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PublicationShould service firms introduce algorithmic advice to their existing customers? The moderating effect of service relationships( 2023)An increasing number of service firms are introducing algorithmic advice to their customers. In this research, we examine the introduction of such tools from a relational perspective and show that the type of relationship a customer has with a service firm moderates his or her response to algorithmic advice. Studies 1 and 2 find that customers in communal relationships are more reluctant to use algorithmic advice instead of human advice than customers in exchange relationships. Study 3 shows that offering customers algorithmic advice may harm communal relationships but not exchange relationships. Building on these findings, Studies 4, 5, and 6 examine how firms can mitigate the potentially negative relational consequences of algorithmic advice. While a fallback option that signals that customers can request additional human advice if needed is effective in preventing relational damages in communal relationships, this same intervention backfires in exchange relationships. These findings have important implications by showing that managers need to consider the relational consequences of introducing algorithmic advice to existing customers.
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PublicationGrounded procedures of connection are not created equal(Cambridge University Press, 2021)
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Publication“Touching” services: tangible objects create an emotional connection to services even before their first use(Springer, 2020)Although research suggests that physical elements of the servicescape play an important role in the service process, there is little research on the impact of tangible objects that companies give to consumers such as membership cards, pens, mugs, or fashion articles. Drawing on research about embodied cognition, this paper investigates how and under which conditions the provision of tangible service objects affects consumers. Three experimental studies were conducted, in which participants received different objects they could either touch or just see. These studies indicate that touching a service object metaphorically translates into a perceived mental connection towards the service. More specifically, physically connecting to a service object leads to a stronger psychological connection to the corresponding service, which, in turn, increases behavioral intentions. The results also demonstrate that providing a tangible object only has an impact when the object is of high aesthetic appeal. These findings suggest that providing tangible service objects is an effective way for service providers to build an emotional connection with potential customers and to strengthen the emotional connections of existing customers.Type:Journal:Volume:Issue:
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PublicationSecuring Frontline Employee Support after an Ethical Scandal: The Moderating Impact of Response Strategies(Sage Periodicals Press, 2016-08)Although ethical scandals are a common phenomenon in the service industry, there is little research on the service-specific aspects of crisis management. In this research, we argue that frontline employees are of crucial importance after a scandal and examine how firms can secure the support of frontline employees following different kinds of scandals. Specifically, we demonstrate that corrective responses that address the internal causes of a scandal and ceremonial responses that guide attention to positive aspects unrelated to the scandal moderate the impact of different scandals on frontline employee support. Three experiments showed that frontline employee support was greater after scandals that involved a great rather than a small number of wrongdoers and after scandals that had been caused by high-ranking managers rather than low-ranking employees when a corrective response was implemented. In contrast, support was greater following scandals that had been committed by a few low-ranking employees rather than high-ranking managers when a ceremonial response was employed. These results have important implications by illustrating how companies can effectively restore frontline employee support following a scandal.Type:Journal:Volume:Issue:
Scopus© Citations 7 -
PublicationBlissfully Ignorant: The Effects of General Privacy Concerns, General Institutional Trust, and Affect in the Privacy CalculusExisting research on information privacy has mostly relied on the privacy calculus model, which views privacy-related decision-making as a rational process where individuals weigh the anticipated risks of disclosing personal data against the potential benefits. In this research, we develop an extension to the privacy calculus model, arguing that the situation-specific assessment of risks and benefits is bounded by (1) pre-existing attitudes or dispositions, such as general privacy concerns or general institutional trust, and (2) limited cognitive resources and heuristic thinking. An experimental study, employing two samples from the USA and Switzerland, examined consumer responses to a new smartphone application that collects driving behavior data and provided converging support for these predictions. Specifically, the results revealed that a situation-specific assessment of risks and benefits fully mediates the effect of dispositional factors on information disclosure. In addition, the results showed that privacy assessment is influenced by momentary affective states, indicating that consumers underestimate the risks of information disclosure when confronted with a user interface that elicits positive affect.
Scopus© Citations 269 -
PublicationProduct Design for the Long Run: Consumer Responses to Typical and Atypical Designs at Different Stages of Exposure(AMA American Marketing Association, 2013-09)Extant research on product design has suggested that a design's typicality is an important determinant of consumers' aesthetic liking. Yet most studies to date have measured consumers' reactions to designs of varied typicality after a single exposure. In reality, however, consumers usually have multiple opportunities to observe a product before making a decision. Against this background, the authors perform three studies in the automobile domain that examine whether the positive effect of design typicality is moderated by the level of exposure. Study 1 indicates that aesthetic liking of typical car designs is greater at lower exposure levels, whereas people like atypical car designs better at higher exposure levels. Study 2 uses real sales data and indicates that the interaction between design typicality and exposure also affects sales, suggesting that atypical cars may be more successful in the long run. Using experimental manipulations of the key constructs, Study 3 provides evidence for the underlying process and finds renewed support for the notion that design typicality and exposure interact to affect aesthetic liking.
Scopus© Citations 120 -
PublicationThe Tipping Point of Design: How Product Design and Brands interact to affect Consumers' Preferences(Wiley Periodicals, 2012-06)Existing research on product design has demonstrated the importance of aesthetics in generating favorable consumer responses. However, the literature has only recently begun to explore if and to what extent the impact of product design is influenced by brand strength. Whereas some research indicates that strong brands may benefit less strongly from aesthetically attractive designs, other research suggests that attractive designs are more persuasive when they are paired with a strong brand. In this research, these two competing predictions were tested through three studies with German car buyers. In Study 1, participants were exposed to a fictitious car that was paired with a randomly chosen brand name. In Study 2, participants were presented with a set of existing cars and were asked to choose one. Both studies yield converging evidence and show that product design and brands interact in a positive fashion, suggesting that attractive designs exert a greater influence on consumers' decision processes when they are accompanied by a strong brand. Study 3 extended these findings by demonstrating that strong brands only increase the impact of attractive designs when perceived risk is high but not when it is low.
Scopus© Citations 43 -
PublicationGetting better or getting worse? Consumer Responses to decreasing, constant, and ascending multi-dimensional Price Profiles(Springer Verlag, 2012-01)his research investigates consumer preferences for different multi-dimensional price profiles. Drawing on research on price affect, we investigate whether consumers prefer descending monthly installments (e.g., 40, 30, 20, 10) over constant (e.g., 25, 25, 25, 25), or ascending ones (e.g., 10, 20, 30, 40). Results of a field experiment with a sample of 1,628 German car buyers corroborate the hypothesized profile effect. In the experiment, participants were asked to evaluate different finance offers for a new car that all had the same present value but differed in terms of how the installments unfolded over time. Consistent with the hypotheses, decreasing monthly installments are evaluated more favorably than constant installments, which, in turn are evaluated more favorably than ascending installments. Furthermore, the results provide evidence for the underlying process by showing that the impact of different MDP profiles is mediated by positive affect. Finally, it was hypothesized that consumers' individual differences (i.e., debt aversion, financial expectations, and product category knowledge) would exert a moderating influence on evaluations of different price profiles; these hypotheses, however, were only partially confirmed. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.Type:Journal:Volume:Issue:
Scopus© Citations 5 -
PublicationThe effect of applicant-employee fit and temporal construal on employer attraction and pursuit intentions(Wiley-Blackwell, 2012-03)Although applicant-employee fit has emerged as an important topic in recruitment research, little is known about how job seekers' perceived similarity with the employees working for an organization affects employer attraction. In this research, we introduce temporal construal as a crucial moderating variable and study how the temporal decision context affects the weighting of applicant-employee fit. In particular, we argue that applicant-employee fit is construed in abstract, high-level terms and exerts a stronger influence when prospective applicants hold a distant time perspective. In contrast, instrumental attributes such as pay level represent low-level construals and gain greater relevance when prospective applicants hold a near time perspective. Two experiments involving a student sample and a sample of unemployed job seekers supported these predictions.Type:Journal:Volume:Issue:
Scopus© Citations 13 -
