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Embarrassment has been defined as a social emotion that occurs due to the violation of a social norm in public, which is appraised by others (what we call “public embarrassment”). We propose that embarrassment can also be felt when one violates a social norm in private, or when one appraises oneself and violates one’s self-concept (“private embarrassment”). We develop a typology of embarrassment with two underlying dimensions – social context (transgression in-public or in-private) and mechanism (appraisal by others or by the self). Of the four resulting categories, one fits with the dominant “social” view of embarrassment, whereas the other three have aspects of privacy. We generate triggers for public and private embarrassment and demonstrate their similarities in study 1. Study 2 (buying an incontinence drug) and study 3 (buying Viagra for impotence versus pleasure) replicate these similarities, and also exhibit differences in the experience of public and private embarrassment through accompanying physiological reactions, action tendencies, and behavioral consequences. Our aim is to expand the scope of embarrassment research to include private contexts and self-appraisal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose that features of static visuals can lead to perceived movement (via dynamic imagery) and prepare the observer for action. We operationalize our research within the context of warning sign icons and show how subtle differences in iconography can affect human behavioral response. Across five studies incorporating multiple methodologies and technologies (click-data heat maps, driving simulations, surveys, reaction time, and eye tracking), we show that warning sign icons that evoke more (vs. less) perceived movement lead to a quicker propensity to act because they suggest greater risk to oneself or others and increase attentional vigilance. Icons used in our studies include children crossing signs near schools, wet floor signs in store settings, and shopping cart crossings near malls. Our findings highlight the importance of incorporating dynamic elements into icon design to promote imagery and thereby elicit desired and responsible consumer behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of olfactory imagery is introduced and the conditions under which imagining what a food smells like (referred to here as "smellizing" it) impacts consumer response are explored. Consumer response is measured by: salivation change (studies 1 and 2), actual food consumption (study 3), and self-reported desire to eat (study 4). The results show that imagined odors can enhance consumer response but only when the consumer creates a vivid visual mental representation of the odor referent (the object emitting the odor). The results demonstrate the interactive effects of olfactory and visual imagery in generating approach behaviors to food cues in advertisements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: There has been a recent swell of interest in marketing as well as psychology pertaining to the role of sensory experiences in judgment and decision making. Within marketing, the field of sensory marketing has developed which explores the role of the senses in consumer behavior. In psychology, the dominant computer metaphor of information processing has been challenged by researchers demonstrating various manners in which mental activity is grounded in sensory experience. These findings are arduous to explain using the amodal model of the human mind. In this introduction, we first delineate key assumptions of the information processing paradigm and then discuss some of the key conceptual challenges posed by the research generally appearing under the titles of embodiment, grounded cognition, or sensory marketing. We then address the use of bodily feelings as a source of information; next, we turn to the role of context sensitive perception, imagery, and simulation in consumer behavior, and finally discuss the role of metaphors. Through this discourse, we note the contributions to the present special issue as applicable. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Equilibrium bundling strategies and the effects of market expansion are examined.

Firms can use the expiry dates of its coupon promotions to influence the characteristics of their market. Economic analysis of the effects of coupon duration on coupon profitability reveal that firms with a large market share should offer short-term coupons while those with a small market share should offer long-term ones. Furthermore, it was shown that extended expiry limits increase the redemption for coupons of that brand and of a competing brand but at the price of regular sales of both brands. It was also shown that a short coupon duration is profitable in markets where there is a larger proportion of buyers redeeming in expiration-date order. These findings reflect the importance of taking a proactive stance towards the setting of expiry dates for coupon promotions.

This paper focuses on the timeshare industry, where members own timeshare "weeks" and can exchange these weeks among themselves without a medium of exchange (such as money). Timeshare exchanges allow for the weeks to be redistributed among members to better match their preferences and thus increase efficiency. As such, the problem falls within the domain of matching problems, which have recently gained much attention in academia. We demonstrate theoretically that the two major timeshare exchange mechanisms used currently (deposit-first mechanism and request-first mechanism) can cause efficiency loss. We propose an alternate exchange mechanism, the top trading cycles chains and spacebank (TTCCS) mechanism, and show that it can increase the efficiency of the timeshare exchange market because TTCCS is Pareto efficient, individually rational, and strategy proof. We test the three exchange mechanisms in laboratory experiments where we simulate exchange markets with networked "timeshare members." The results of the experiments are robust across four different environments that we construct and strongly support our theory. The research focuses on an industry not studied earlier within academia and extends theoretical work on mechanism design to cases where supply of resources is dynamic, but resources can be stored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Consumers set a lower consumption budget when they set individual calorie budgets for constituent categories (e.g., breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks; categorical approach) versus when they set a total budget (overall approach). This contraction effect of unpacking a judgment is driven by motivated reasoning. Consumers are motivated to reduce calorie consumption, and this motive directs their cognitive elaboration for the budget decision to be on what to cut and how much to cut. Furthermore, the categorical (vs. overall) approach brings to mind more thoughts that are consistent with the motive to reduce consumption, which then leads to a lower calorie budget. Consistent with this explanation, the level of elaboration on reducing calorie intake—especially on occasions where overconsumption is less salient—mediates the contraction effect. In addition, the contraction effect is attenuated when the motive to reduce consumption is deactivated. Finally, while the contraction effect occurs when consumers have a motive to reduce consumption, the classic expansion effect of unpacking occurs when consumers are prompted to think about what to consume or are motivated to increase consumption. The results for calorie budgeting are shown to have downstream consequences on actual food consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Why sexual assaults and car accidents are associated with the consumption of alcohol mixed with energy drinks (AMED) is still unclear. In a single study, we show that the label used to describe AMED cocktails can have causal non-pharmacological effects on consumers' perceived intoxication, attitudes, and behaviors. Young men who consumed a cocktail of fruit juice, vodka, and Red Bull felt more intoxicated, took more risks, were more sexually self-confident, but intended to wait longer before driving when the cocktail's label emphasized the presence of the energy drink (a “Vodka-Red Bull cocktail”) compared to when it did not (a “Vodka” or “Exotic fruits” cocktail). Speaking to the process underlying these placebo effects, we found no moderation of experience but a strong interaction with expectations: These effects were stronger for people who believe that energy drinks boost alcohol intoxication and who believe that intoxication increases impulsiveness, reduces sexual inhibition, and weakens reflexes. These findings have implications for understanding marketing placebo effects and for the pressing debate on the regulation of the marketing of energy drinks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numeric ratings for products can be presented using a bigger-is-better format (1 = bad, 5 = good) or a smaller-is-better format with reversed rating poles (1 = good, 5 = bad). Seven experiments document how implicit memory for the bigger-is-better format—where larger numbers typically connote something is better—can systematically bias consumers’ judgments without their awareness. This rating polarity effect is the result of proactive interference from culturally determined numerical associations in implicit memory and results in consumer judgments that are less sensitive to differences in numeric ratings. This is an implicit bias that manifests even when people are mindful and focused on the task and across a range of judgment types (auction bids, visual perception, purchase intent, willingness to pay). Implicating the role of reliance on implicit memory in this interference effect, the rating polarity effect is moderated by (1) cultural norms that define the implicit numerical association, (2) construal mindsets that encourage reliance on implicit memory, and (3) individual propensity to rely on implicit memory. This research identifies a new form of proactive interference for numerical associations, demonstrates how reliance on implicit memory can interfere with explicit memory, and shows how to attenuate such interference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research examines how oral haptics (due to hardness/softness or roughness/ smoothness) related to foods influence mastication (i.e., degree of chewing) and orosensory perception (i.e., orally perceived fattiness), which in turn influence calorie estimation, subsequent food choices, and overall consumption volume. The results of five experimental studies show that, consistent with theories related to mastication and orosensory perception, oral haptics related to soft (vs. hard) and smooth (vs. rough) foods lead to higher calorie estimations. This “oral haptics– calorie estimation” (OHCE) effect is driven by the lower mastication effort and the higher orosensory perception for soft (vs. hard) and smooth (vs. rough) foods. Further, the OHCE effect has downstream behavioral outcomes in terms of influencing subsequent food choices between healthy versus unhealthy options as well as overall consumption volume. Moreover, mindful calorie estimation moderates the effects of oral haptics on consumption volume. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]