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Cynical Consumers: Dangerous Enemies, Loyal Friends

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Cynical Consumers: Dangerous Enemies, Loyal Friends CYNICAL CONSUMERS: DANGEROUS ENEMIES, LOYAL FRIENDS A Dissertation presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School University of Missouri-Columbia In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy by AMANDA E. HELM Dr. Marsha Richins, Dissertation Supervisor December 2006 © Copyright by Amanda Helm 2006 All Rights Reserved The undersigned, appointed by the dean of the Graduate School, have examined the dissertation entitled CYNICAL CONSUMERS: DANGEROUS ENEMIES, LOYAL FRIENDS presented by Amanda E. Helm, a candidate for the degree of doctor of philosophy, and hereby certify that, in their opinion, it is worthy of acceptance. Marsha Richins, Myron Watkins Distinguished Professor and Professor of Marketing Srinivasan Ratneshwar, Bailey K. Howard World Book Chair of Marketing and Chair, Department of Marketing Ken Evans, Pinkney C. Walker Professorship in Teaching Excellence, Professor of Marketing and Associate Dean Mark Houston, David and Judy O'Neal MBA Professor and Associate Professor of Marketing Laura King, Professor of Psychological Sciences This dissertation is dedicated to my parents, who encouraged achievement without pressuring for success, who lived as role models without expecting me to fit a mold, and, who, without fail, expressed enthusiastic, tireless and utterly convincing interest in the topic of consumer cynicism. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to acknowledge the support and guidance of the marketing faculty of the University of Missouri, particularly the members of my dissertation committee, Ratti Ratneshwar, Ken Evans and Mark Houston. I would especially like to thank my dissertation chair Marsha Richins for her valuable academic and professional advice on the dissertation and throughout the doctoral program and for her patience and encouragement. I would also like to thank my fellow Mizzou doctoral students, whose friendships made the program fun. I would also like to acknowledge the financial support of the University of Missouri Marketing Department and the Association for Consumer Research Sheth Foundation. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements______________________________________________________ ii List of Tables _________________________________________________________ viii List of Figures _________________________________________________________ x Abstract_______________________________________________________________ xi Chapter 1: Introduction__________________________________________________ 1 Contributions of the Research ________________________________________________ 3 Defining consumer cynicism ________________________________________________________3 Antecedents of consumer cynicism____________________________________________________4 Consequences of consumer cynicism __________________________________________________5 Scale development ________________________________________________________________6 Organization of the Dissertation ______________________________________________ 6 Chapter 2: Background Literature Review___________________________________ 7 Cynicism Literature ________________________________________________________ 7 Societal and personality cynicism_____________________________________________________7 Specific cynicisms _______________________________________________________________10 Beyond disappointment: The development of cynicism ___________________________________11 Consequences of cynicism _________________________________________________________14 Consumer culture as a cause of societal cynicism _______________________________________15 Cultural emphasis on selfish gratification ___________________________________________15 Creation of a false image ________________________________________________________17 Evidence of Cynicism in Consumer Literature _________________________________ 18 Disparaging behaviors __________________________________________________________19 Withdrawal behaviors __________________________________________________________21 iii Chapter 3: Grounded Theory Construct Development_________________________ 23 Objectives of the Qualitative Study ___________________________________________ 23 Methodology______________________________________________________________ 24 Sample and procedure_____________________________________________________________24 Questionnaire ___________________________________________________________________25 Analysis _______________________________________________________________________26 Findings: Conceptual Framework ____________________________________________ 27 The global marketplace as the consumer cynicism target__________________________________29 Cynics and trust in the consumer context ______________________________________________32 Cynicism profiles ________________________________________________________________33 Noncynical consumers __________________________________________________________34 Moderately cynical consumers____________________________________________________35 Cynical consumers _____________________________________________________________37 Consumer cynicism and behavior____________________________________________________38 Partnerships __________________________________________________________________40 Development of cynicism __________________________________________________________42 Chapter 4: Cynicism and Related Constructs in the Consumer Behavior Literature_ 46 Consumer Constructs Related to Cynicism ____________________________________ 46 Advertising skepticism ____________________________________________________________46 Consumer alienation ______________________________________________________________47 Other research on consumer attitudes toward business____________________________________49 Trait Research in Consumer Literature _______________________________________ 51 Chapter 5: Research Objectives and Hypotheses _____________________________ 56 Trait Antecedents of Consumer Cynicism: Placing Consumer Cynicism Within a Hierarchical Trait Framework ______________________________________________ 56 H1: Elemental trait: Negative Affectivity______________________________________________56 H2-H3: Central Dispositions________________________________________________________57 iv Societal cynicism ______________________________________________________________57 Need for cognition _____________________________________________________________59 Consequences of Consumer Cynicism: Marketplace Behaviors____________________ 60 H4 and H5: Marketplace shaping and withdrawal behaviors _______________________________60 H6 and H7: Marketplace-level consumer cynicism impacts perceptions about a specific purchase__61 H8-9: Consumer cynicism effects on brand loyalty ______________________________________66 Chapter 6: Scale development ____________________________________________ 72 Construct Definition and Content Domain _____________________________________ 74 Item generation __________________________________________________________________75 Content Validity and Dimensionality _________________________________________ 75 Study 2: Member check ___________________________________________________________75 Member check results __________________________________________________________76 Study 3: Expert judgments of content validity and dimension fit____________________________77 Study 4: Initial test on a student sample _______________________________________________84 Methodology for Study 4 ________________________________________________________85 Analyses for Study 4: Exploratory factor analysis and initial item reduction ________________88 Study 5: Item Reduction ____________________________________________________ 90 Study 5 methodology _____________________________________________________________91 Conclusions from Study 4 and 5: Primary item reduction _________________________________92 Reliability Assessments _____________________________________________________ 99 Study 6: Test-retest analysis ________________________________________________________99 Study 6 methodology ___________________________________________________________99 Test-retest analysis results ______________________________________________________100 Various studies: Internal consistency ________________________________________________100 Internal consistency across six samples ____________________________________________101 Confirmatory factor analysis and invariant factor structure _______________________________104 Evaluating Validity of the Consumer Cynicism Scale ___________________________ 106 v Convergent validity______________________________________________________________106 Self-rating based on consumer cynicism definition ___________________________________107 Skepticism toward advertising ___________________________________________________107 Normlessness dimension of consumer alienation ____________________________________108 Discriminant Validity ____________________________________________________________109 Advertising skepticism_________________________________________________________109 Societal cynicism _____________________________________________________________110 Category cynicism ____________________________________________________________113 Consumer alienation __________________________________________________________117 Study 7: Known Groups Validity with Adbusters ______________________________________125 Objectives and methodology ____________________________________________________125 Conclusions from Study 7 ______________________________________________________126
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