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The
literature of guilt in the context of consumer behavior is notably limited.
It is particularly limited with respect to examining gender differences
across nations. Existing studies have only evaluated gender differences, in
terms of consumer guilt, in the United States. In addition, those studies
evaluated gender differences in specific consumption situations such as
consumer boycotting and food consumption. Thus, they do not give a
comprehensive understanding of gender variations in consumer guilt. Notably,
gender differences with regard to consumer guilt were shown to be limited in
countries other than the United States. These studies provided contradictory
results to established findings in social psychology. In view of this, by
using quantitative techniques, numerous consumption settings, and samples
from two distinct countries, this study provides a holistic assessment of
gender differences in consumer guilt across nations. The findings indicate
that gender differences, with respect to consumer guilt, are predominately
present in individualistic countries and notably absent in collectivist
countries. Hence, marketers should consider gender as an influential variable
when devising guilt related strategies in individualistic countries. In
contrast, marketers may reconsider allocating resources, with respect to
gender related marketing strategies, in collectivist countries.
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ملخص المشاركة:
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The
impact of guilt on consumer behaviour has been widely recognised by
researchers and practitioners alike (Antonetti & Baines, 2015). Yet
somehow, in the marketing literature, guilt is characterised by several
conceptual and methodological shortcomings (Antonetti & Baines, 2015;
Cohen, Wolf, Panter, & Insko, 2011; Tracy, Robins, & Tangney, 2007).
For instance, the nature, determinants and manifestations of guilt in
marketing and consumer behaviour have not been fully understood, and the
adequacy of its measurement instruments has yet to be reached. Against this
background, we argue in this paper that often these shortcomings are due to a
sub-optimal cross-fertilization of views rather than efforts in isolated
cognate discipline silos. To this end, borrowing from psychology the
cognitive appraisal theory, which leads to guilt, especially the appraisal of
importance to one’s identity goals, the beneficial role of consumer
involvement in understanding guilt has emerged. By considering guilt as a
self-conscious derived emotional state and linking it to cognitive appraisal
and involvement, the conceptual domain of guilt is further clarified and its
measurement as an emotional state can be reached.
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