Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports 2019 Shame and Guilt: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Raika Sadeghein West Virginia University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd Part of the Marketing Commons, and the Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Sadeghein, Raika, "Shame and Guilt: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" (2019). Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports. 3767. https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/3767 This Dissertation is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by the The Research Repository @ WVU with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Dissertation in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. 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Shame and Guilt: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Raika Sadeghein Dissertation submitted to the John Chambers College of Business and Economics at West Virginia University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Ph.D. in Marketing Paula Fitzgerald, Ph.D., Chair Pam Ellen, Ph.D. Annie Cui, Ph.D. Stephen He, Ph.D. Laurel Cook, Ph.D. Department of Marketing Morgantown, West Virginia 2019 Keywords: Shame, Guilt, Consumer Decision-Making, Consumer Ethics, Appeals, Consumer Morality, Consumer Social Responsibility Copyright 2019 Raika Sadeghein 1 ABSTRACT Shame and Guilt: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Raika Sadeghein In the past few decades, we have witnessed a growing body of literature on emotions in the consumer behavior domain. Emotions are defined as “mental states of readiness that arise from appraisals of events or one’s own thoughts” (Bagozzi, Gopinath, & Nyer, 1999, p. 184). Marketers have examined the role of emotions as stimuli, mediators, moderators, and responses to the environment. The broad topic of emotions includes subtopics such as impact of emotions on consumption, attitudes, and behavioral intentions, emotional responses to market stimuli, and the impact of emotions on cognition. However, although the study of emotions is pivotal to consumer researchers, the marketing literature has mostly focused on a few emotions. In this dissertation, our focus is on two emotional states of shame and guilt. Unlike marketing literature, these two emotional states are commonly investigated together in psychology and sociology literature. However, there seems to be an overemphasis on guilt in the marketing literature, while shame has not benefited from similar attention. Over three essays I summarize the literature on shame and guilt, examine these emotional states as mediators, and as interventions to induce behavior modification. 2 Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 1 Essay 1: Shame and Guilt ........................................................................................................................... 3 Abstract ..................................................................................................................................................... 4 Introduction .............................................................................................................................................. 5 Defining Shame and Guilt ......................................................................................................................... 7 Manipulation and Measurement ............................................................................................................ 13 Shame and Guilt in Marketing ................................................................................................................ 16 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................... 21 References: ............................................................................................................................................. 25 Essay 2: Behavioral Norms in Consumers’ World of Power: When and Why Shame and Guilt Increase Compliance ................................................................................................................................. 32 Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... 33 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 34 Theoretical Background .......................................................................................................................... 37 Shame and Guilt .................................................................................................................................. 37 Rhetorical and Narrative Appeals ....................................................................................................... 42 Study 1 .................................................................................................................................................... 45 Method ............................................................................................................................................... 46 Analysis and Results ............................................................................................................................ 48 Result Summary .................................................................................................................................. 49 Study 2 .................................................................................................................................................... 49 Method ............................................................................................................................................... 50 Analysis and Results ............................................................................................................................ 52 Result Summary .................................................................................................................................. 57 General Discussion .................................................................................................................................. 58 Theoretical contribution ..................................................................................................................... 58 Practical Implications .......................................................................................................................... 59 References .............................................................................................................................................. 64 Essay 3: How Do Online Customer Reviews Impact Online Purchases? The Role of Online Review Examination as a Guilt/Shame Reduction Strategy ............................................................................... 71 Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... 72 iii Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 73 Theoretical Background .......................................................................................................................... 75 Value violating purchase ..................................................................................................................... 75 Aversive States of Shame and Guilt .................................................................................................... 76 Shopping Motive and Negative Affect ................................................................................................ 80 STUDY 1 ................................................................................................................................................... 84 Method ............................................................................................................................................... 84 Analysis and Results ............................................................................................................................ 87 Result Summary .................................................................................................................................. 91 STUDY 2 ................................................................................................................................................... 92 Method ............................................................................................................................................... 92 Analysis and Results ............................................................................................................................ 94 Result Summary ...............................................................................................................................