Abstract
Based on the dual-process theory of ethical judgment, a research model is proposed for examining consumers’ moral reactions to a product-harm crisis. A national-wide survey was conducted with 801 respondents in China. The results of this study indicate that consumers will react to a product-harm crisis through controlled cognitive processing and emotional intuition. The results of the study also show that consumers view a product-harm crisis as an ethical issue, and they will make an ethical judgment according to the perceived severity and perceived relevance of the crisis. The ethical judgment in the perceived crisis severity and perceived crisis relevance will affect consumers’ condemning emotions in terms of contempt and anger. Through controlled cognitive processing, a personal consumption-related reaction (purchasing intention) is influenced by the perceived crisis severity. Furthermore, a social and interpersonal reaction (negative word of mouth) is influenced by the perceived crisis relevance through the controlled cognitive processing. This social and interpersonal reaction is also influenced by the perceived crisis severity and perceived crisis relevance through the intuition of other-condemning emotion. Moreover, this study finds that the product knowledge negatively moderates the impact of the perceived crisis severity on the condemning emotions. Therefore, when a consumer has a high level of product knowledge, the effect of perceived crisis severity on the condemning emotions will be attenuated, and vice versa. This study provides scholars and managers with means of understanding and handling of consumers’ reactions to a product-harm crisis.
Highlights
As an important social and economic issue, product safety is related to the survival of enterprises, and affects the whole economy
Kim used Expectancy Violations Theory to explain the impact of prior corporate associations on consumers’ reaction to the product-harm crisis [8]. These studies assumed that consumers have controlled cognition on a product-harm crisis, but they ignored the role of consumers’ emotional intuition
Since the product-harm crises have occurred in a large number of product categories, so this study only focuses on the product-harm crisis caused by the automobile design and quality in China
Summary
As an important social and economic issue, product safety is related to the survival of enterprises, and affects the whole economy. Kim used Expectancy Violations Theory to explain the impact of prior corporate associations on consumers’ reaction to the product-harm crisis [8] These studies assumed that consumers have controlled cognition on a product-harm crisis, but they ignored the role of consumers’ emotional intuition. Grappi et al thought that the harm to consumers can be regarded as a kind of ethical transgressions, which may damage the interests, freedom, and dignity of consumers [13] Based on these points of view, this study will systemically examine how the product-harm crisis affects consumers’ reactions. This study tries to find out the consumers’ ethical judgment through ethical reasoning (based on the perceived severity and perceived relevance of the crisis) and emotional intuition in the scenario of the product-harm (corporate ethical transgression). The automobile product-harm crisis frequently occurs in China with a wide influence
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