symbolic attraction, we propose that potential applicants rely on perceived communication characteristics of the social media page (social presence and informativeness) as signals of the organization’s employer brand personality (warmth and competence), which in turn relate to organizational attractiveness and word-of-mouth. Data were gathered in a simulated job search process in which final-year students looked for an actual job posting and later visited an actual organization’s social media page. In line with our hypotheses, results show that the perceived social presence of a social media page was indirectly positively related to attractiveness and word-of-mouth through its positive association with perceived organizational warmth. Perceived informativeness was indirectly positively related to these outcomes through its positive association with perceived organizational competence. In addition, we found that social presence was also directly positively related to organizational attractiveness. These findings suggest that organizations can use social media pages to manage key recruitment outcomes by signaling their employer brand personality

(R)E-tail satisfaction: retail customer satisfaction in online and offline contexts

Building on the e-Satisfaction model proposed by Szymanski and Hise (2000) and further validated by Evanschitzky, Iyer, Hesse, and Ahlert (2004), we develop an instrument to measure shopper satisfaction in online and offline retail contexts: the (R)E-Tail Satisfaction scale. Using data from an online (N=202) and an offline (N=441) grocery shopper sample, the instrument is shown to be fit for cross-channel evaluation of levels of satisfaction and its antecedents. We find full metric invariance (identical factor loadings), sufficient partial scalar invariance (identical item intercepts for at least two items per construct), as well as some interesting structural differences. Most notably, online shoppers evaluate the facets of retail satisfaction generally lower than do offline shoppers

The calibrated sigma method : an efficient remedy for between-group differences in response category use on likert scales

The authors propose a procedure, labeled the calibrated sigma method, which is designed to correct for between-group differences in endorsement likelihood of response categories that are unrelated to the content of the items. The method is especially useful in cross-cultural research where group differences may reflect variation in scale usage rather than substantive differences. However, the procedure is also relevant in other situations, for example, when different data collection modes or different experimental manipulations affect respondents’ perception of the meaning of the scale labels. The calibrated sigma method uses information derived from heterogeneous control items (calibration items) to reweight the responses to substantive items in a group-specific way. The advantages of the calibrated sigma method are that it avoids the arbitrariness in the assignment of particular numerical values to response categories; that it is compatible with the linear model, which is used by most marketing researchers; and that it does not require the use of complex nonlinear models involving the estimation of many additional measurement model parameters. The authors validate the calibrated sigma method on a simulated cross-linguistic data set pertaining to 12 different languages; an empirical data set collected from respondents of the same nationality but from two different language groups; and an experimental data set consisting of responses to two different response scale formats. The findings demonstrate that the proposed procedure controls for artefactual scale use differences across groups but does not eliminate substantive differences. It is particularly efficient for marketing research agencies, panel providers and other marketing researchers who analyze surveys involving multiple language groups, different scale formats, multiple modes of data collection, or different manipulations affecting the meaning of the response category labels