How does the terrorist experience alter consumer behaviour? An analysis of the Spanish case

Abstract

Although the number of terrorist casualties has recently decreased, terrorism still presents a threat to society. Within the last 20 years there has been a significant increase in the number of monographic studies about terrorist incidents’ impact on consumer behaviour. However, the present study is the first to analyse whether a terrorist threat specifically alters the consumer behaviour of direct victims. According to the literature, the impact of terrorism on many sectors is lower than originally expected and, if significant, only short term. We hypothesize that this influence is more significant and lasts longer with direct victims, who have undergone traumatic experience. For this purpose, we explore how victims of terrorism in Spain respond to hypothetical scenarios describing a terrorist plot against airplanes at an international airport. In addition, we check if there are significant differences between participants when confronted with situations in which they have to opt between taking or cancelling a planned trip by plane under the menace of a (hypothetical) terrorist attack.